joshua
As the 2023 election approaches, there have been raging agitations for the zoning of Kwara Central Senatorial ticket in the ruling party in the state, All Progressive Congress, to other Local Government Areas except Ilorin West. The advocacy which its proponents have solely been predicating on the strength of promoting equity with no recourse to the enormous implications it presents for our community development and unified co-existence.
The Kwara Central is constituted by four local governments, namely; Ilorin West, South, East and Asa Local Government Areas. As the discourse on which of these local governments, aside from Ilorin West, should produce the next Senator to replace the competent and high performing incumbent Senator, Dr Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe whose excellent record of achievement speaks for itself lingers, I have taken the liberty to author this piece to offer my modest views in this important debate, especially to remind our people on the need to look beyond this primitive and primordial zoning cliche which has over time appeared to be detrimental to collective growth but rather rally round a credible candidate that personifies our common values and enjoys the electoral acceptability to lead the party to victory in the forthcoming election.
In the Emirate, we share a common heritage and manifest the spirit of oneness; relate harmoniously with one another, and strengthen cultural connections and relationships built on trust, tolerance and devoid of any vestige of discrimination and prejudice. These sterling attributes with which we are identified place on us the responsibility to neutralize the simpleminded endeavour and divisive inclinations, that if allowed to fester, could sow a seed of polarization among us.
The idea of Zoning is an undemocratic formula that despite the well-intentioned motive behind its initiation, poses threat to social harmony, and credible leadership and sometimes weakens the electoral fortune of the party in an election. Rotationally, the last gubernatorial election was the turn of Kwara North to have a shot at the highest level of governance in the state but the political exigency at the time dictated otherwise, hence, the choice of the then-candidate from the Kwara Central, Mallam AbdulRasaq AbdulRahaman whose the numerical advantage his candidature conferred on the party, brought a reality the collective bid to dislodge the retrogressive dynasty. Gratifyingly, his sterling performance of unquantifiable impacts on the development of every segment in the state since his emergence as governor has validated the need to jettison restrictive zoning arrangements and lay emphasis on the competence, and credibility of candidates. The key thing here is service to the people.
It is high time we developed immunity against this virus of discrimination and periodic restriction of political opportunity to selected groups in a political entity, the arrangement that has not advanced our national development. We must stop denying candidates with the required ability and intellectual prowess the opportunity of impacting society positively.
If those espousing the zoning arrangement consider it a potent strategy that must be adopted to win the election, then, we must ask ourselves if zoning is lawful, right, helpful, and desirable to our community before it stymies or destroys the democratic society we fought hard to win. This idea which limits the choice of qualified candidates to a limited area has been exploited severally by political elites to puppeteer and railroad the citizens into perpetual subservience and servitude.
It’s against the backdrop of the salient points enunciated above, I take a strong exception to the agitation of the shift of Kwara Central Senatorial seat from Ilorin West LGA and deny the present occupant of the position the inalienable right to contest the nomination of the party and seek re-election to improve and consolidate on his remarkable strides of no precedent in the history of Kwara Central.
As a first termer, he was never asleep at the wheel but rather slogs his guts out to set standards in legislation and make the people the ultimate beneficiaries of productive representation. For sure, what has helped him in his job as Senator, is his immense wealth of experience having served at the Kwara State House of Assembly, during which, he held the principal position of a majority leader of the house.
Sen Oloriegbe has with his unprecedented accomplishments in less than three years, knocked his predecessors into a cocked hat, thus doing a great honour to the collective struggle that propelled him to power and abolished the dynasty. Far beyond the number and quality of his monumental projects, is the equitable disposition that shapes his provision of dividends of democracy. Oloriegbe’s strides in barely three years possess at once a certain abstractness and correctness.
Abstractness because many of the projects seem enviably and reassuringly futuristic; and concreteness because they are of practical and immediate use as tools for drawing up development and raising living standards.
And what has shaped his personality is his abiding desire to advance the cause of humanity and elevate the development of his community. Oloriegbe defies stereotypes and confounds propositions with his relentless and greatly commendable attainments which have, in turn, rekindled the hope of the people in the greatness of his constituency.
The historic actualization of Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Budo-egba, Asa LGA, Kwara State, which came to life as a result of his proficiency and legislative acumen bears attestation to the steady path of irreversible greatness to which his representation has propelled our constituency. This facility, which has since commenced operation, recently witnessed the commissioning of the foundation laying of the Drugs and Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Centre for which a whopping #850 million had been appropriated for its construction in the 2022 budget. This outstanding feat has no match, let alone having greater precedence than recorded by any of his predecessors.
Being passionate about the economic and educational development of his constituency, he has been exploring the instrumentality of the legislature, to push legislative proposals that seek to strengthen the economic prosperity of the state. His relentless dedication to serving his people, affords no room for complacency as such he puts his shoulder to the wheel and is now well on the way to attracting the Federal College of Education, Afon to the state, the proposed institution on which the legislative requirements had been fulfilled is merely awaiting the president’s assent.
Staying true to his promise to redefine legislation and make people’s wellbeing the centrepiece of his representation, he sponsored the bill for the establishment of the Federal College of Agriculture, Oke-Oyi, Ilorin East LGA among other benefits to promote sustainable natural resource utilization and expanding access to affordable education. This proposal is almost at the final stage of the legislative process, which would after the imminent passage be transmitted to the President for assent.
Of great significance is the facilitation of Idi-isin Comprehensive Health Centre, situated at Akanbi Ward 5, Ilorin South LGA. Just about four days ago, the Centre was approved as an annex of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital by the Federal Ministry of Health, a good bargain for its prospective users. This is as the NAFDAC zonal office he facilitated its construction to the same local government is nearing completion as well as the ongoing reconstruction of the NHIS zonal office at Fate/Basin area.
The choice of the places that host these legacy projects and the designated venues to house the proposed ones underscores Sen. Oloriegbe’s equitable disposition and unalloyed commitment to spreading development across his constituency. With every sense of modesty and decorum, I am convinced to believe that nothing warrants the unconstitutional craving for power shift – the agitation that has not been credibly justified but only propelled by the insatiable appetite for power which doesn’t necessarily translate into development.
If as a first termer, Sen. Oloriegbe can achieve these great strides without the accompanying and distractive noisemaking politicians are so often and clearly won’t, it is a testimony to his idiosyncratic resolve to leave a mark and legacy not only in Kwara Central but state at large. These remarkable feats represent heartwarming auguries of the greater strides to accomplish if re-elected when he would have become a ranking lawmaker, the elevation which would afford him access to vistas of opportunities and place him in good stead to usher in more developments to the state unlike the limited opportunity available to first-term Senator. Should we now sacrifice this great opportunity for the mere sentiment of a rotating position? Zoning would have been worthy of consideration if Oloriegbe is not performing his duties as expected.
Thus, there is a need for the loyal party members to subsume interests and subjugate personal ambition to the common good of the party and the development of the state. If we could be united in our resolve to oust the dynasty in 2019, then we must sustain the unity so as not to fritter away the gains of our collective struggle. While the forthcoming election presents us the opportunity to finally annihilate the dynasty and ostracize its minions from political space as echoed by the Senate President, Dr Ahmed Lawan during his recent visit to Kwara, it as well portends a tougher contest with the major opposition’s party adoption of its zoning arrangements; it zoned its senatorial tickets to Ibolo zone against Igbomina and Ekiti interest in Kwara South (Sen.Rafiu Ibrahim from Oyun to compete with Sen Issa Lola Ashiru, another Ibolo man from Offa) Kaima Baruteen in Kwara North will have Issa Bawa slugging it out with Sen. Sadiq Umar the incumbent, from the same constituency, and Ilorin West has been primed to produce the Central slot. Just last evening, one of the proteges of the dynasty’s leader was endorsed to be flag bearer via consensus arrangement. On that note, the perfect permutation for APC is to allow it to be an Ilorin-West derby affair with Oloriegbe bearing the party’s flag.
At this point of our democratic development, our focus should be on protecting our people and unifying our community. Our eyes should be centred on electing people of good character, intelligence, requisite experience, drive, vision, and who are prepared to perform and bring gains of democracy to the people. We all share a common cause which is the ultimate development of our state and a better life for our people.
It would be morally reprehensible and sacrilegious for anyone to be actuated by ambition to trigger fragmentation or promote a divisive campaign that seeks to jeopardize the unity and social harmony for which our beloved Emirate is reputed. Ilorin is like a house that conveys all its descendants but is only separated into different rooms, Dr. Oloriegbe has a familial link to Ilorin South, Akanbi Ward 5, precisely, which hosts the ancestral land of his family and on which he built the recently commissioned Foundation’s Office, Alaanuku House.
If we want to build unity, we will wisely do away with cutting our community up into fragments that bring division and enhance our impalpable differences, sadly, some people love to flaunt the idealistic reason behind the need for zoning as it is a reliable measure to keep every zone happy, there’s barely any evidence of economic development that justifies its adoption. For instance, neither Saraki’s nor Abdulfatah Ahmed’s two terms respectively as governors of Kwara State turned their towns to Dubai.
• Is’haq Oluwashina Elepo observes from Ilorin.
