Nassarawa Gov’s Wives Exchange Blows In Public Over First Lady's Role

*2nd Wife Gives 1st Wife Hot Slap!

 

There is a domestic war going on right now in the North central state of Nasarawa. And if care is not taken, the fight may affect governance in the state.

According to what we gathered, the two wives of Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura are in the boxing ring over who takes the role of the first lady in the state.

Two weeks ago, sources say the women, at a public function, threw decorum to the wind and began to exchange blows to the chagrin of on lookers.

Those who should know alleged that the seeming war of influence brewing between the two women; Hajiya Salamatu Al-Makura, the first wife of the Governor and Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura, the second wife, over who should assume the fundamental role of the first lady of the state got messier, when the two met at the commissioning of a project been presided over by their husband. It was gathered that when it was the turn of the first lady to give comment over the project, the MC called the name of Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura, the second wife and addressed her as the first lady of the state.

Impeccable sources alleged that immediately Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura collected the microphone to give her speech Hajiya Salamatu Al-Makura, the first wife stood up and grabbed the microphone from her and addressed herself as the rightful first lady, who is in the position to give the speech.

An eye witness divulged that before anyone could react to the situation, Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura, the second wife, reacted with a resounding slap on the face of Hajiya Salamatu Al-Makura, the first wife.

'It was a show of shame! The two women fought like babies, tearing each other’s clothes. If not for the security personnel, they would’ve naked themselves publicly,’ the eye witness revealed.

Governor Umaru Tanko Al-Makura was said to have walked away from the scene quietly without taking side on the issue.

A resident of the state claimed that the two women are implementing projects that could enhance capacity building of women and children and promote human capital development and acting in the capacity of the state first lady. 

While Hajiya Salamatu Al-Makura is implementing a pet project named 'Women and Childcare Enhancement Foundation', the second wife, Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura has also introduced her pet project called 'Tallafi Women  and Youths Foundation.'

In the heat of the competition, it was alleged that the first wife to the Governor, Hajiya Salamatu, had to cut short her attendance of the All First Ladies' Retreat organised by the First Lady of Nigeria and wife of the President, Dame Patience Jonathan, in Obudu, Cross River State, when she saw the second wife, Hajiya Mairo, on television, flagging off her pet project in Lafia

The predicament over the office of the first lady of the state has generated confusion among wives of top government functionaries, local government Directors of Personnel Management (DPM'S), who are now overseeing the affairs of the 13 local government councils in the state as well as wives of administrators of the 16 development areas. They are in limbo over the choice of which of the governor's wife’s programmes they will identify with or implement.

Those in the know alleged that either of the wives of the governor get provoked whenever someone shows more commitment to one of the Governor's wives pet project to the detriment of the other. They have purportedly developed deep resentment for each other.

An insider in the government, who preferred anonymity, revealed that during Hajiya Mairo Al-Makura's tour of select Islamic schools in the state to see how she could assist the Al-Majiri's by way of introducing western education into the Koranic schools, there was a mild drama at Nassarawa-Eggon Local Government council guest house, when Hajiya Mairo went in for lunch. The Director of Personnel Management of the council, Mallam Haruna Mohammed, and his wife, Mrs. Sadiya Mohammed, were physically assaulted by women suspected to be loyalists of Hajiya Mairo, the second wife of Governor Al-Makura to the extent that the DPM's wife, Sadiya, was left half naked before the crowd at the guest house where they had lodged. It was alleged that the DPM and his wife were manhandled because of their closeness to the first wife, Hajiya Salamatu.

Records have it that previous governors of the state were able to overcome this travail despite the fact that some of them were excessively polygamous.

August 13, 2011