Newly elected governors in Nigeria have being sworn into offices, but there is a raging battle for the office of the First Lady in some states where the governors is married to more than one wife. Though the title of ‘First Lady’ has been a controversial one, as many argue such offices or titles are not recognized constitutionally. President Muhammadu Buhari first said he will not have an office of the first lady in his administration, that seemed to set the ball rolling, as many states are adopting the stand because they are avoiding the rivalry that would ensue among their many wives.We cant forget easily the Kebbi State saga where late president Yar’adua’s daughter who married ex-governor Dakingari was automatically given the title and office, causing much drama. Likewise in Adamawa State, where all four wives of the ex- governor then all bore the title and held individual portfolios. In the present dispensation, however, the politics of who gets recognition as the governor’s wife is getting fierce.
For instance, Governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, said via a press statement that he has abolished the title. The statement said the proper nomenclature will be ‘Wife (or wives) of the Governor’ as the case may be. This is because he has two wives, Hajiya Aisha Bagudu and Dr. Zainab Bagudu. .
Katsina State has also followed suit by ditching the title, Malam Abdu Labaran, Special Assistant to the Governor, said there is no such office in the state. “The governor has said they will be addressed as ‘Wives of the Governor’ since there are three of them. Secondly, they will be shielded from the press as much as possible. If anyone has anything official to do with any of them, he or she has to get clearance from the governor of the state who is their husband.” The governor is married to three wives namely, Binta, Hadiza and Sakiya.
Yobe State under Governor Ibrahim Geidam has never recognized an office of the first lady. Governor Geidam, who is serving his second term, has made it a point of duty not to have anyone address them as that. He has kept his private life private, likewise his three wives’, who all attend official functions as Wife (or Wives) of the Governor.
Apparently following the same arrangement, Kaduna State’s Governor, Malam Nasir Ahmed el-Rufai, who has three wives (Hadiza, Aisha and Asiah), will not have an office or title of first lady. Hajiya Hadiza, who has been in the spotlight right from her husband’s campaign days, reportedly stated that she believes the office of the first lady should be purely ceremonial. The architect said: “I don’t believe that as the wife of the governor, you should dabble into running the government. It is your husband who was elected, not you. Your role as the wife of the governor is to support." An inside source maintains there are plans by the government to abolish the office and title as the governor has three wives.
In Nasarawa State, where the governor Almakura is on his second tenure, the office of the first lady is officially recognised. Though he has two wives, Hajiya Salamatu Almakura and Hajiya Mairo Almakura, one of them held the position in his first term but there has being a silent rivalry as the second wife wants to take over the office for the governor's second stint in power.
Bauchi State Governor Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar is yet to appoint any one in any political office, including the office of the first lady. The governor has two wives, one of them a retired Central Bank Director and the other a lawyer.
Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara state who is serving his second term, has three wives to whom during his first term he allocated different portfolios. They all had the title of First Ladies but designated to do different services. The three wives were engaged in various activities, especially in the areas of girl child education and women empowerment. The coordinated offices of the three first ladies of Zamfara State would continue in the state. The three first ladies are Hajiya Fatima, Hajiaya Hadiza and Hajiya Asma’u, who are said to be coordinating themselves to work harmoniously with each other taking an area of particular interest.
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