Date: 2013-08-12

The October 26 local government election in Kwara State is expected to be a litmus test for the newly registered All Progressives Congress (APC) as the opposition vows to end what it calls "dynasty rule" in Kwara  beginning with the council election.

The electoral strength of newly registered All Progressives Congress (APC) would be tested during the forthcoming local government elections in Kwara State, which the State Independent National Electoral Commission (KWSIEC) has fixed for October 26.

Already, based on the guidelines released by the commission recently, political parties are expected to commence the process of nominating candidates from August 1. 

With the registration of APC, the three main opposition parties have retained the original plan to stick together and face the PDP instead of having different candidates on individual platforms.

Kwara State  chairman of the defunct Congress for Progressives Change (CPC),  Alhaji Sulaiman Buhari, in an interview with our correspondent confirmed an initial alternative arrangement  by the three parties to back a political party in each of the councils which he said  was still being deliberating on before the APC was registered.

He said, "Before, we were contemplating an alternative arrangement when the APC was not registered on time as expected but now we are contesting under APC", explaining that the three merging parties would work out modalities to screen aspirants towards nominating the best candidates that would face their counterparts in the ruling PDP.

But how strong are the three parties put together under APC to defeat the ruling PDP in a peculiar political terrain like Kwara State? 

Many are asking if the opposition parties are on the verge of making history in Kwara which used to be under the firm grip of late Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki.  

Besides, the forthcoming election is expected to be a test on the present leadership of the ruling PDP under former Governor Bukola Saraki who is now addressed as "leader" by his acolytes and members of the ruling party. Observers are currently watching if the leader could command the magnitude of clout and obeisance enjoyed by his father who reigned in the state for over four decades, dictating who became what in the politics of the state before his demise in November, last year. 

With the death of Saraki, opposition parties have vowed to end the dynasty rule and take over governance from the ruling PDP starting from the LG election and the subsequent 2015 governorship election.

Currently, the ruling party controls 15 out of the 16 local government areas in the state. Offa, the only local government where the opposition ACN won the chairmanship election and two seats in the 24 member House of Assembly in the last elections is currently being challenged by the PDP as a Court of Appeal verdict has nullified the council election and ordered a rerun in the council.

 KWSIEC has not spoken on the rerun election ordered by the court in February 22, 2013 even though the 90 days declared by the appellate court had elapsed.

The opposition has maintained that with the registration of APC, the 'yellow card' had been appropriately served on the ruling PDP, saying it should be preparing to go. 

They  opposition says it is banking on the underperformance of PDP in the last 10 years to take over the leadership of the state and end what they called retrogressive governance at the state and local government levels.

The governorship candidate of ACN in the last election, Mr. Dele Belgore in welcoming the APC through a statement by his media aide, Rafiu Ajakaye said, "For us in Kwara, it is a dream come true as APC would further strengthen our collective efforts to end the state's peculiar politics of underdevelopment, poverty and self-aggrandisement. It is a moment of joy for all the progressive elements waiting in the wings to work together as brothers in the selfless bid to build a new Kwara, one that would shed the toga of being a fiefdom and be seen as a place where individual potential blossoms without any let or hindrance". 

Speaking along that line, the defunct CPC in a statement stressed that the registration of APC signals a death knell for the ruling PDP. The statement signed by the chairman noted that although the challenge in confronting an entrenched dictatorship in the state is monumental, the parties "are resolute this time to take the bull by the horn, believing that ultimately, our strength lies squarely in our unity".

It added, "As a party, we have always considered political struggle to be intellectual, discursive as well as pragmatic, which of course requires quality leadership and resource pool. This therefore informed our resolve to find common grounds and identify our interest early in a bid to forge a united and indivisible front with sister opposition parties in the state, especially in view of the forthcoming local government elections in the state". 

The PDP on its part welcomed the birth of APC but says it is unfazed by its much touted bid to hijack the state's leadership from the ruling party's control. Speaking with Daily Trust, the state PDP Secretary, Prince Yemi Afolayan said PDP is too formidable in Kwara State for the APC to think of dislodging the party. 

"The opposition parties have always come together and they have always failed. Naturally we welcome the registration of APC, it is good for political development in Nigeria. However, PDP is too formidable in Kwara for any opposition to think they will take over from PDP. It is like somebody who is facing a moving train. To face a moving train, you would be destroyed. PDP is like a moving train and APC is like somebody facing a moving train. You know the train would be going, it would not even know that it has crushed somebody".

He added, "we love our people and our people love us. We are prepared for the election, we are on ground. PDP in Kwara has a style of leadership that is very unique. It is only in Kwara that people don't run after one another; it is only in Kwara that you don't see money politics."

Three months to the election maybe relatively far but the actions have kicked off in earnest as both the ruling and the opposition parties have maintained their stand about winning the election.