The results of last Saturdays National Assembly election in Kwara State shocked pundits, as the party, backed by the states political giant, suffered a severe defeat. Yekini Jimoh looks at the implications of the defeat.FOR the first time in Kwara politics, the Waziri of Ilorin and political icon in Kwara State, Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki, suffered a defeat. His party, the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), lost woefully to the ruling party in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), during Saturdays National Assembly election.According to the result released by the National Independent Electoral Commission (INEC), PDP won all the three senatorial seats and five House of Representative seats, as against the ACPN that won no seats. Even the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) came second in most places where results were declared by the INEC.Last Saturdays National Assembly election was a strong indication that the era of imposing candidate on the electorate is over in Kwara State, considering the fact that in the last decade, politics have been a one-man show in the state.Before this time, Dr Olusola Saraki had always been the determining factor in Kwara politics. During the Second Republic, he singlehandedly brought Alhaji Adamu Atta from a minority Ebira speaking people to become the governor of the then old Kwara State.When he fell apart with Adamu Atta, Dr Saraki made sure that the then governor failed in his bid for another term of office, as he brought in Chief Cornelius Olatunji Adebayo of the defunct Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) from Kwara South as the governor of the state.The leadership of the defunct National Party of Nigeria (NPN) attempted to prevail on Dr Saraki to allow Atta to have his way, but the pleading fell on deaf ears as he made sure that UPN won the gubernatorial election, while NPN won the presidential election in the state.Then during the Third Republic, Alhaji Muhammed Shaba Lafiagi, who had just won the senatorial ticket from the Kwara North on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), became the governor of Kwara State. Lafiagi, who is from Kwara North was the first civilian governor from that region. His election as the governor of the state was as a result of the total support he got from Dr. Olusola Saraki who single-handedly sponsored him.The Third Republic did not last; the military took over from the civilian government. When the Fourth Republic finally came on board, Dr. Saraki was on ground again, as he brought in the late Alhaji Muhammed Lawal of the then All Peoples Party (APP) as the next governor of the state. But his romance with the late Lawal did not last long; Dr. Saraki did all he could to stop the late governor from winning his second term bid, as he was determined to contest against him.However, his political associates advised him not to run against the late governor, as they were of the opinion that he was too big to contest as governor of the state. He was advised to draft his son, Dr. Bukola Saraki, a medical doctor who was at that time residing in the United Kingdom, into the race.Ilorin, the state capital, is always the deciding factor in the state because of its population figure. As a result of this, Dr Olusola Saraki has always had his way because of the love the people of Ilorin have for him.The coming of Dr. Bukola Saraki into Kwara politics seemed to be a blessing to the people of the state, considering the fact that the political scene of the state is dominated by a single person. Bukola Saraki contested against Lawal and he won the election with the massive support of his father.He has governed the state successfully for almost eight years now.As the governor of the state, he became the leader of the Kwara State chapter of the PDP, having inherited all the political structures of his father.His performance in the last eight years of his administration seems to have placed him above many politicians in the state.Some political stakeholders in the state are of the belief that Dr. Bukola Saraki has re-written the political diary of the state by shifting power from Kwara Central to Kwara South this time around. This singular act allegedly did not go well with his father, as he was said to have viewed his sons action as a betrayal of trust, considering the fact that he brought him into politics and also made him politically.Nobody had thought that Dr. Olusola Saraki would ever fight his son over the political leadership in the state.The candidature of Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed as the PDP gubernatorial candidate in the state was challenged by Dr. Olusola Saraki, who expressed his readiness to bring in his daughter, Senator Rukayat Gbemisola Saraki, to take over the mantle of leadership from her brother.The governor, on the other hand, was said to have been displeased with his fathers mission, as he felt that it would be unfair if another senatorial district was not given the chance to lead the state, considering the fact that Kwara Central had been producing the governor for a long time.The emergence of the ACPN in Kwara State was to stop the PDP from winning the election. The party, founded by Dr. Olusola Saraki, was seen as a major opposition party in the state before last weeks National Assembly election.Most people in the state were of the opinion that the ACPN would rattle the PDP during the election because of the Olusola Saraki factor; being a politician with over 40 years experience, people were of the opinion that it would be difficult for the PDP to defeat the ACPN during the election.The ACPN does not have a presidential candidate, but it was gathered that the party is ready to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan during the presidential election.The situation was totally different last Saturday during the National Assembly election, as the PDP won all the available tickets. The ACPN could not find its feet, as the ACN came second in most of the results that were declared by the INEC.According to stakeholders, some factors led to the defeat of Dr. Olusola Saraki at the National Assembly election. They said that Dr. Bukola Saraki is already in control of Kwara politics and, added to this, the younger Saraki is in control of his fathers structures, which brought him to power.Also, his decision to zone the governorship ticket to the Kwara South was seen as a big plus for the governor, as the people of that zone saw it as a big opportunity and therefore gave total support to the governor.Furthermore, the candidature of Senator Gbemisola Saraki was another factor. Some political stakeholders who spoke with the Nigerian Tribune said that if another candidate had been presented by the Waziri, the people of Ilorin, who are predomonantly Muslims, would have accepted him.According to some analysts, the presence of the ACN, which also has another Ilorin indigene as its gubernatorial candidate, weakened the popularity of the ACPN in Ilorin. The party (ACN) came second in the election, while the ACPN came third.Which ever way one looks at the situation, it is a case of Saraki goes, Saraki comes. The Saraki political dynasty is still on course in Kwara State, but this will depend on the outcome of the April 26 gubernatorial election.
Click here to read full news..
