Uba Sani, governor of Kaduna, has picked Jerry Adams, the executive chairman of the Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KADIRS), as his running mate for the 2027 elections.
Sani announced Adams’ nomination in a statement issued on X on Tuesday.
He said Adams’ selection is part of his administration’s commitment to inclusion, fairness and equal representation in the religiously diverse state.
“Kaduna is a remarkable state, blessed with extraordinary diversity of faiths, ethnicities and cultures. That diversity is not a burden; it is our greatest strength,” he wrote.
“Our history has taught us difficult lessons about the high cost of division, mistrust and exclusion. Yet it has also shown us that when we choose dialogue over discord, inclusion over alienation, and justice over prejudice, our people achieve extraordinary things together.
“For more than three years, our administration has worked tirelessly to heal old wounds and restore confidence in government.”
Sani described Adams, a Christian, as “an accomplished public servant, an outstanding tax administrator and an institution builder”, adding that his leadership has transformed the Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service into one of Nigeria’s most respected revenue agencies.
He said through innovation, transparency and professionalism, Adams has helped strengthen the state’s fiscal capacity, enabling government to invest more in education, healthcare, infrastructure, agriculture and other critical sectors that improve the lives of the people.
“Beyond his impressive professional accomplishments, Jerry Adams is a man of integrity, humility and quiet strength. He has consistently demonstrated an unwavering commitment to peace, reconciliation and inclusive governance, believing, as I do, that Kaduna’s diversity must always unite us rather than divide us,” Sani said.
The governor urged the people of Kaduna not to view Adams’ nomination through the “narrow prism of religion, ethnicity or geography”.
The development marks a significant political shift in Kaduna.
In 2019, Nasir el-Rufai, then governor of Kaduna, disrupted the state’s long-standing political tradition of a Muslim-Christian ticket by selecting Hadiza Balarabe, a fellow Muslim, as his running mate.
The Muslim-Muslim ticket drew criticism from Christian groups and fuelled concerns about religious representation in the state, which has a long history of ethno-religious tensions.
In February 2020, el-Rufai described his choice of Balarabe as his most daring decision.
