Defeating Saraki in Kwara politics is like getting a cure for a terminal disease which has defied all solutions, many stake holders in the state have said.
The Senate president, Dr Bukola Saraki, on Saturday lost his reelection to Dr Ibrahim Oloriegbe of the All Progressives Congress (APC) after a second attempt at contesting against him.
Oloriegbe, who was a member of Kwara State House of Assembly and leader of the house during former Governor Lawal’s era, contested on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria in 2011 but lost to Saraki.
Hunger, underdevelopment, poverty, retarded growth, lack of value for other human beings, selfishness, self-centeredness and many more are said to be the lot of the people in Kwara in 16 years that Saraki had been in the politics of the state. Information has it that Saraki came into Kwara politics during the battle to rescue the state from his father, late Dr Olusola Saraki by Late Muhammed Lawal.
The senior Saraki was said to have heeded advice over the complains of the people who challenged him to bring his own son to contest for governor in the state when the disagreement ensued between him and Lawal. Late Saraki brought his son who was accepted by most young men around then because of his age, and with the belief that he would change the status of the state.
In fairness to Saraki, he did change the status of the state with some achievements attributed to him during his tenure as two term governor of the state.
Interestingly, some of those who embraced the younger Saraki are the ones who worked against him and saw him defeated in last Saturday’s election.
Saraki also suffered defeat because of the insincerity of his foot soldiers who, according to observers, worked against him with their behaviour and attitude in handling assignments given to them.
Some felt Saraki lost his reelection bid because of arrogance, selfishness, self centredness, lack of human feeling for the masses especially civil servants who suffered more when he was at the helm of affairs.
Oloriegbe defeating Saraki in the just concluded senatorial election for Kwara central was made possible by the fact that, residents of Kwara Central Senatorial district did what they called a protest vote and the fact that they wanted to test the waters and see if truly the state doesn’t have enough resources to cater for her people or if it was Saraki that deliberately made them suffer.
Saraki however failed to go back to the drawing board when the opposition APC in the state started mobilising and came up with a political slogan which become street language and resonated with all segments of the society and became hard to put down even by those who coined it.
The political slogan of ‘O to ge’ (enough is enough) adopted by the APC, assumed a life of its own among Kwarans at home and abroad.
The term which simply means that the people have had enough of the political leadership of Senator Bukola Saraki who the opposition accuses of stifling development and growing his political dynasty at the expense of the state. Saraki’s followers have responded to the increasingly popular lingo with another refrain Otunya, which means ‘onward with Saraki’s rule’ but which did not stick.
The ‘O to ge’ movement gained grounds with prominent apolitical groups and individuals expressing support for a new dawn in Kwara.
In a video that has gone viral on the social media, revered head of the Markaz Islamic and Arabic Centre, Agege Sheikh Habeebullah Adam el-ilory, was seen saying the Sarakis are not the only ones in Kwara and time was indeed ripe for a change of guards.
Qomorudeen Ayeloyun, an Islamic singer and another son of Ilorin, has also released a video clip condemning the ‘stagnation and stunted growth’ in Kwara.
The lamentations appear to be a global phenomenon among Kwarans, especially non-politicians. The old and young now shout ‘O To Ge’ everywhere in the state, especially during recent political rallies.
Kwarans home and abroad do not only adopt the slogan but work their talk by mobilising from all over the country and beyond to come and register and vote to put an end to what they described as parasite that has eaten deep into them beyond imagination.
Some of the prominent Kwarans and groups within and outside the state came together for what they said was a fight to finish between Kwarans and the Saraki dynasty. And his Agbaji ancestral home was also said to be against his leadership style as the area was divided over his matter.
Some, however, see it from a different dimension by believing that what happened to Saraki was just the law of karma. That he was reaping from what he sowed for his father and sister who he betrayed after coming up with the issue of making Gbemisola Saraki governor of the state after his tenure which he later used against his father to take over the political power of the state.
A rumour making round has it that Gbemisola Saraki said after her brother’s defeat that, “Now my father will be happy in his grave”.
The victory therefore is for Kwarans and they have echoed that into the ears of the winners of Saturday’s election with a warning to exact the same thing on whoever tried to tow the path of Saraki in representing the state in any position.
According to Kwarans, while jubilating over the victory: “Saraki is gone for good in Kwara and Kwarans now breath fresh air. Although the newly elected representatives have not started work but we see a new dawn in Kwara and we will forever live to celebrate February 23 as our liberation day.”
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.
