Former Nigerian deputy governors attribute their difficulty in succeeding their principals to governors’ fear that the deputies would uncover financial misconduct or avenge past suppression, compounded by a lack of trust and political exclusion.
Former deputy governors across Nigeria have identified fear of exposure and the desire to prevent ‘vengeful’ succession as key reasons why governors rarely support their deputies as successors.
Ahmed Mohammed Ketso, the immediate past Deputy Governor of Niger State, asserted that governors are afraid to support their deputies partly because they are “extremely suppressive towards them.” The most important factor, according to Ketso, is that most deputies are “always excluded financially” and thus, the governor “will not want him to take over and find out the atrocities that could attract a probe.”
Former Imo State Deputy Governor, Prince Eze Madumere, noted that a lack of trust is a factor, adding that deputies “have no role in the affairs of their various states and function merely as spare tyres.” Meanwhile, former Kebbi Deputy Governor Bello Dantani Argungu pointed to party zoning arrangements, while Alhaji Ibrahim Aliyu stressed the need for a good understanding, even a “written agreement.”