Pantami’s BBC Interview: The Half-Truths and His Hollow Ambition

 Pantami’s BBC Interview: The Half-Truths and His Hollow Ambition

I watched the recent BBC interview with Isah Ali Pantami, and I could not help but find it deeply amusing.

First, I wish to state that I am glad Pantami has called for a direct primary election to be conducted. I am glad because this presents the perfect avenue to validate the point I have been making for some time now, that Pantami is, in actual fact, deeply unpopular in Gombe, within the party, and at the grassroots level. It also affords him the opportunity to test and prove, once and for all, whatever popularity he believes he possesses.

In the course of an interview that lasted over ten minutes, he raised numerous issues; an interview that was, expectedly, riddled with half-truths and outright falsehoods. I will share my thoughts on a few.

On the issue of his non-involvement in the consensus process, Pantami claimed that he attended only one meeting, at which it was agreed that consensus would be adopted in selecting the party’s flag bearer, and that should that process fail, a direct primary election would then be conducted. He proceeded to spin a rather elaborate tale about why he could not attend the second meeting, despite having been invited, citing the absence of flights to Gombe that Saturday and a vehicle breakdown upon attempting to travel by road. While that story may sound plausible to the uninitiated, it raises several pointed questions: given the vast resources at Pantami’s disposal, how could twenty hours be considered insufficient time to transport himself to a state he so passionately desires to govern, regardless of the logistical cost or inconvenience? Where was the private jet he has used to travel to Gombe on multiple occasions, the same one he deployed to attend a wedding in Borno State? Was there truly a more pressing use for that aircraft than this? And what was a man who aspires to govern Gombe State doing in Abuja throughout this period, rather than being on ground, engaging and consulting with the very people he claims to represent?

He also raised the issue of injustice, declaring his commitment to fight it to his last breath. I find this particularly hilarious, and for good reason. This is a man who witnessed various forms of injustice and endured episodes of controversy in the past, yet chose silence, presumably in anticipation of a reward for that silence, only to suddenly rediscover his voice the moment a process he willingly subscribed to failed to deliver the outcome he desired. The questions, therefore, are these: Pantami, why now? What has changed? Is injustice only injustice when it is directed at you and your ambitions? Would it have been injustice had you been the one selected, or would the end have simply justified the means?

The self-appointed crusader for justice then proceeded, in a characteristic episode of self-glorification, to claim that he is the most popular aspirant at the grassroots not only in Gombe, but across the entire North, going as far as challenging the journalist to go and verify this assertion. This statement, I believe, stems from one of two things: either a delusional sense of grandeur that has given rise to his habitual and tiresome self-adulation, or the preposterous presumption that his fame as a cleric translates directly into real and tangible political reach. Either way, this arrogant claim is not only politically naive, it is demonstrably false, and would be dismissed by anyone with even the faintest understanding of the political landscape in Gombe State. And he, more than most, knows this to be true.

As a politician, Pantami holds the worst record of grassroots engagement, human relations, and political outreach among the top contenders for this position in Gombe State. Here is a man who practically abandoned the state, its people, and the party, going as far as transferring his polling unit from Gombe to Abuja during his time as a Minister, only to return now, demanding the APC gubernatorial ticket as though it were his birthright. A man who refused to participate in the state congresses and the Zonal Convention, yet conveniently showed up at the APC National Convention. It is for these reasons that I am firmly convinced this noise he is making has nothing to do with fighting injustice or with any genuine expectation of winning a direct primary. It is, rather, a calculated and cunning attempt to position himself favourably enough to be compensated with a lucrative Federal appointment.

As many who know me will attest, I have never regarded Pantami’s governorship aspiration as serious, nor do I consider him a serious politician. This latest episode of political theatrics only deepens that conviction. For him, it is not about the office, it is about the attention, the spotlight, and ultimately, the spoils. He knows, full well, that whether primary elections are conducted once or a hundred times within the APC, he is certain to lose every single time. But losing, he can stomach. Being left out of the reward system, he cannot. When the direct primaries are held, and if there are three candidates on the ballot, Pantami will not only finish last, he will not come anywhere close to second place.

Finally, on the matter of challenging the process in court, that is entirely within his rights. The law will be tested, and I can assure you that my learned colleagues at the Bar will have no objections whatsoever to the juicy brief.

Isiyaku Ahmed Danlawan, Esq.

6th May, 2026