JUST BEFORE PROF. OBA/CHIEF IYIOLA AKOGUN’s PRESS CONFERENCE

As we witness another face of our sojourn as a people who believe Kwara is not working for Kwarans, towards the realization of a state we can all be proud to call ours, it is sacrosanct the struggle be understood and seen as for Kwara state and Kwarans. Making it an aberration for any actor in the struggle to personalize it.

It is instructive to recall that there had been failed attempts by well meaning and notable Kwarans, who committed their physical strength and personal wealth to the struggle without showing interest in being seen as a prominent face of the struggle. Regardless of their absence in the front line of the struggle however, their actions and inactions in the course of uprooting the hegemony that has held us aback for years are well documented and history will never forget them and their distinctive roles. Their sacrifices are enough reasons for us all to continue sacrificing our personal interest, until our common goal is achieved, realizing that has been the clog in the wheel of progress this struggle might have made.

Let’s all be reminded that majority of the party leaders, aspirants and stakeholders today are made and have almost exhausted the productive parts of their lives, whatever struggle they will be seen to be objectively involved in is one that guarantees a better and assured future for the upcoming generations, that they would be proud to have won for the upcoming generation. Their personal victory can only last when they live, only our collective victory will outlive us all.

They should see the just concluded party primaries as a war, where anything is fair. Treachery, hypocrisy, vote buying, vote auctioning, arbitrary allocation of votes by party leaders to candidates of interests among others were deployed by most of these aspirants in desperate bid to fly the gubernatorial flag of the Kwara APC. Among those claiming to have won, I make bold to say none of them truly and sincerely had their respective acclaimed votes but hypocrisy will push us to protest in protection of the ill-gotten votes, but will never allow us own up to the fact that those votes were products of electoral malpractices. Where is our sincerity of purpose? What should those who were hedged out of the whole process because they’ve no one to write bogus results for them do?

If this struggle is about Kwara state and Kwarans, we must learn and be willing to nullify others misdoings with ours. Let us assume that the winner’s hook winning strategy gave a better result than your crook winning strategy. The game might be yours too.

It is my humble belief that Kwarans though are ready but not politically sophisticated to comprehend some level of political complexities which the fall out of our primaries may create if not well managed. It then follows that any attempt by any individual or group of individuals to polarise the opposition under any guise whatsoever will amount to deliberately or unconsciously empowering the united minority that forms the hegemony we are out to dismantle. To Kwarans, this may be unpardonable and as those who gave their all to this project are remembered, the category of those who sabotage the struggle on account of personal interests would also never be forgotten.

In the words of Mal. Lukman Olayiwola Mustapha, “what binds us together is far greater than what may break us apart”, let there be congruence of goal for us to win Kwara for Kwarans.

It is not about the flag bearer, it is not his fight but our collective fight. Let’s fight it together as none can fight it for us. After the war, we can always reorganize the house, this is no time to seek perfection within.

My opinion.

I am Ibrahim Sheriff (Gold)