Electoral integrity is increasingly being recognised as an important component of democracy, yet scholars still have limited understanding of the circumstances under which elections are most likely to be free, fair and genuine. Yet despite the widespread assumption that independent electoral management bodies will be better at their tasks of organizing, monitoring and certifying elections in an impartial manner, research has found conflicting evidence on the link between democracy and our political office holder, let us fact check.
Recently, political parties across the nation conducted primary elections for political office seekers in various states across the nation, the ruling All Progressives Congress has conducted the most confusing,conduct-less and dirty primary election we have seen in recent time, in most cases it was a tussle between the sitting governors and the legislatures. It is on record that about 35 senators in the APC lost their bid to clinch the tickets of the party, majority of the senators described their manipulated defeats as the handiwork of their state governors, the unconstitutional leaders of the party in the state.
Business Of The Day
Gerard R. Ford took the oath of office on August 9th, 1974 as the 38th president of the United States Of America, in his declaration speech he asked the Americans “tell me what would you prefer me to do, fool all of the people all the time or fool the people all of the time” the people were silent but a young man raised his hand , he said to president Gerard “you can try to fool all of the people all the time but there will never be a time you will fool the people all of the time “ the young man was Donald J Trump who later became the 48th president of the United States of America. Let us visit Kwara APC.
Few weeks after the primary elections in the state, we have heard from different aspirants reasons why they lost, different allegations have been leveled against the leadership of the party in the state under the watch of His Excellency Mallam Abdulrasaq Abdulrahman the executive governor of the state, the latest was the outburst and revelation by the senator representing Kwara Central Senatorial District in the senate Dr. Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe on Channels Television. Oloriegbe while speaking on behalf of other 21 senators made reference to the reason why he and others lost out, he described the democratic process as governortocratic (Sarcasm), he labeled the governor of his state a betrayer and treacherous, he said the governor is yet to call him since the conclusion of the primary,he said he is a performer, he lost the primary not because his people don’t want him, he lost the primary to political coup of those he described as mediocres, while responding to questions on Channels TV he sighted examples of Senator Smart Adeyemi (Kogi West) and Senator Sabo Mohammed (Jigawa south-west ) he said senator Sabo’s governor refused to pick his calls few hours to the primary election, one would recall that few weeks to the primary , picture of Senator Smart begging his state governor Surfaced online, let us check and confirm Senator Oloriegbe claims.
Where I came from our people are fond of saying “Bí irọ́ bá lọ lógún ọdún, ọjọ́ kan ṣoṣo ni òótọ́ yóò ba” meaning
If a lie has gone for twenty years, the truth will catch up with it in just one day. In relation to what Senator Oloriegbe said , in Kwara Central it was a clear game, it was a political coup, the primary elections were arranged , Oloriegbe did lot lost in a free and fair primary, he did not lost because he didn’t perform , he lost to dictations and what I call political coup, I have friends who voted as delegates in the primary , their reports weren’t different from the accusations leveled against the APC leadership in the state, did Oloriegbe lied that it was a governortocracy process? the answer is No.
There was imposition and commandment, in Ilorin East and Asa federal constituency the election that produced Yinka Aluko, there was an instruction while the election was going on, they stopped the election and in a short run Yinka Aluko was declared the winner, the governor constituency is another case study, the election that produced Hajia Tundun Alanamu was another dangerous game, what happened was an imposition, did senator Oloriegbe lied? No. Oloriegbe mentioned Ilorin west and Asa federal Constituency primary election as another case study, did the governor not instructed a certain Alakawa to step down to allow imposition? did Oloriegbe lied ? No.
In Ekiti,Isin,Irepodun,Oke Ero Federal constituency primary election, the election earlier produced a certain Engineer Segun Adebayo one of the sons of a former governor of the state C. O. Adebayo as the APC flag bearer for that constituency, the sitting Representative Hon Tunji Olawuyi Ajuloooin had earlier contested the primary election as an aspirant in the senate where he lost , the leadership of the party in the state find a way to manipulate the process and declared Hon. Ajulo opin as the winner of an election that earlier produced Engineer Segun Adebayo, again did Oloriegbe lied ? No. These were shambolic processes the senator referred to on Chanels.
Reactions from opportunist Esinrogunjo Musbaudeen and Kwarans on media
Few hours after Senator Oloriegbe’s interview, Mr Musbaudeen Esinrogunjo released a recorded phone video, laying claims that he won the Senatorial primary election for Kwara central in 2019, the same election Hon. Yinka Aluko claimed he won, but while trying to separate wheat from shaft let us ask Mr Esinrogunjo few questions.
- was there a primary election in 2019? Or an assumed revolution?
- Where was he declared the winner of the primary election he claimed to have won?
- Where is the result of the primary election he claimed he won ?
- Can there be two winners in an election at a time?
- Why is he coming out to accused the senator stole his mandate now with no evidence ?
- He said he won’t forgive the senator, was the senator responsible for his defeat? these are one million dollars questions.
Esinrogunjo is an opportunists who want to leverage on Distinguished Senator Oloriegbe’s outburst to trace back his lost steps in the political space of Kwara State, within three years he has committed two societal and political sins that automatically schemed him out of the political space in Kwara, one was the leaked audio credited to him where he was threatening the state governor and the other was his recent tragedy with the Nigeria Police Force. To my brother and friend Comrade Esinrogunjo , your political humiliations wasn’t caused by Senator Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe, you are the architect of your political misfortunes. I wish you well, however History won’t be a bastard.
The governor’s camp have since maintained total decorum, the only response so far was the self shooting article from the state commissioner for communication Mr Olabode Towoju, the PDP and haters of the governor have been online quoting and translating Senator Oloriegbe in an attempt to cause confusions, but at the end, as a progressive Kwarans we are going to ask anyone if the senator lied.
His Excellency Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq, if what we witnessed during APC primary elections should be define politically , it’s dictatorship , favoritism and selection. This is one of the major reasons Kwara rejected the collapsed Saraki Dynasty, if we rejected imposition and dictatorship in the past , we shouldn’t for any reason encouraged what we condemned in the past , may your administration succeed , however history will ask us question because history won’t be a bastard. Like Donald Trump objected “there will never be a time you will fool all the people all the time.
I am your friend , Convydence .
