Events and happenings after the announcement of the just concluded general elections in Kwara State have indicated an evolvement of a new political culture in the state of harmony.
Unlike in the past when the state’s political space was dominated by much bitterness, the state is now witnessing an evolving culture of politics without bitterness.
A keen observer of political developments in Kwara State between 1999 and 2019 will attest to the fact that there were always hiccups and a lot of bitterness after winners had emerged in the elections.
The principle of winner takes all was always the order of the state with opposition politicians going on sabbatical while the civil servants that found themselves in the opposing camps were either relieved of their appointments or transfer to remote parts of the state as a punishment.
These retrogressive occurrences have however started given way to politics of development and principle of politics without bitterness since 2019 when the ‘Otoge’ movement brought about a change in the political leadership of the state.
Since the assumption of office of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, the old habit of civil servants victimisation for supporting an opposing camp during elections has stopped. To the consternation of everyone, more civil servants in the state were on the campaign train of the opposition party between 2019 and 2023 and without any punitive measures meted to them by the government.
And since the announcement of the results of the 2023 presidential, national assembly, governorship and state assembly elections in the state which the APC won with a landslide, there have been much love in the air as against the hitherto bitterness that usually pervaded the political space in the past after the announcement of election results. There were no disruptive jubilation or celebration by the APC supporters,let alone destruction of opposition figures property in any part of the state as witnessed in 2003 when the PDP wrest power from the late Governor Mohammed Lawal’s All Nigeria People’s Congress (ANPP).
And at the forefront of the vanguard for a new political culture of politics without bitterness is the state governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Since the announcement of the election results which his party- APC won with a landslide – clearing all the nine national assembly seats, 23 of the 24 house of assembly seats,the governoship and the presidential election, the governor has been visiting the opposition leaders in their private residences, requesting them to join hands with him in taking the state to a more enviable position amongst the comity of states in the country.
Governor AbdulRahman first visited the traditional rulers under the chairmanship of the Emir of Ilorin, Alh Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari to thank them for their support and prayers which he noted culminated in his victory and that of other elected APC candidates in the just concluded elections.
He later visited some opposition figures in the state, including the governorship candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Prof Shuaib AbdulRaheem and his team, Social Democratic Party’s (SDP) chieftain,Akogun Iyiola Oyedepo and his team.
And before the March 18 governorship election, the governor had wooed a leading light in the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Hon. AbdulWahab Issa to his side. Issa was the PDP’s candidate for Ilorin East and Ilorin South House of Representatives seat . The governor also wooed the senatorial candidate of ADC,Senator Sulaiman Ajadi and the governorship candidate of YPP, Waziri Yakubu Gobir to his side while the state executive of the Labour Party (LP) collapsed the party’s structure with the APC for the March 18 governorship and house of assembly elections.
Speaking during a thank-you-visit to the palace of the Emir of Ilorin, Alh Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, Governor AbdulRazaq said the ruling APC owes the monarch and other traditional rulers absolute respect and appreciation for their fatherly roles.
He pledged to continue to give the traditional council in the state the honour and support that they deserve.
“This is a unique and wonderful day for us. We are here to show respect for the traditional institution, the main institution in Kwara state, for your support and your prayers,” he said.
The governor was accompanied on the visit by Deputy Governor Kayode Alabi; Speaker, Kwara State House of Assembly, Engr Yakubu Salihu-Danladi ; Senator Sadiq Umar (Kwara North); Kwara Central Senator-elect and Turaki Ilorin, Mal. Saliu Mustapha; House of Representatives members-elect; House of Assembly members-elect; cabinet members; Mutawali Ilorin, Dr Alimi AbdulRazaq; and state APC chairman, Prince Sunday Fagbemi; among others.
They were received by the Emir alongside all the first class royal fathers across the state.
“From my first term, which is gradually coming to an end, we have seen the very important roles that the traditional rulers played, and we truly appreciate that. First of all, the peace and security we have. Without the peaceful environment that you create, we will not have any progress or sleep with both of our eyes closed. Your synergy with the security agencies has made things easy for us.
“We are all here today to show our respect to the institution, and that is how it is supposed to be. We represent you and we will not disappoint you,” he added.
He said the government will continue to consult the monarch and community heads on the needs of their respective areas for improved service delivery.
He appreciated the patience and understanding of all royal fathers in the state amid scarce resources, and promised that the government would also pay greater attention to their welfare.
“We also understand that you need nothing more than respect for your offices, and that respect we will continue to give you,” he said.
Responding, Sulu-Gambari, commended the conduct of the elections, saying the peace and safety witnessed during the exercise testified that God answered his prayers.
He congratulated the governor and other candidates of the party that emerged victorious at the polls, and prayed God to give them success.
“I am happy that we are all here today. We were all afraid before the elections, and we begged God and God answered our prayers. We are very happy it is our son, who is the Governor again. And I am proud to claim your success, and I wish you more of it.
“Your work is very simple because you are a very simple man too. You are a working Governor. I said it once that you use your car to inspect projects in the city and all parts of the state. You are very hard working. You are also straightforward, and you are a man to be trusted. You shall see our own total support by the grace of God.
“We send you out from Kwara state. You have brought honour to us without any blame. Nobody has complained to us about your character and your mode of work, which is unique and very effective. May God allow you to continue to succeed. May you live long without sickness; may God crown all your efforts with successes,” the Emir stated.
And in a statemanly statement after his announcement as the winner of the governoship election, Governor AbdulRazaq said the overwhelming victory that the APC recorded in the polls underscored the desire of the citizens to continue along the path of positive progress Kwara has recorded over the past three years.
“This victory is truly humbling, and we give all glory to God who has made this happen. It speaks to our people’s understanding of our history, their appreciation of the progress made between yesterday and today, and their commitment to a greater tomorrow. It reflects the wishes of Kwarans at home and in diaspora to sustain the gains of the past three and half years. It means they appreciate our modest efforts to improve the lot of our state,” the Governor said in a statement.
“My profound appreciation goes to all the stakeholders for the truly pan-Kwara mandate: young or old, men and women, traditional and religious institutions, civil servants, private sector players, thoughts leaders, political leaders, market men and women, artisans, the media, students, and our young ones who energised our communities with that sweet, creative chant of ‘Maa se lo’( continue your work) .
“For me, the victory is a call to consolidate on and further spread the gains of the past three and half years and do much more for the people. I pledge to recommit myself to this. Together, we will build a Kwara whose politics will be anchored on giving equitable opportunities to all, expanding the state’s economic base, and delivering dividends of democracy to the citizenry in an atmosphere of peace and respect for the dignity of the human person.
“I dedicate this election victory to God and to the people of our state — in the north, south, and central. They have shown once again that power resides with the people. Finally, I commend the peaceful conduct of the election, and especially congratulate the security agencies, the electoral umpire, and the political elites for jointly making Kwara polls the most peaceful in Nigeria,” he added.
Little wonder, there have been avalanche of congratulatory messages to the governor on his re- election.
Prominent individuals and groups that have congratulated the governor include the Mutawali of Ilorin,Dr Alimi AbdulRazaq, the NNPP gubernatorial candidate, Prof Shuaib AbdulRaheem, the YPP gubernatorial candidate, Waziri Yakubu Gobir, chairman, National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), Ambassador Nimota Akanbi, Kwara State’s chapter of Arewa Consultative Forum(ACF), Gamji Association, National League of Veteran Journalists (NALVEJ), Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ),
Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), National Association of Teachers of Arabic and Islamic Studies (NATAIS), Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU) and Ibagun Progressives Union (IPU), amongst others.
The NNPP’s governorship candidate,Prof Shuaibu AbdulRaheem, in a congratulatory message described the outcome of the election as a reflection of the people’s acceptance of the Governor AbdulRazaq’s mode of administration.
He thanked the people of the state,the traditional rulers, the academia, students and business community for believing in the future of the state.
AbdulRaheem urged the people of the state to continue their support for the governor in order to ensure that the state witness more socio – economic transformation.
In its own message signed by its chairman,Alh Tunde Akanbi and publicity secretary, Alh Abdullahi Olesin, National League of Veteran Journalists described the governor’s victory at the poll as well deserved.
The league charged the governor to continue his good work which earned him a re- election by the people of the state.
The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Kwara State’s chapter while congratulating Governor AbdulRazaq on his victory at the poll noted that he merited a re-election because of his superlative performance in the last four years.
The ACF’s congratulatory message was contained in a statement signed by its state secretary, Alh Yusuf Abdullahi Jubril and director of Media and Documentation, Alh Abdullahi Olesin.
“ We, in the ACF are proud of the superlative performance of our brother, His Excellency, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, the Governor of Kwara State in the last four years.
“ We are particularly happy that as a true leader, Governor AbdulRazaq ensured that developmental projects are scattered across the 193 wards in the state. We are indeed very proud of him,” the ACF added.
The socio- cultural group expressed the confidence in the ability of the governor to take the state to a more greater heights during his second tenure.
It thanked the people of the state for their support for the governor, noting that the overwhelming votes that he got in the election amounted to a vote of confidence in him by the vast majority of the people of the state.
