WHO NEEDS A HUG? Edgar Amos Sunday Responds to Dr. Umar Ardo’s Critique of Governor Fintiri’s Leadership

By Emmanuel Kwada

In a fiery rebuttal, Edgar Amos Sunday, Chief of Staff to Adamawa State Governor Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has responded to Dr. Umar Ardo’s critical article titled “When Praise Becomes Propaganda: A Refutal of ‘The Fintiri Aura’”.

Sunday’s response, laced with sharp wit and pointed arguments, defends his earlier piece praising Governor Fintiri’s leadership while questioning Ardo’s objectivity and motives.

Sunday’s original article, “The Fintiri Aura”, celebrated Governor Fintiri’s visionary leadership, highlighting his courage and deep faith in God. Describing these as personal opinions, Sunday asserted his right—and that of every individual—to choose their heroes, referencing global icons like Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, and Nelson Mandela.

“Some may prefer Malcolm X, Adolf Hitler, or Benito Mussolini as their heroes,” Sunday remarked, emphasizing the subjectivity of such choices. “Dr. Ardo too has the right to choose his heroes.”

Ardo’s critique dismissed Sunday’s article as lacking credibility and objectivity, citing Sunday’s position as Fintiri’s aide. Sunday countered this by questioning Ardo’s own impartiality, noting Ardo’s history of electoral and legal battles against Fintiri, all of which ended in defeat.

If my article is not objective because I am an aide, how objective is Dr. Ardo’s, given his incessant vitriolic attacks on a Governor he has serially contested and lost to?

“If my article is not objective because I am an aide, how objective is Dr. Ardo’s, given his incessant vitriolic attacks on a Governor he has serially contested and lost to?” Sunday asked pointedly.

Sunday challenged Ardo’s failure to acknowledge any of Fintiri’s achievements over six years in office, particularly in infrastructure development. He cited accolades from former President Muhammadu Buhari and President Bola Tinubu, who awarded Fintiri back-to-back honors for good governance despite their differing political affiliations.

“Is Buhari an aide of Fintiri? Is Tinubu his Chief of Staff? Or are both propelled by sycophancy?” Sunday quipped, underscoring the widespread recognition of Fintiri’s strides.

Addressing Ardo’s reference to a purported court case against Fintiri, Sunday invoked the legal principle that a person is innocent until proven guilty in a court of competent jurisdiction. He also dismissed Ardo’s claim that “The Fintiri Aura” lacked data, arguing that the article focused on qualitative attributes like courage and faith, not quantitative metrics. “If and when I write about measurable issues, I will provide relevant data—not for those blinded by prejudice and hubris, but for objective analysts,” Sunday stated.

If and when I write about measurable issues, I will provide relevant data—not for those blinded by prejudice and hubris, but for objective analysts

In a biting closing remark, Sunday highlighted Ardo’s electoral performance in the 2023 governorship election, where Ardo garnered a mere 6,870 votes (0.3%) out of 2,196,566 registered voters in Adamawa State. “Repeatedly contesting to be governor and consistently being rejected by the electorate in such a humiliating way might make someone bitter, frustrated, and demoralized,” Sunday wrote. “For such people, one of their greatest needs is a hug.”

Sunday’s response has sparked reactions on platforms like X, where supporters of Governor Fintiri have praised his administration’s developmental achievements, while others debate the ongoing rivalry between Fintiri and Ardo.

As Adamawa State continues to witness infrastructural transformation under Fintiri’s leadership, this exchange underscores the polarized perspectives on his tenure.

For now, Sunday’s sharp retort has shifted the spotlight back to Fintiri’s record, leaving Ardo with a rhetorical embrace—and a challenge to rethink his critique.

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