A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara, Dr Kolo Baba Jiya has appealed to members of the political class in Kwara Central and Kwara South senatorial districts to concede the 2027 governorship seat in the State to Kwara North senatorial district.
Speaking at the 41st Media Parliament of the state council of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) themed, “Religion, Politics, and 2027 Governorship Race” in Ilorin at the weekend, Jiya said that the call became necessary in the interest of peaceful coexistence, equity, and understanding.
He also said that it meant reciprocate maturity with which Northern axis of the state had cohabited with two other regions since the return to civilian regime.
Jiya, a renowned businessman and political leader, who said that the people of Kwara North were not grandstanding as if it is their birthright to produce the next governor of the state, pleaded with other regions to reason along with the agitation for power shift to Kwara North.
He also said that there was no attempt to overheat the polity, contrary to belief that the 2027 gubernatorial contest was some years away.
He said that unlike in the past, Kwara Northerns are more united than ever and ready to preside over the state.
“Don’t say 2027 is far away; the journey of a thousand years begins one day. As much as you are living, every human being has an ambition. My ambition is 2031, this is in a lighter mood. I want to become President.
“Those of us from Kwara North, we are not grandstanding neither advocating, we are begging. For the sake of our coexistence, equity, and understanding, I want to beg other senatorial districts they should concede 2027 to us in Kwara North.
“I don’t want any distraction for the incumbent governor because he is doing well. We beg everybody, Kwara Central and South should consider us in Kwara North. For the sake of equity and sense of belonging, they should concede to Kwara North.
“In Kwara North, we are not divided. We don’t have any problem as far as the agenda of 2027 is concerned. We are more united now than before. Even our traditional institutions are also speaking with one voice”, Jiya said.
He noted that Kwara North has always supported the two other regions in any gubernatorial contest by allotting between 70 and 80 percent of votes coming from the axis to Kwara Central and South when they held sway.
Jiya, however, admonished the electorate to be wary of money politics, warning that they would be at the mercy of politicians after the polls.
“Don’t collect money from politicians before you vote for them because they will tell you after they might have been elected that we have paid you off”, he said.
The APC chieftain expressed gratitude to Governor AbdulRazaq for his leadership quality and for maintaining peace and tranquility in the state, saying that he has done well and should do more.
In his remarks, the state Chairman of NUJ, Abdullateef ‘Lanre Ahmed, identified docility and nonchalant attitude of the electorate as some of the factors hampering recruitment of good leaders.
“The docility and nonchalant attitude of the electorate over the years in arriving at informed choices on the type of leaders they entrust with their mandates, are replete with the leadership question at every strata of governance.
“It is therefore incumbent on the people to be cautious of the ‘Banana Peel’ of the politicians, who are always out to employ religion affiliation, political leaning, ethnic sentiment, cultural differences, and racial discrimination among others as divisive tactics to hoodwink them whenever an opportunity presents self for them to take their destinies in their own hands,” Ahmed said.
