For all he’s done – for Daura, Katsina and Nigeria – the Daura Emirate has adopted and soon turbaning as the Dan Amanar Daura – the trusted son of Daura – the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi. Olawale Olaleye writes

When the allegation filtered out, that some persons had tried to stall the installation of the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, as the Dan Amanar Daura – the trusted son of Daura – or at the minimum, change the date, it did not come to many as surprise.

In fact, it would have been otherwise curious if no such attempt was made. The title is big; the timing is auspicious and the leverage – although audacious – is just for the taking, especially, by the politically sophisticated.

Amaechi is a core politician with a well-off career on the turf. Politics is all that he’s known all his life and he understands the game well enough. But, he is also wired differently. He not only plays politics with a degree of decency – always minding what the society thinks – his biggest asset as a politician is, trust.

This is also why he struggles forgiving any form of betrayal of trust. And when he eventually does, perhaps, because his faith demands that he lets go, such a character may never come close to him again. For trust betrayal, Amaechi would damn the consequences of his choices and move on.

Whichever dimension his political sojourn might have so far assumed, trust has remained his greatest asset as well as equity so put into partnership, including in personal relationships or even his private life. He’s not an angel neither is he in infallible, but, consciously, he has set a respectable standard for himself, not excluding all forms of interactions.

Interestingly, he is not a title-freak, and would rather walk through a multitude unnoticed. But this one title isn’t regular or a free-for-all either. Thus, embracing it – beyond its political pulls – shares largely with his ever constant creed: Trust!

Therefore, on Saturday, February 5, the town of Daura, Daura Local Government, Katsina State, would see the kind of crowd it probably last saw during the 2019 electioneering, when it shall witness the turbaning of this A-list minister, as the Dan Amanar Daura, by the Emir of the Daura Emirate, Umar Farouk Umar.

Daura is a town and Local Government Area in Katsina State, a north-western state. It is the spiritual home of the Hausa people. The Daura Emirate is referred to as one of the “seven true Hausa states” because it was, ruled by the descendants of Bayajidda’s sons with Daurama and Magira. It is also the hometown of President Muhammadu Buhari.

To that extent, the turbaning of Amaechi as the trusted son of Daura, in obvious appreciation of his many contributions to the development of Daura and indeed, the whole of Katsina State, being a major stakeholder in the entity called Nigeria, cannot sufficiently capture the role of the minister in the emergence of the Muhammadu Buhari presidency – from the very beginning.

Although history has yet to capture all of the contributions of this Ikwerre-born politician in how the Buhari candidacy was consolidated and his victory, cemented, a show of appreciation such as this, could however, go a long way in proving to Amaechi that good deeds hardly go unnoticed by also truly good people.

Today, Daura plays host to many development initiatives, including the University of Transportation, donated to the Nigerian Government by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC). Also, to Amaechi’s credit, is the resuscitation of the rail sector that has been moribund for over three decades, ensuring that the US$1.959 billion Kano-Maradi Standard Gauge Railway line passed through the president’s hometown,Daura.

Amaechi did not just earn Buhari’s trust – the trust that had been tested at different times, especially, by those who were somewhat uncomfortable with his relationship with the president. It goes without saying, therefore, that emerging Buhari’s Campaign DG on two occasions, was a reward for trust.

Again, manning a ministry as huge as that of transport, is arguably a function of trust. On different accounts, the trust between these two had been cemented and untoward insinuations quietly canceled out. Like Buhari, trust is important to these two.

Amaechi, of course, has had his fair share of the knocks from power game. But with the trust between him and Buhari, he has continued to trudge on unscathed. Amaechi clearly understands both the rudimentary and critical rules in the corridor of power and had since survived the many traps set in his path, soldiering on in expectation of the best.

Those trying to establish a nexus between the title and its timing in relation to the president’s body language might still have to do more scientific digging into what 2023 may look like. Amaechi has not indicated interest in the nation’s number one job, but his body language looks like he would eventually let the cat out of the bag, when the floor is formally declared open.

After all, if he did not throw his hat in the ring for the nation’s presidency, what would he be doing by 2023? Aside commanding the competence, experience and capacity for the job, this may also seem like a dream come true, especially, since everyone showing interest is also not better than him in any way – given all the boxes of considerations.

But if trust, dependability and honesty in leadership are some of the factors that would guarantee the election of the next president of Nigeria, Amaechi is amongst the first five Nigerians – the two major parties combined – eligible for that office, in addition to eligibility, capacity and competence.

Brewed with trust, this devout family man and father of three other men, has paid his dues in politics, leadership, development advocacy and patriotism to fatherland. He is neither a cherub nor a paranormal creature, but Amaechi boasts a certain level of decency and trust that would never make him cross certain lines – no matter the pressure – in dealing with others.

To the Dan Amanar Daura, this is one deserving title you have elected to honour in your many years of call to service, and indeed, it is worthy of the attention being accorded it from all and sundry.