By Issa Aremu
Abdulrazaq Magaji was my undergraduate friend in School of Basic Studies, (SBS) Ahmadu Bello University in the late 70s. Abdulrazaq Magaji first invented the term the game changer in an article entitled state “Kwara 2019: Here comes Comrade Issa Aremu, the game-changer!” That was late July last year, precisely on 27/07/2018. The article was well popularized in both social and main media. Abdulrazaq’s name certainly raised a nostalgia of the great ABU progressive days of the battle of ideas, but I confessed I never heard of him since we left SBS (Basico 77/78) and signed on to our respective specialization in schools and after.

LAI MOHAMMED IN KWARA—Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, addressing APC supporters and members in Oro, Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, during his visit for a consultative meeting with stakeholders, yesterday. Photo: NAN.

I dare say that his reflection has proved politically prophetic as Almighty Allah and good people of Kwara State through their generosity of hearts had worked together with us to change the narrative of the pioneer state from that of despair to hope.

Yours comradely declared his intention to run for the governorship of Kwara State on July 18th at Justice Mustapha Akanbi African Hall in Ilorin. There can be no better day to make our intention public than Mandela Day (MD). In 2019 Kwara State needs liberation through free and fair elections. Nelson Mandela, symbolizes liberty from oppression and discrimination, having spent 67 years of his 95 years in public life, 27 years of which in prison. From the various contributions of the discussants on the STATE OF (KWARA) STATE, which preceded my official declaration, it was clear that contrary to official propaganda, Kwara urgently begs for development and salvation from bad governance of two decades of PDP. 2019 gubernatorial election offers a unique historic opportunity to reclaim our state from occupying self-serving leaders. The state begs for selflessness, statesmanship, compassion, managing diversity, equality, inclusiveness, sense of justice and fairness.
https://newlive.vanguardngr.com/2019/03/inec-disengages-incompetent-ad-hoc-staff-in-niger/

A friend once observed rather cheekily that in Kwara, they say “poverty walks on two legs. Poverty with one leg was bad enough. To say poverty confidently walks with two legs in a pioneer state of Kwara was sobering for me as a Kwaran. But sadly I agree that poverty facts are damning in my state. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in 2016 stated that 112 million Nigerians live in relative poverty in Nigeria which represents 69% of the Country’s total population, estimated to be 163 million. The North-West and the North-East have the highest poverty rate with 77.7% and 76.3% respectively. The North-Central is the third with 67% poverty rate; Kwara State, which is within the North-Central is 76%. Thus poverty in Kwara was above the national average of 67per cent. Poverty numbers, however, don’t tell the stories of the poor.

Income poverty means hunger and anger. The great late Democracy hero, Chief MKO Abiola once said “I know the type of music that goes on in the stomach of a hungry man. It is very unpleasant”. First, our party believes that you cannot appreciate mass poverty until you look at the distribution of the state resources. Mass poverty “with two legs” is inconceivable unless we appreciate the opulence of the few sit-tight ruling PDP few elites in the state.

General Yakubu Gowon created Kwara state in 1967 together with 11 others that included present-day Lagos, Rivers, and Kano. The respected humble and modest General recently visited Ilorin on a commercial flight recently. On landing, he sighted a private jet which reportedly just brought Governor Fatai Ahmed from Abuja. The respected General and statesman curiously sought to know the cost of the parked chartered flight. He was told it was some 4 million Naira. Enough to pay some working folks minimum wage of 18000 per month for some 200 months, at least 5 years. As a frequent traveler, I have never seen my Governor and my Senator, in a commercial flight in a state with such mass abysmal poverty. Yet I have seen our Emir of Ilorin, His Royal Highness Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari Sulu Gambari, Ooni of Ife, many emirs, eminent justices such as late Justices Justice Mustapha Akanbi, “Akin” Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank and former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, former state Governor C O Adebayo on commercial flights from Abuja to Ilorin. Some serving state aides shuttle in private flights and audaciously travel business classes in debt ridden state that put school children on Okada motorcycles every morning.
https://newlive.vanguardngr.com/2019/03/how-apc-liberated-kwara-from-sarakis-dynasty-lai-mohammed/
Kwara budget is almost N200 billion. There is certainly enough for the modest need of 3 million modest Kwarans but definitely not enough for the greed of the ever privileged and indulged political chieftains in the past 16 years. The major task of anybody that emerges as the governor of Kwara in the weekend election is resource distribution justice. The 1999 constitution says welfare and security of all is the primary purpose of governance, not just the welfare of few state officials.

Kwara already missed the 2015 MGDs global train because, since 2000, elected governors were not on duty. We must be enlisted on SDG 2030 and put an end to poverty. Brinkmanship must give way to statesmanship, nation-building. It’s not just the perception. PDP government is the government of exclusion, far from elitist in terms of development but like a cult of personality in mis-governance. State capture by one person can come to an end as we had demonstrated in the last presidential/ National Assembly elections when all Kwarans changed the narrative through partnership for good governance. During Presidential/ National Assembly elections, LP exhibited political partnership. We campaigned and voted for President Muhammed Buhari on account of his friendly labour market policies which increased the minimum wage to N30,000, payment of arrears of Nigeria Airways workers criminally denied by former President Obasanjo, a bailout for wage defaulting governors. The president is also committed to re-industrilzation and diversification which is the basis for sustainable mass decent jobs for the jobless youths.

At this weekend gubernatorial election LP remains open to partnership with progressive parties whose missions compliment our party’s ideology of Democratic socialism, humanism, and social democracy. Indeed the task to be done is to terminate PDP rule.

In place, we replace poverty with prosperity, fear, and intimidation with peace, solidarity and live. State of harmony to replace the state of fear, vote counts to replace ballot stuffing and ballots snatching. Once we achieve these, the winners are Kwara’s 3 million plus compatriots, not just me. Twenty years of democracy in Kwara State needs quality control this weekend. O do pin (LP slogan) + O to ge (APC slogan) = Liberation in Kwara State. Our backers are the good people of the state of harmony. Our campaigns are also unique and revolutionary: people to people, work-place-to workplace, schools to schools. Market women and women, tailors, artisans, workers, people living with disabilities, youths said they never saw candidates at their workplaces before asking questions and uplifting the spirit and raising hope. In place of glossy posters, personalized jingles, and facebook text messages, we danced with our people at workplaces on the streets. Our people don’t need “charity” financed by stolen funds.

On the contrary market, women need the patronage of their goods, improved market access. Indeed in many local governments, I visited our people in spite of deprivations were high spirited to put an end to bad governance, offered prayers to us and even materially supported us. With them, we have collectively ensured good governance during this historic campaign. Even the so-called “good boys” abandoned terror tactics to extort monies to dance with us as we raised hope that solution to unemployment is not through drug abuse and violence but education and decent work.

Issa Aremu,

Labour Party Governorship Candidate,

Kwara State, Member National Institute, Kuru Jos.