Aishatu Dahiru Ahmed

She started her early school education in Kaduna and completed it at Gwadabawa Primary School, Jimeta in Yola. She obtained her secondary school education at Government Secondary School, Yola.

In 1993, Binani then attended the Federal Polytechnic of Mubi where she obtained an Ordinary National Diploma and then Higher National Diploma in Electrical and Electronics Engineering. She completed her National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) service in Borno state where she won the state merit award for outstanding performance.

Binani furthered her education by pursuing a certificate in Rural Radio Systems at the University of Southampton in the UK. Additionally, she holds a postgraduate diploma in Business Management and a certificate in Data Processing from Nasarawa State University in Keffi.[6][7]

Binani is married to Professor Ahmed Modibbo, a former Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), is believed to be one of the wealthiest individuals in Adamawa state.[8]

Binani decided to contest for the position of Governor of Adamawa for the 2023 general election. In a competitive primary election that involved prominent figures such as former Governor of Adamawa State, Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow, pioneer Executive Chairman Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nuhu Ribadu, and influential Federal legislator and chairman of the House Committee on Army, Abdurazaq Namdas, she emerged as the surprising victor.[5]

She received 430 votes with the runner-up, Nuhu Ribadu, receiving 288 votes. Ribadu filed a lawsuit challenging the validity of the election. In his suit, he sought the nullification of the exercise and requested the disqualification of Binani. Ribadu based his claims on allegations of vote buying, over-voting, and delegate inducement. The lawsuit raised concerns regarding the integrity and fairness of the primary election process. In October 2022, the Federal High Court in Yola made a decision to nullify the primaries. Following this development, the First Lady of Nigeria, Aisha Buhari, an indigine of Adamawa herself, encouraged Binani to accept the court's ruling and consider joining the ticket as Nuhu Ribadu's deputy governor. However, Senator Binani chose to challenge the court's ruling at the Appeal Court. In November, the Appeal Court reinstated her as the governorship candidate, allowing her to continue her candidacy. She was officially declared the winner of the election and was the flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the gubernatorial race in Adamawa State.[15][8]

Binani contested against the incumbent Governor of Adamawa, Ahmadu Fintiri, in the 2023 general election. Fintiri ran as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate. On 15 April 2023, during the process of collating election results, the resident electoral commissioner, Hudu Ari, made an illegal declaration of Binani as the winner of the poll. Binani subsequently delivered an acceptance speech, which generated significant controversy. In response, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) swiftly nullified Ari's decision and suspended him from his position. Simultaneously, President Muhammad Buhari ordered a thorough investigation into the conduct of the electoral commissioner and the security personnel who were present during the declaration.[16][17] Following the completion of the collation process, the results of the election were officially announced. Governor Fintiri emerged as the winner, securing a total of 430,861 votes. Binani, on the other hand, attained the position of runner-up, obtaining 398,738 votes.[18]

Hudu Ari was arrested in May, a month after the controversial announcement and received a 6-count charge filed against him by INEC in July over "alleged electoral offences".[19][20] Binani, represented by her lawyer Michael Aondoakaa, filed an ex-parte application on 10 July to challenge INEC's decision to nullify Hudu Ari's announcement. Aondoakaa argued that the election petition tribunal should have the authority to decide the outcome, citing relevant sections of the Electoral Act. He expressed concerns that INEC's decision could hinder the resolution of Binani's petition within the designated timeframe. A similar lawsuit had previously been directed to the tribunal by Justice Inyang Ekwo, who advised Binani to approach the tribunal for election-related matters.[21][22]

Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the prosecution of Hudu Ari, the suspended Adamawa State Resident Electoral Commissioner, to be suspended. Furthermore, INEC stated that Ari will face arraignment before an Adamawa State High Court in Yola on 12 July.[21][22] However, the proceedings were halted as the Federal High Court directed the State Court to suspend the trial pending a decision on Binani's petition at the election tribunal.[23]