The Sorry Machina Story That Makes Senate President Ahmed Lawan Eat His Cake And Have It

In the popular movie Ex Machina, Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson), a programmer at a huge Internet company, wins a contest that enables him to spend a week at the private estate of Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac), his firm’s brilliant CEO. But for Bahir Machina, even though he won the initial battles to represent the APC at the senate from the Yobe north senatorial district, the last straw of the coin has failed him.

Booth senate president Senator Ahmed Lawan and Bashir Machina threw the dice at the senate.

But Lawan threw two dice. He had his mind at both the senate and the presidency. 

In our movie of reference, Caleb learns that he has been chosen to be the human component in a Turing test to determine the capabilities and consciousness of Ava (Alicia Vikander), a beautiful robot. 

However, it soon becomes evident that Ava is far more self-aware and deceptive than either man imagined.

Unfortunately, even when Bashir Machina won unopposed during the senatorial primary organised by the party in May 2022, he won’t be the party’s flag bearer in the coming election.

Is Ahmed Lawan a protege of the cabal?

The arrays of interviews the Kaduna State governor granted newsmen last week will continue to fester for political reference.

When he appeared on TVC News, he said that one of the wild cards thrown by “the party’s saboteurs” is to say that President Muhammadu Buhari chose Senator Ahmed Lawan before the primary election.

As the game of politics would have it, he lost the election.

He had participated in another primary organised by the APC.

How, then did he get the chance to participate in this coming election if he did not join hands with the powers that be?

AllNews Nigeria monitored the back and forth and understands that Machina was reportedly asked to step down for Lawan, but he insisted that he is the rightful candidate.

Senator Abdullahi Adamu headlines members of the party who wanted him to vacate the seat from Lawan.

The same person insisted that Lawan was the chosen candidate of President Buhari.

Even INEC played its part in giving Machina a voice

Machina won the election conducted by the party and monitored by the electoral umpire INEC.

Still, the APC submitted the senate president’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the candidate for Yobe north.

The electoral commission subsequently refused to list any candidate for the district.

In a fair race, would Lawan have had his way in an election he was initially not interested in running?

Machina thought the court would salvage him

Bashir Machina thought the court was a self-aware last hope of the hopeless, but the outcome of the overall court process showed that it could be deceptive if it doesn’t favour who wishes it should.

Aggrieved, Machina instituted a suit asking the court to declare him the authentic senatorial candidate.

In September 2022, a federal high court in Damaturu, the Yobe capital, ordered the APC and INEC to recognise Machina as the candidate.

A month later, an Abuja court of appeal affirmed Machina’s election as the candidate of the APC for the Yobe north senatorial district.

Still not satisfied, the APC appealed the appellate court’s judgment and the supreme court affirmed Senate President Ahmad Lawan as the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate for Yobe north.

Lawan versus Machina

Without a doubt, Lawan did not participate in the initial primary election for the party.

He banked on the “assurance of the cabal” that he would clinch the party’s presidential ticket, which he lost. 

There is no written or unwritten agreement between Machina and Lawan that he would vacate the seat if he lost his presidential push.

Even if it could be politically disastrous that the senate president could not return to the senate, it is destructive that the Lawan, the APC and the loopholes in the law system and law practice robbed Machina of a birthright adjudged to be a step-up for his political career. 

Machina cannot proceed to another court. He won at both two lower courts.

Why did he lose at the apex court of the land?

At the end of the day, Senate President Ahmed Lawan ate his cake and had it contrary to the popular saying.