Hurdles SDP must cross to defeat APC, PDP in Kwara

The Kwara State chapter of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Monday took a bold step in its bid to wrestle power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with the conclusion of its gubernatorial primary election.

The exercise, which was held at the Arca Centre event centre, Ilorin, produced the son of a former governor of Kwara State, Hakeem Lawal, to slug it out with incumbent governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, and the candidate of the PDP, Abdullahi Yaman.

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Already, the SDP is being touted as the third force in Kwara; that will make the gubernatorial contest a very interesting three-horse race.

Although philanthropist Yakubu Gobir finally joined the governorship race on Wednesday, there are speculations that he will join forces and resources with one of the existing parties to have the additional impetus to contest the gubernatorial race in the state.

Going by the present scenario, the SDP and its gubernatorial candidate despite the euphoria that has greeted its emergence and the momentum with which it is moving, still has a lot to do if it will have any chance in the forthcoming polls.

While the party’s fortunes are ‘rising’ in Kwara after the breakaway aggrieved former APC members joined it, recent development within its fold and leadership squabbles only point to the fact that there are still a lot of grounds to cover to pull off any significant upset come 2023.

With the look of things, except there are genuine efforts and sacrifices to salvage the party, there are indications that it may likely experience another major leadership crisis.

In less than two weeks for instance, the SDP in Kwara State has been in the news for the wrong reasons.

A factional meeting that held at the Labour House, Ilorin, was invaded by about 20 thugs who beat up the factional chairman in Ifelodun, Elder James Olajide, and also did not spare an elderly man who was walking with the aid of a stick, among others.

Olajide, who was dragged on the floor by the thugs, was beaten black and blue, his cloth torn and his cap seized.

The development followed the announcement of the suspension a week earlier of eight members by the publicity secretary of the faction recognised by its national leadership, Kareem Akanbi, over alleged anti-party. 

Before the disruption of the press conference at the Labour House, the factional chairman of the SDP who addressed themselves as “original”, Ibrahim Yahaya, had alleged plans by some former members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who recently joined the party, to hijack it from the pioneer executives.

Meanwhile, members of this group include all the governorship aspirants of the SDP and other prominent aspirants contesting other positions who joined from the APC. 

After the conduct of its first governorship primaries last week, one of the aspirants and former chairman of the Federal Character Commission (FCC), Prof Shuaib Abdulraheem Oba, petitioned the national leadership over the exercise. 

Oba’s petition was coming despite the fact that he was among the remaining five aspirants who reportedly pledged to support Hakeem after the first primary that adopted the colligate system.

During the first primary, Hakeem, a businessman, scored 33 votes to Oba’s 16.

Other participants in the election are Makama of Lafiagi; Alhaji Tajudeen Audu; Engr. Sunday Babalola; Architect Kale Belgore; and Khaleel Bolaji.

In his acceptance speech, the SDP candidate described the exercise as “no victor no vanquish.”

Speaking with Daily Trust, the chairman of the party, Abdulazeez Afolabi, said “All the other five aspirants signed an undertaking to support who ever emerged.”

But that promise was not to be as Oba, also a former VC of University of Ilorin, petitioned the national headquarters of the party over the result which culminated in the fresh primary that saw Hakeem poll 606 votes to beat Oba, 177, his only opponent.

For many political observers, the SDP may already be shooting itself in the foot with its latest leadership crisis that may dent its third force status and a “better” alternative to the PDP and APC that it wants to sell to the electorates come 2023.

Already, the party is struggling to have visible presence in Kwara North despite having Alhaji Tajudeen Audu in its fold. Also, the marketability and acceptability of its candidates is not yet up to the level of the APC and PDP across all contests in the state.

To realize its ambition to govern the state, the party has a lot of work to do and many hurdles to cross if it will win the trust of Kwarans who appear to be agitated on the prospect of another watershed election come 2023.

Political analyts who spoke on the issue said the SDP and Hakeem need to do more strategically and look beyond hopeful revival of his late father’s structure to win the ticket.

Already, some members of that structure are in the APC working for Hakeem elder sister, Arinola, a former commissioner in the cabinet of Governor Abdulrazaq who is now the candidate of the APC in the state House of Assembly.

According to the HOD, Political Science Department, University of Ilorin, Prof Muhammed Alada, the SDP still has a lot to do and many hurdles to cross to make any inroads. 

“For now, although people are clamouring for a third force, they expect to see new faces if there is going to be one. But we’re still left with recycled people in the SDP.

“To what extent is the SDP pursuing its cause genuinely because we know the APC came under the otoge mantra in 2019. Now, within APC from which the SDP emerged, there are many versions of the Otoge. We have the Otoge of “it’s our turn, that of ‘we want good governance’ and then otoge of ‘I want to deal with you’.

“I think the SDP is the otoge of we want to deal with you. With that mindset, it will be very difficult to achieve victory under such circumstances,” he said. 

He noted that the Otoge that the people are most concerned about now is that of good governance and the SDP must cross that hurdle. 

He said the SDP must also rise above destructive internal politics and queried “What is the assurance that the SDP as they are today will not go the way of the APC?”

On the possibility of reviving his late father’s dynasty, Alada said “I don’t think that structure will have a role to play. 

“Hakeem was relatively young when his late father held sway. To what extent does he understand the structure, he needs to understudy it properly before venturing into such a high position. It would have been better if he had started gradually and grow through the system. He also needs to obliterate the perception people have about the disagreement between the godfather and the godson (late Saraki and his father).

Also, Dr Isaiq Abdulwaheed, a political scientist, said the party needs to go spiritual to win the gubernatorial polls come 2023.

“When you look at the members that are coming together to form the SDP, they are majorly from a particular party because of a common cause just like the APC then which destroyed the last administration and the Saraki dynasty with the otoge mantra. 

“But the reality is that the SDP is not strong enough and lacks political bigwigs like the APC and PDP who have stronger candidates that can gain peoples attention and interest.

“For SDP to be successful in the coming election, there is the need to pray for major crisis in APC and PDP from which they will benefit from. Comparing the candidacy of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq or Abdullahi Yaman of the PDP is out of place. The SDP has to run faster even when the APC and PDP are walking. It will be very difficult for the party to win without any crisis in the PDP and APC.” 

He advised the party gladiators to engage the media more and go to the grassroots to meet youths who already have a radical orientation concerning the APC and PDP and convince them through a people-centric manifesto.