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…Kwara North petitions Buhari
…Presidency to consider Lai for ambassadorial position
Tunde Opalana, Abuja
The euphoria that greeted the victorious edging out of the Saraki dominance of Kwara State politics may be short-lived if the leadership of the APC at the national level fails to resolve a looming crisis.
The Daily Times gathered that demand by members of the party from the Kwara North senatorial district for adequate reward, fairness and equity in sharing of party positions may pitch the state governor against the immediate past Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, believed to be one of the architects of APC victory in the state in 2019 general election.
Apparently dissatisfied by the present configuration of party positions in the state, members from the north senatorial district are clamouring for ministerial position just vacated by Lai Mohammed who is from Kwara South.
Driving home the demand, The Daily Times was reliably informed that members of APC Kwara North has petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari to give the only ministerial slot for Kwara State in the composition of his new cabinet to the senatorial district.
They also said that this will place the district on the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party.
The Daily Times further learnt that State governor bought into the demand of Kwara North which has not filled any notable position in the present configuration in the state.
The governor, it was learnt, is supporting Kwara North demand to pacify the Director General of his campaign outfit (AACO), Alhaji Muhammed Kudu, who is from the north senatorial district and one of the major champions of the course.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, Kwara North Senatorial District has demanded that a ministerial slot as well as the post of Secretary to the State Government, SSG, be zoned to the area. The Director-General, Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq Campaign Organisation AACO, Kwara north, Muhammed Kudu, made the request on behalf of the zone in an interview. The source added: “Saraki will determine the fate of his godson, Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, who has been pleading for the senatorial slot of Kwara South District. “Ahmed can either be a Senator or a minister since the present ministerial position given to Kwara State resides in Kwara South District. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Kwara North Elder’s Council had earlier demanded for the ministerial slot, SSG, NWC membership and the speaker of the State House of Assembly. Shehu further said that those who claimed that Mohammed does not deserve the ministerial slot of Kwara State “because he opposed the emergence of Senator Bukola Saraki as President of the Senate.
But a Government House source said that the governor was sincere in his approach to the issue because as the leader of the party in the state, he wants every senatorial district to be represented in the affairs of the party.
However, the Lai Mohammed’s camp was said to have deemed the step taken by members from the north senatorial district as been influenced by the state governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.
A close associate of the former Information minister said: “The minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has laboured greatly for President Buhari’s government, defending the administration at any given opportunity, so he deserves another term as a minister.
“Also, if you consider his efforts in delivering Kwara State to APC in the last election, you will agree that he deserves to have the ministerial slot for Kwara again.
He said the state governor should talk to party members from the north senatorial district to accept other juicy positions available for Kwara at the federal level and not do anything that will rock the peace of APC in the state.
“The ministerial slot is not the only position that Kwara State will be entitled to. There is ambassadorial slot, board appointment positions in Federal Government agencies and parastatals. So, why should it be this particular position being held by Alhaji Lai Mohammed?”, he said while charging party members across senatorial districts to maintain peace.
He added: “It is in atmosphere of peace that the APC government in our state can thrive and give dividends of democracy to all of us. We don’t need to fight over position. A house divided against itself cannot do anything meaningful “.
Presently, Kwara South senatorial district produced the state deputy governor, Kayode Alabi, the minister (Lai Mohammed) and the state party chairman, Bashir Bolarinwa, while Kwara North senatorial district produced the state governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazak and the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Lanre Isa Onilu.
Leaders of APC in the district like Chief Adebiyi , Alhaji Ahmed Muhammed and Bio Ibrahim, a former minister, were of the opinion that Kwara north has no representative in the NWC, stressing that this could fuel a feeling of injustice and lack of fairness in the party.
They hinged their demand on the fact that the district ensured victory for the APC despite its peculiarities of massive under-development.
“As it is, the NWC position from the state is in Kwara central, represented by Mr. Lanre Onilu, National Publicity Secretary, the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Muhammed and Mr. Bashir Bolarin, the state chairman are both from Kwara South.
“So Kwara north has no position in the NWC of the party, the only person that can go to the NWC is the state chairman who is already from south, the current minister is also from Kwara south.’’
“The governor, Adulrasaq is from Kwara central and would automatically be a member, adding that the north as it were, had no position and must be considered for the minister and the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) in the new administrations in the state”, said Kudu, the Director General of Abdulrahman Abdulrazak Campaign Organisation.
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He said there was the need to include the north in the running of APC in the state, adding that this would assuage the feelings of members in the district.
Though the petition was not channeled through the party’s hierarchy at the National secretariat of APC in Abuja, feelers from an aide of the President said the Presidency might be considering navigating around pacifying the Information Minister with an ambassadorial appointment.
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The Daily Times gathered that a meeting to broker truce among aggrieved members might be called immediately by the President returns from his foreign trip to Saudi Arabia.
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The source said the party was trying to avoid intra party squabbles that resulted in APC losing a few states to the opposition PDP in the recent elections.