By
Dare Babatunde
The only set of people that are yet to realise that the elections in Kwara has been lost by APC are members of the party and sympathizers of the Governor. For the 2023 elections are lost already. Nonetheless, I will charge the Governor to look ahead as the party structure will be hijacked and his fight with Saliu Mustapha will begin sooner than imagined.
Like always, the above will be dismissed as assumptions and imaginations, but Kwarans have all the patience to see things unfold; likewise, I have all the patience to be proven right by events that will follow the aftermath of the 2023 elections. Saliu Mustapha supporters are long prepared for war if the Governorship ticket is not handed over to them after Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq. The Governor’s camp is long prepared to prevent Saliu Mustapha from getting the ticket, with total commitment to pushing the agenda of a Kwara Central man not taking over from one another. Unfortunately, that day may not come as Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq remains outgoing Governor of Kwara State. The fight with the Kwara PDP and the Sarakis is one thing, the one that lies ahead will consume the state faction of the APC, just like the one consuming the party at national level was foretold as far back as 2015.
Nonetheless, both men are doing what is necessary to win as Kwara PDP, especially when Dr. Bukola Saraki is their common enemy. Just like old Rome where people built alliances out of necessity and not mutual loyalty. Come to think of it, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has already lost the election and people have made business out of his desperation to return to Ahmadu Bello way for another four years. First, Kwara South is lost, no amount of prayers by the Chief Imam of Offa can upturn what is evident. Kwara South is lost for the APC, everyone knows this. I doubt angel Jibril can at this point with all his gifts get the message to Kwara Southerners whom Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq was quick to declare war against their stakeholders. Two good years or more were dedicated to creating awareness against the Governor, AA watched forgetting that the clock is ticking.
Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq conned Kwara Southerners, Kwara Central and Northerners, the people know this. How quick he dismantled his party after being sworn in was faster than the speed of light, while hanging it on those people wanting contracts, but so far contracts racketeering and corruption have risen to all time high under the Governor. Kwaran people must have appreciated NFIU ban on State Governments withdrawing money. If not, with the present spending culture of this administration, for the first time, we may end up meeting #5000 naira balance in the government’s purse.
Who builds an international market without a good accessible road? In my life, I have never seen where a roundabout was beautified even when the roads surrounding it are not accessible. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq should note that if Romans who lived in previous centuries were to come this century, they will find the gladiator fights organised by Roman Emperors disgusting, that is in no measure a form of governance but distraction from core administrative delivery, that is what the beautification of the roundabout represents. The issue is that people pass through this place every now and then, and in their respective joints discuss how archaic the Kwara State Governor thinks the people of Kwara are.
People tend to overlook being conned most times, research proved this. However, the moment you rob it on their face every time that they have been conned, people develop a never seen before energy to put the con artist to rest and reminding him that they were never fools. This is the situation of Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, and the sooner he realizes people now see him for what he is, the better for him. For all I know, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq is an outgoing Governor of Kwara.
Quite unfortunately, the barely 4 years of the Abdulrahman’s administration is dedicated to attacking the Saraki family, more funds have been committed to that regard. However, for how long will Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq and APC play the Roman politics? The politics of impoverishing the people and playing to the gallery by providing relief stimulus to trick the people. As if Mallam Saliu Mustapha is not a leading figure in the current forex crisis in the country, thereby leading to inflation and importation crisis.
Assuming Mallam steals from the rich and gives to the poor, he would have merited being dubbed as “Robinhood”. Regrettably, that is not the case, he is stealing from poor to poor, just like when Roman politicians took over all the lands in the Republic and started employing farmers after snatching their lands from them. It was a relief to farmers, it took long for citizens to realise they have been tricked. How Mallam Saliu Mustapha intends to win the next election with his “jegudujera” politics will continue to make me curious, for how long will he wear the face mask of a nice man when behind the mask lies a man who along with others are bringing the country to its knees? Only God and time will tell when he is put to shame at the polls.