Weeks into the 2023 governorship election in Kwara State, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) published a story alleging Governor AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq of directing the traditional rulers in the state to shun opposition politicians. But the Oloffa of Offa, Oba Mufutau Gbadamosi Esuwoye, would rubbish the report, saying it was a ‘false’.
Oloffa, who received Bukola Saraki in his palace when he trashed the story, said: “When I was informed that Dr Bukola Saraki was coming to Offa today, I had planned another engagement but had to suspend it. The reason is that people might misconstrue it to be an instruction from the Kwara State Governor, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.”
“But in all honesty, the governor has never told any of us to stay away from hosting opposition leaders in the state. The traditional rulers who did that were acting on their own,” the first-class monarch added.
After this story, PDP published several stories alleging Governor AbdulRazaq of using the traditional rulers in the state against the opposition parties. However, they could not provide any proof to back their claims. The recent one was the false claim that the governor was using the traditional rulers in Kwara North for the 2027 elections.
What is apparently giving members of the PDP sleepless nights is the cordial relationship that exists between AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and the traditional rulers in the state. The kind of relationship their leader could not establish when he was in power but instead coerced the traditional rulers to dance to his tunes at every opportunity.
How the PDP leader, Bukola Saraki, ordered Kwara traditional rulers around during his reigns can never be forgotten. Is it how he directed them to welcome his cows at the airport that Kwarans will easily forget, or how he and his handpicked successor owed 220 traditional chiefs in Kwara 20 months salary running into multi-millions?.
Why some of these traditional rulers shunned leaders of the PDP who visited their palaces for endorsement in the last general elections is understandable. Of course, the PDP treated them as irrelevant when in power. So, why visit their palaces during electioneering for endorsement?
However, instead of members of the PDP admitting that they are the architect of their misfortune, they prefer to falsely allege that Governor AbdulRazaq is using the traditional rulers in a region of the state for the next governorship election.
The PDP needs to up their game and stop acting like baby politicians.
