By Edgar Amos Sunday
For personal reasons, I had initially resolved not to engage Dr. Umar Ardo on his recent piece titled “When Praise Becomes Propaganda: A Refutal of ‘The Fintiri Aura’”. However, given the superficiality of his argument—and the fact that a few have been swayed by it—I feel compelled to clarify certain points and offer Dr. Ardo a sincere word of counsel.
In my article, The Fintiri Aura, I drew attention to the visionary leadership qualities of Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, Governor of Adamawa State. Among other things, I emphasized his courage and deep faith in God. This was, and remains, a personal reflection. Every individual is entitled to their own heroes and heroines. Even the global icons I referenced—Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela—may not resonate with everyone. Some might even prefer to invoke figures like Malcolm X, or more controversially, Adolf Hitler or Benito Mussolini. That is their prerogative. Dr. Ardo, too, is entitled to his choices.
However, his attempt to discredit my article solely on the basis of my current role as Chief of Staff to Governor Fintiri raises questions of fairness. If, by his logic, my proximity to the Governor renders my views biased, how then should we classify Dr. Ardo’s objectivity, given his long-standing political rivalry with Governor Fintiri—both at the polls and in the courts—where he has consistently faced defeat?
Notably, Dr. Ardo failed to acknowledge even a single policy, project, or achievement of Governor Fintiri’s administration over the last six years. That, in itself, is telling. In contrast, Presidents Muhammadu Buhari and Bola Ahmed Tinubu—leaders from opposing political parties—have both recognized Governor Fintiri with awards for good governance. Unless Dr. Ardo believes these statesmen are aides to Governor Fintiri or driven by sycophancy, their commendations should serve as compelling endorsements that transcend partisan bias.
Across Adamawa State, voices of praise have come not only from within government circles but from respected elder statesmen, women, and young people—many of whom have no formal ties to the administration. Their commendations, especially on Governor Fintiri’s strides in physical infrastructure, cannot be dismissed as propaganda.
Dr. Ardo also fixates on a purported court case involving the Governor. But as the legal principle in Nigeria asserts: a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a competent court of law.
He further criticizes my article for lacking statistical data. But I was not presenting an econometric report—I was discussing character traits like courage and conviction, qualities not always measured by charts or graphs. If and when I write about quantifiable governance indicators, I will certainly provide the relevant data—ideally for objective readers, not for those burdened by political prejudice.
Nevertheless, since data is of interest, one statistic might be relevant: in the 2023 governorship elections, Dr. Ardo received 6,870 votes—approximately 0.3% of the total 2,196,566 registered voters in the state. One must wonder: after repeated unsuccessful attempts to win the gubernatorial seat, does the bitterness now spilling into print stem from genuine critique or personal frustration?
Sometimes, those who lash out the most are the ones most in need of empathy. Perhaps what Dr. Ardo truly needs isn’t a counter-argument—but a hug.
