Date: 2012-11-24

The history of Kwara state politics will not be complete without a chapter or more about the role Dr Olusola Saraki, the late Waziri of Ilorin played during his lifetime.

The Second Republic Senate Leader was known for his generosity to all and sundry. The Waziri of Ilorin had installed four elected civilian governors in the state with countless legislators both in the state and at the federal level.

With his demise, the big question on the lips of many is can Dr Bukola Saraki step into his father's shoes? Would Senator Gbemisola Saraki allow her brother take charge considering the sharp political division between them?

Another big question raised by political pundits is whether the people of Ilorin would allow a son to become another godfather after decades of being under the firm grip of the father?

Others believe Dr Bukola Saraki does not even have that quality to carry on the torch because he lacks the charisma, patience and leadership qualities to carry everybody along.

Alhaji Abdulkarim Olola Kasum, the Chairman of Afonja Descendants Union, Ilorin in an interview with journalists said with the exit of 'Oloye', Kwara state has no leader. He noted that Dr Olusola Saraki's death marked the end of an era in Kwara politics.

"From the cradle to the grave, the strong man of Kwara Politics,Dr Abubakar Olusola Saraki,was a grassroot politician. He will forever be recommend as a friend of the commoners and the poor. His exit last Tuesday marked the end of an era in Kwara," he noted.

Senator Lawal Shuiad, Secretary General of Arewa Consultative Forum(ACF) who visited Saraki family in Ilorin personally told Dr Bukola Saraki to exercise patience, be humble and stay with the masses.

The Deputy Governor of Kogi state, Arc.Yomi Awoniyi who had known late Saraki since his childhood days as family doctor and friend to late Awoniyi worried about sustenance of Saraki legacy. He racalled that the Waziri of Ilorin didn't downgrade a child or less privilege in the society.

The son of late Awoniyi recalled his encounter with Baba Oloye as a child and adult saying " he stood by me at the grave of my father three years ago and I felt this a great man that stood beside me. He is indeed, a humble man."

To Delta state governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, who did his youth service in Iludun-Oro, a town in Irepodun local government area of Kwara state in 1981, Baba Oloye was a great crowd puller.

"Every Friday, when he was around, I will see many people migrating to his house. He was a crowd puller. Anytime he was in Ilorin, you will see crowd around him."

Recalling his interaction with Saraki few days before he died last Wednesday in Lagos, the Chairman, Nigeria Governors' Forum and Governor of River state, Rotimi Amaechi said Dr Saraki told him he was proud to be a Nigerian and was going to die as a Nigerian.

Governor Amaechi disclosed this when he paid a condolence visit to his Kwara state counterpart, Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed, adding that “I can recall the last time I spoke with him, he admonished that we should do everything possible to keep the country together as the cost of disintegration is better imagined than experienced.”

Governor Amaechi noted that the late Senate Leader sustained the integrity of politics in Nigeria through his passion for the promotion of the well being of the poor.

The Chairman,Nigeria Governors' Forum(NGF) urged the political class to sustain the legacies of Dr Olusola Saraki by promoting the welfare of the poor.

To wear his father's big shoes, Dr Bukola Saraki may need to contend with his contemporaries in Ilorin, the elites and Islamic clerics who are not happy about his tenure in office without fulfilling some of his promises.

Again, would some of his father's associates who were older than him bow for him as leader? Would people of Kwara South and North senatorial districts also bow for him as new political leader that would dictate who takes what in Kwara?

To many, the general election in 2015 and the position of Sen Gbemisola Saraki and her camp would decide whether Dr Bukola Saraki would take over the mantle of political leadership in the state.