Aisha Binani defeats Ribadu, becomes Adamawa’s first female governorship candidate in major party

Aisha Binani

Senator Aisha Binani has made history by becoming the first woman to win a governorship ticket in any of the major political parties in Adamawa State.

Binani pulled an upset in the primary election conducted on Thursday as the only female governorship aspirant in the race in Adamawa.

The lawmaker defeated several others including the pioneer chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Nuhu Ribadu.

Announcing the results on Friday morning, chairman of the electoral committee, Gambo Lawan, said Binani scored 430 votes, Ribadu had 288 votes, immediate past governor Jibrilla Bindo came third with 103 votes while Abdulrazaq Namdas, a serving member of the House of Representatives, came fourth with 94.

Lawan also said Umar Mustapha scored 39 votes while Wafari Theman got 21 votes.

Binani, a graduate of electrical engineering at the University of Southampton, is currently the chairman of the Senate Committee on Sustainable Development Goals and is a staunch advocate for women empowerment and gender equality.

In 2014, Senator Aisha Alhassan aka Mama Taraba won the governorship ticket of the APC in Taraba State but lost to Governor Darius Ishaku in the main election.