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Kwara State was in the news for the better part of last week. The state governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq, made good his plan to recover properties of the state that were allegedly illegally acquired by the late father of the immediate past Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki. He began with the revocation and demolition of a structure at Ilofa Road, GRA, where the late Dr. Olusola Saraki, and his scion, Bukola, used to distribute food and other things to the aged people in Ilorin, the state capital, which goes by the name Ile Arugbo or Old Peoples Home.
According to the state government, the land on which the makeshift structure was constructed was part of the car park of the state’s Civil Service Clinic, which the Saraki family took over without proper legal acquisition or payment of any money to the state government. The government also said the demolished structure was built on one of government’s property taken over by Dr. Saraki for a personal initiative, without any recourse to due process. A committee has now also been set up by the state government to review the cases of about 100 other government assets in the Government Reservation Area, Ilorin; Victoria Island, Lagos; Kaduna and Abuja being investigated by the state’s Assets Recovery Committee led by Senator Suleiman Ajadi, with a view to recovering those illegally acquired by certain persons in the state.
Since the demolition of Ile Arugbo, there have been protests by some aged women in the state while the opposition party has described the governor’s action as an act of vendetta. The Saraki and AbdulRasaq families have reportedly been at loggerheads in opposing parties in the state for ages and the demolition has been interpreted as an attempt by the state governor to settle old scores with the Saraki family.
Unfortunately, the demolition has generated a lot of bad press for the governor as it suggested that he was more interested in evening scores with Dr. Bukola Saraki and his family, than in thinking of ways of making life better for the people of the state. The government, as a result of the allegations of insensitivity to the plight of the aged leveled against him, has had to go on the defensive, explaining its many initiatives for women and the less privileged in the state, especially its social investment programme and the health insurance scheme especially aimed at taking care of the aged, especially women. It has also been said that no fewer than 97 people, mostly women, have lost their lives in stampedes to collect handouts at the demolished structure.
While one may not be a fan of Dr. Bukola Saraki and while it is possible that some public officers in the past may have taken advantage of the laxity and corruption in the country to misappropriate government property, it is debatable that the government can make much mileage from the demolition of this structure. This is because the move, no matter how altruistic, is bound to be given political colouration that will not only paint the governor and the government in bad light, but also portray him as being more interested in the past than the very urgent task of moving the state forward . Even if any structure was to be taken over, it should not be the one being used for any altruistic purpose by Saraki.
The governor ought to have learnt a lesson from the experience of former Governor Ajimobi of Oyo State who demolished a property belonging to the popular musician, Ayefele, in Ibadan just before the 2019 governorship election. The demolition cost the government so much bad blood and probably contributed to the failure of the then ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to retain the state. Demolition of structures of political opponents is hardly ever good politics, even if just considering the cost of building them, especially in these dire times. Another reason why the demolition is not a good idea is that despite the fact that Saraki lost his Senetorial seat, he still has his own supporters in the state. The government should therefore be striving to win his supporters over, not further alienate them. That would be better politicking. The governor should not be holding out a tourch light, searching for political enemies.
Now that the deed has been done, let the government ensure that the recovered land is used for a project for the less privileged in the state, especially the aged. That is the only way the people can be convinced that the land was actually taken over in the public interest.
For a truly happy New Year
Happy New Year. That is the customary greeting with which new years are welcomed in many parts of the world. Last Wednesday, January 1, provided yet another opportunity for this annual felicitation as the year 2019 flew into oblivion and a “happy new year” 2020 breezed in. Since that day, reverberations of that age-old greeting have been echoing in both personal banters and official communications. Leaders at various levels have wished their people a happy new year. The rich, the poor, the bad, the good, the ugly, even armed robbers and other such persons in society wish both themselves and their loved ones a happier year.
But then, beyond the greetings, should these wishes frequently expressed for a happy new year not go beyond mere expressions of goodwill for a new year to real intentions to work for a happy year for both the issuer and receiver of such goodwill greetings? Should they not culminate in concrete action to make the year truly happier for them both?
If this was the case, the first day of the year should go beyond these greetings and the review of the past year as is customary with our leaders. Instead, it should be a time of great expectations that the people will anxiously await the new year greetings from their leaders and actually receive some news of good things that the governments at various levels have for them.
What can Nigerians, as individuals and governments, do to make this year, and subsequent ones, really happy? The desires of most Nigerians are very well known. Good roads, employment creation, good educational institutions, good hospitals, a chance for our children to be able to compete with their peers and hold their own in any part of the world. Basically, there are the reasons that governments exist all over the world.
Let the year 2020 be the beginning of the realization of the fact that we need to take concrete steps to make our country a happier place for us all. It should not just be a matter for rhetoric. It should involve concrete steps that hold out hope of a much happier year for the people.
Moreover, although Saraki lost his Senate seat and I do not have the number of votes he actually got in the election, he is likely to still have his own followers who will be unhappy with the governor about any perceived attack on Saraki’s properties. The governor should be trying to win these people over to his camp, not further alienate them.
