The Ibrahim Kabir Masari’s Example

By Abdu Labaran Malumfashi.

It is not often that you come across a politician who spends his hard earned money on good deeds even without general elections on the horizon, like Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari.

Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari recently did what no other individual (politician or not) in Katsina state ever did. He doled out items worth N1 Billion in his Funtua (Katsina South) Senatorial District.

But who is Ibrahim Kabir Masari, before we get on with what good deeds he has done to warrant interrogating the person that he is?

Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari is better known as Ibrahim Masari, ‘WAZIRIN TINUBU’. It is a name that rings a bell across the country, especially in his home state of Katsina, Lagos and Abuja, the Federal Capital of Nigeria.

But if his full name is used to address him, it would appear to some people as if he was the son of the uncle (Alhaji Kabir Masari, the Madawaki of Masari) of the former Governor of Katsina state, Rt.Honourable Aminu Bello Masari. And if he was referred to as just ‘Masari’, many people would immediately bring the former Katsina state governor to mind, since he is called so.

For starters, Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari is the bosom friend of the Katsina state Governor, Dr. Dikko Umar Radda, PhD.

Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari was the National Welfare Officer of the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) long before the present government came on stream. But during the National Convention of the ruling party, where the present president emerged the National flag bearer of the APC, Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari’s home state of Katsina lost the chair of the National Welfare Officer, but won that of the National Legal Adviser, a position eventually won by someone else in the state, since the former welfare officer was not a lawyer.

It is to be noted that Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari’s association with the Jagaban Borgu (as Bola Ahmed Tinubu was popularly known everywhere in the country) started long before the latter became the National flag bearer of the APC, which explains why he (Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari) was chosen to be the candidate’s temporary running mate before Senator (Alhaji) Kashim Shettima became the permanent running mate and, eventually, Vice President to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria.

Presently, Alhaji Ibrahim Masari is the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the President on political affairs, a position that keeps him close to his boss and mentor.

The Vice President was at the event as the Special Guest of Honour, and opened it by stating that it was the first time that anybody from Katsina State would distribute items worth N1 Billion in his state, and in only one senatorial district for that matter.

He said people like Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari were what the ruling party (APC) needed to sell it, and the Wazirin Tinubu was doing a very good job of it.

The VP said he was amazed at the mamoth crowd that attended the occasion, the like of which was not seen in Funtua, according to him, “in the last ten years”. The assertion was immediately corrected by the crowd, which roared in unison that “such a crowd was only seen just once in the history of the town, Funtua”.

The event was also witnessed by the governor of the state, who was represented by his Deputy, Alhaji Faruk Jobe. The governor agreed with the Vice President in both the size of the donation, the size of the crowd and the need for people like Alhaji Ibrahim in the ruling party so as to continue selling it across the country.

There was also the former Governor of the state, Rt. Honourable Aminu Bello Masari, among other important guests at the occasion, to assist the Vice President in the initial introduction and distribution of the items.

The items include the following:
(i) N30,000 to each person in each of the Wards of the 11 local governments in the Funtua Senatorial district. The amount came to a staggering N306 Million.
(ii) 15 Motor cars, which are covered with large pictures of the Vice President, the governor and Alhaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari. And, boldly inscribed in large letters on the plates is the legend ‘WAZIRN TINUBU’, instead of the numbers.
(iii) 75 Motor cycles
(iv) 110 Grinding Machines
(v) 102 Solar Panels
(vi) 150 Sewing Machines
(vii) 42 Spaghetti Electric Making Machines
(viii) 42 Manual Spaghetti Making Machines
(mx) 10,000 Bags of Fertiliser
(x) 100 Welding Machines, among so many other things.

Well, the loss of the APC National Headquarters in Abuja is the gain of the Villa and other places in Ahaji Ibrahim Kabir Masari’s generous presence.

Malam Malumfashi wrote from Abuja.