By Ahmed Ajikobi
Prominent Islamic and labour Union leaders across Kwara State have publicly denied claims that they endorsed Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq for a second term as they all noted that his administration has not provided good governance that will warrant their support for his ambition.
While most of the Islamic Scholars have intensified their opposition to the governor through sermons in their respective mosques and among their followers during Jummat service and after obligatory prayers, Labour leaders have also been working with the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to stop the governor’s re-election bid.
In one major instance of the rejection of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq by the influential Islamic scholars, the Mudhir of Markaz Islamic Centre, Agege, Sheikh Habeeblah Adam El-Ilory has in a video now circulating across the country warned the governor and his associates to desist from making false claims that he and members of his revered Islamic institution have endorsed him for a second term.
In a four-minute, fifty-two-second video recorded on his behalf by Imam Nurudeen Mahmud, his spokesperson, Sheikh El-Ilory whose institution is based in Agege, Lagos but who is an indigene of Ilorin, and whose institution has membership across Nigeria and Africa noted that he had no reason to endorse or support the re-election of the Kwara State Governor.
He added that the present Kwara State Governor has not measured up to expectations in providing good governance in the state or uplifting the standard of living of the people as required by Almighty Allah who appoints and removes leaders.
“Compared to the immediate past administration and the one before that one, this administration has not done well at all. The Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq administration has not initiated any project, policy, or programme which radically changed the fortune of the state or its people. So, why should Markaz or any credible institution endorse it?
“If some manipulative individuals feel that because Governor Abdulrazaq had attended any event organised by Markaz or offered any support at any time to the institution and therefore that automatically means we have endorsed his re-election bid, they are lying. Those individuals spoke for themselves and they are free to use the names of their parents for such endorsement not the name of Markaz or its Mudhir or the name of the founder, the revered Sheikh Adam Abdullahi El-Ilory.
“Let us remind them that Markaz is an institution and every government that appreciates scholarship and excellence will associate with it. Indeed, former Governor Abubakar Bukola Saraki also attended our anniversary and offered support.
“Saraki has also supported the cause of Islam more than any of the governors as represented by his role in the reconstruction and modernization of the Ilorin Central Mosque, the Imam Gambari Mosque, and his numerous support for other Islamic groups. That does not mean that those groups will come out and publicly endorse him if he is running for any office in an election. Kwarans should disregard any claim that Markaz or its Mudhir endorsed the Kwara State Governor. It is untrue”, Sheikh Adam El-Ilory noted.
In a related development, Labour leaders in the state led by the gubernatorial candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in next Saturday’s gubernatorial election in the state, Hon. Bassambo Abubakar has also gone public with the news of their opposition to Governor Abdulrazaq who they accuse of plotting to gain re-election by using government money to buy votes.
Abubakar at a press conference in Ilorin today declared support for the main opposition candidate, Alhaji Shuaib Yaman Abdullahi, and announced that all supporters of his party will vote to elect the PDP whose administration will work to improve the lots of all and sundry in the state.
“With the sophisticated and discerning but huge support bases that the Labour Party has in Kwara State, we have constantly reviewed the situation in our state and I must confess that we are not impressed by the performance of the current administration in the state. Our disappointment stems from the fact that despite the unprecedented huge resources available for the use of the current government, the high hopes invested by the people in it, and the various promises that the All Progressives Congress (APC) made to the people, there is no concrete project, policy or program put in place to raise the standard of living of the people, reduce the cost of living and make life better for the electorate. The people of Kwara State are worse today than they were in 2019 when APC took over the reins of power.
“ With the poor performance of the APC administration in the state and the absence of any hope that the government is capable of making any improvement in the future, the LP has since concluded that the APC must not return to power post-May 29, 2023.
“The LP in Kwara State has therefore been engaged in serious discussions with other political parties to work together. We are particularly impressed by the caliber of people in the leadership and membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State, the experience and competence of the members, and the lofty programmes being enunciated by the Governorship candidate, Alhaji Shuaib Yaman Abdullahi, as he campaigns across the state.
“Therefore, I hereby announce categorically my decision to join hands with the PDP to rescue our state from further decadence. The PDP remains a broad-based party with a wide umbrella to accommodate all and sundry and provide good governance. It is a party that emphasizes the need for inclusiveness in governance”, the LP candidate noted.
It may be recalled that many opinion leaders in and outside Kwara State have continued to reject the governor’s ambition and this has led to his adoption of desperate measures like using government money to induce voters, coercing traditional rulers to work for his re-election, and harassing leaders and members of the opposition.
