North dumped Atiku for Muslim who cannot recite Fatiha, Bello blasts Tinubu over ‘betrayal’

*Explains how president has already disqualified himself from 2027 race

*Describes Kwankwaso as politically toxic

By KEMI KASUMU

He warned that the 2027 election would be determined strictly by performance, cautioning politicians against taking northern voters for granted. “The northerners are going to decide and take a look at who did what, when and how,” he stated. “Anybody that thinks he’s going to take the northern part of the country for granted on election day is doing it at his own peril.”

Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Kano State, Jaafar Bello, has launched a scathing attack on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing him of betraying the trust of northern Nigerians despite the region’s overwhelming support for his 2023 presidential bid.

Speaking during an interview on Trust TV’s Inside the North, Bello said the North now feels “maltreated” and “abused” under Tinubu’s administration, insisting that northern voters backed the President based on expectations of development and prosperity, not religious sentiments.

“But of all these people, the person that has maltreated the northern part of the country, the person that has abused in totality the trust and confidence of the northern people is Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Bello said.

“That’s my verdict and I believe a lot of northerners share the same opinion with me.”

Bello rejected the argument that Tinubu’s Muslim-Muslim ticket secured northern votes, stressing that the region has historically supported southern candidates irrespective of ethnicity or religion, including former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan.

“It is not the Muslim-Muslim ticket,” he said. “The northerners supported him thinking that he is going to reincarnate the same strides and development associated with Lagos, which they have now seen in a different light entirely.”

The former PDP governorship candidate also stirred controversy with remarks about religious identity and the 2023 election. According to him, northern voters abandoned former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for “a person that cannot even recite Suratul Fatiha correctly.”

Defending the comment after being challenged by the interviewer, Bello said, “You can’t be a Muslim if you cannot recite Surah al-Fatiha.”

He warned that the 2027 election would be determined strictly by performance, cautioning politicians against taking northern voters for granted.

“The northerners are going to decide and take a look at who did what, when and how,” he stated. “Anybody that thinks he’s going to take the northern part of the country for granted on election day is doing it at his own peril.”

Bello also defended calls for power to return to the North in 2027, arguing that the region had made significant political sacrifices since 1999 without commensurate benefits.

On the chances of President Tinubu seeking re-election, Bello argued that the President had “already disqualified himself” based on campaign promises he allegedly failed to fulfil.

“If we are a nation guided by morality and sanity, Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not be placing himself before Nigerians for re-election,” he said.

“He said publicly, ‘If I don’t give you power, don’t vote for me again.’ Nigerians are still paying estimated electricity bills. There is no stable power supply. Yet he wants a second term.”

Bello further criticised the administration’s borrowing profile, questioning what tangible development had been achieved with the loans secured by the government.

“All the trillions that have been borrowed by this administration, where has it gone to? What is there on ground to show for it?” he asked.

The Kano politician also took aim at former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, describing him as “toxic” to any political party he joins.

“I told you before that Kwankwaso is going to be toxic to any party he joins,” Bello said.

“The Kwankwasiyya movement is driven by self-interest and self-perpetuation. Kwankwaso is not moved by ideas or development but by what is in it for him.”

He further alleged that Kwankwaso’s alliance with Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi was part of a long-term strategy to position himself for the presidency in 2031.

According to Bello, promises allegedly being made about serving only one term should not be trusted, arguing that Nigerian politicians are known for making commitments they later abandon.

CLICK HERE FOR JAAFAR’S INTERVIEW IN PARTS AS ON TRUST TV