Date: 2016-03-19

It is only in Kwara state one finds it difficult to differentiate between the educated class and illiterates because the discerning minds allow their selfish interests to reign while objectivity suffers.

The so called Kwara elites, with higher academic certificates and political prowess, out of their political desperation, always tend to either incite the public against the Senate President Abubakar Bukola Saraki - through their fallacious dispatch of tales against him or be voluntary sources of fabricated stories to drag his personality through the mud. I am personally curious on how some of them, whose grandparents were the late Dr. Sola Saraki's political adversaries, particularly in Kwara Central and South Senatorial Districts of the state, carry out vengeance under the pretence of political activism – Kwara liberation crusade.

The astounding perspective of this mendaciousness is that some of the hypocrites were aides and beneficiaries of Bukola Saraki while he served as the Governor of the state. Many of these people were relieved of their appointments for fraudulent conducts and financial mismanagement.

In other cases, some of them were displaced by more ingenious Kwarans. This bitterness however is what resulted in their game of hoodwinking called 'Freedom for Kwara.' The question all sane Kwarans should ask them as regards this acclaimed 'freedom' is that, who chained their hands from being useful for the electorates in their clans which resulted in their failure to deliver at the polling units?

It is quite unfortunate that in our Kwara today, everything has been politicized. The orders of the day now are the manufacturing of fictitious tales about Saraki and the Kwara State Government by some feeble-minded individuals.

I still do not see the reasons why the hypocritical elites are interested in Saraki's case at the CCT and particularly want him convicted at all costs. However, it is always awkward to the noble profession of law, seeing some quack lawyers and anti-Saraki politicians with partisan analysis on the approaches of Saraki's lawyers since the initiation of the persecution. I refer to it as persecution because it's a game of hounding aimed at punishing him on his defiance to his party's choice of candidate for the Senate Presidency and Principal Offices in the Senate.

In all honesty, Saraki has not done anything that is administratively and political illegitimate. I wonder what one and one's legal team would have done when it's glaring that he or she was singled out for persecution and not for apt prosecution in line with the laws of the land, like the case of Saraki has assumed in the Nigerian political legroom.

The case was not only plagued with procedural errors but also needless media hoaxes via platforms like Sahara Reporters, Premium Times, The Nation Newspaper among others. These campaigns were sponsored by anti-Saraki's forces in the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).

I think it is high time Kwarans and indeed Nigerians stayed devoid of political sentiments and allowed the matter to be decided by the CCT and other courts of competent jurisdiction. It is noteworthy how Lagosians stood by Asiwaju Tinubu on the persecution by Goodluck Jonathan led Federal Government through same Code of Conduct Tribunal in 2011.

Some people have an incorrect belief that the conviction - God forbid - of the Senate President is their political triumph and only solution to the growth of Kwara State. I firmly disagree with that myopic belief. The truth must be said: how many of the so-called Kwara bigwigs who have even convicted Saraki before his trial commenced can boast of perfection in their atomic capacities? Saraki is definitely better than many of them including the real and pseudo-writers paid to stain his political journey. This is unless they are not Nigerians of our generation. This not different from the manner Kwarans condemned their own son, late Gen. Tunde Idiagbon who was Gen. Buhari's best hand in the 80s, but regretted their action when their government was overthrown by Gen. Babangida who out of acrimony, moved our River Basin from Upper to Lower and our Airport that was operating international services then to Local.

Must we always get it wrong and suffer before we attain wisdom in Kwara? Let the Yinka Aluko of this world who could not allegedly account for monthly security fund he got as Special Adviser on Security in Kwara State for 10 years - despite many communal crises and challenges - continue to prove holier than the Pope. Kwarans cannot trust him. He should rather continue to wail that he left Saraki's camp because a Special Assistant on Security Matters who was monitoring his looting of security fund, was appointed. Let the old man called Oyin Zubair Ajirotutu continue to dance his shakitibobo all because of the shameless chips he eats at Lai Muhammed's house; he is so bootless that he cannot influence nothing. I also read few days ago that the Tunde Bakare of the unmarketable magazine called Kwara Tabloids solely administers a Whatsapp group called The Kwara Tabloid Forum, comprising of so many bad eggs, whom despite their huge financial might (some are even billionaires), among the elites in Kwara, still have their aged grandmothers and grandfathers cueing for foods and cash at Saraki's Charity House.

Will we also blame the Sarakis whose dynasty of humanitarianism has been catering for the downtrodden for over four decades (even all through military regimes) for hosting their grandmas and papas? No! The useless grandkids get the blame not the Sarakis. Humanitarianism and philanthropic heart are not imitated but they are God's given spirits that sustain Saraki's dynasty till today. So, they should blame their forefathers for their past actions and inactions and themselves for not being fruitful for their immediate communities.

As Kwarans, it is expected of us to always be on a quest to move Kwara forward to the climax of its glory. The truth is that the present economic downturn is not peculiar to Kwara alone but Nigeria as a whole. In all honesty, some of us that are not home based know Kwara's case is even better. Let's proffer viable and lasting solutions that are efficacious to rescuing Kwara out of the devilish situation because Kwara State is ours. Let Tunde Bakare speak with his oil baron madam, Bola Sagaya, to invest her billions of Naira at home and add to the economic progress of our Kwara. Lanre Issa Onilu should also speak with his benefactor, Gen. Abdullahi Muhammed who prefers to be called a Jos man than an Ilorin man, to come home and add value instead of all these their pull-him-down antics against Saraki. It's only when every privileged Kwaran contributes his bits, outside Kwara State Government's activities that we can have a Kwara State of our dream.

We cannot continue to blame Saraki for all our deficiencies, we just have to think and act outside the box. We would not succeed as the governed class if what we read most of the times are those things that would suggest that Saraki has committed blasphemous things solely in Kwara State, without the involvement of those who preach his hate campaign to the public as his boys when the going was smooth between them. The Ilorites among them are even so desperate to sell out our so precious House of Sheik Alimi to Sahara Reporters who mocked the Emir of Ilorin as Saraki's houseboy for the rumour that he sacked the Makama of Ilorin because of Saraki. I am happy and believe they will be in sad mood now when all the parties indicted in the rumour like the Emir, Makama himself and Governor Ahmed refuted these claims.

Where was Omoyele Sowere who is a Lagosian and owns Sahara Reporters when the Oba of Lagos publicly declared support for Akinwumi Ambode before the 2015 general election and even cursed the Igbos in Lagos? As young as I am in my 30s, I was adequately informed of happenings in Ilorin before 11th November, 1995 when our Emir ascended the throne. I have not however, seen where our Emir came out to endorse, at the face of cameras, a candidate of a political party. He tells all that he is the father of all. They, the political desperados, should stop the depiction of their advocacy as if it is on behalf of majority of the people who in anyway still hold Saraki in high esteem. In spite of the stage-managed travails created by his political adversaries within and outside Kwara State, I am still very boastful and hopeful that Saraki will triumph these trying times and there will still be a powerful figure in both national and Kwara politics for some time to come.