By Sylvanus Ochoa
For starters, Ishaku Elisha Abbo is an All Progressive Congress, APC, senator in the 10th Senate from Adamawa North senatorial district of Adamawa State.
Senator Abbo is an interesting and pitiable character. He’s interesting because he has, on his own volition, decided to stick out in the 10th Senate like a sore thumb, when the rest of his colleagues have decided to rally behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Senate leadership under Senate President Godswill Akpabio, in the arduous task of repositioning Nigeria after decades of bad leadership.
Pitiable, because he not only lacks the gravitas for his self-assigned, self-serving role of causing disharmony in the Senate, but the credibility to cry wolf where there’s absolutely none.
A relatively unknown and inconsequential senator beyond his senatorial district, as there has never been a bill that’s worthy of note under his name by the Nigerian public, Senator Abbo gained notoriety for morally despicable, highly nauseating, and undignified acts unbefitting of a decent human being, let alone a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Senator Abbo is an example of how not to be a party man. Abbo it was, despite being given a prominent position in the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, who abused and pilloried now President Tinubu, ostensibly because of the Muslim-Muslim ticket, with Babachir Lawal, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, who made N544 million in a grass-cutting contract in 2021.
As if that was not bad and shameful enough, Senator Abbo saw nothing wrong in offending the sensibilities of Nigerians when he announced on the Senate floor, without being prompted, that he passed the Common Entrance examination when he was in Primary Three. Yet, Abbo has never displayed any erudition or intellectual depth, both in his private and public life.
Abbo’s beef with the Senate President Akpabio was his dissatisfaction with his chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Culture and Tourism. He reportedly thought he would be given the headship of the Senate Committee on Navy. But the Senate leadership probably thought wisely that Abbo lacks the experiential and intellectual capacity to head that branch of our country’s military.
Elisha Abbo it was who believes his legislative and oversight functions are domiciled in Abuja sex toys stores rather than the Senate and the MDAs. Perhaps it was the curiosity, if not the questions asked the Adamawa senator by the female store attendant that earned her some slaps from Abbo.
Abbo’s life and lifestyle reeks of paradox. He’s reported to be a family man with children, yet, it’s also an open secret at the National Assembly that the man is also gay. Bi-sexualism is the appropriate name for men who live such a lifestyle.
Within the precinct of the National Assembly, people also say, although in hushed tones, that Senator Abbo may very well have been HIV positive since 2004 or earlier. Perhaps that was the reason he frequents adult sex toy stores in and outside the country.
Either way, one would think that a man who lives such a convoluted life should be trying to find solutions to his legal, immoral, and health challenges and stop fouling the Senate hall with his politics of nonsense.
