The crisis rocking the inner camp of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State took a new turn for the worse as chieftains of the All Progressive Congress (APC) loyal to him rejected his N1.5m Ramadan largesse, THE INFORMANT247 gathered.
The monetary gift was delivered to the elders, under the aegis APC Elders Caucus, through one of his political aides from Kwara Central, an informed source who declined to be identified told this medium.
The caucus, which comprises 27 elders from the three senatorial districts in the state, after meeting at the GRA residence of a former Kwara North senator, all unanimously agreed that the cash gift should be returned to the governor as a way of expressing their grievances.
“Yes, the governor gave about 27 of us the sum of N1.5million to share among ourselves for the Ramadan package. The money was delivered to a party elder. We met the following day but our resolution was that the money should be returned back to the governor. It is disgraceful. For someone trying to pull us down, for someone ignoring us, for someone neglecting us, our decision was a No! The money should be returned.
“Immediately, we called the aide that brought the money to come back for it. We categorically told him that we had no issue with him but the governor. He tried to plead but at that point, it was a No, No! Like I said earlier,” one of the affected chieftains who pleaded anonymity said.
“Imagine, the governor asked Lai Mohammed to bring 8 commissioners from among the three remaining tendencies, but neglected us. He didn’t even contact us, He just went to the Lai people and tell them, ‘bring 8 commissioners, make sure it is gender-balanced, I have appointed those important to me’, whereas you are neglecting us, your key loyalists and members of your tendency …for God’s sake, where is that done?” he questioned, with bitterness shown in his face as he fights to hold back his anger to continue his conversation with this medium.
The source furthered, “I won’t disclose them now, but at least two of the people aspiring to take the gubernatorial seat from the other tendencies are meeting us already. The Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also set up a reconciliation committee …the team is trying, they are moving, they are moving and recording success …we are here in APC fighting, and those of us that should stand with him (the governor), he is still trying to pull us down.”
If things continue the way it is, he pointed out at the possibility of the four tendencies that make up the Kwara ruling APC working against the governor’s return bid.
It is learnt that the feud between the governor and his inner camp, rather than abate is festering by the day, as the elders kept complaining bitterly about how the governor is treating them despite their loyalty to him and his administration.
A leaked audio where the State House of Assembly Speaker, Yakubu Salihu Danladi was heard telling a group of youth that he will retire all the elder as he is working toward not allowing any of their anointed candidates to get political offices had initially divided the governor’s internal camp, pitching many of its elders against members of the Assembly and the governor.
A loyalist to one of the chieftains said, “When the Speaker said this, it was like a joke, the elders didn’t believe. He was said to have boasted that he will ensure that most of the commissioners are returned. Didn’t that happen? The word of the speaker is matching the action of the governor, and the elders are looking at where this will lead him to. The governor wants to use the Assembly members to fight the elders. The equation is simple.”
As part of moves towards resolving the crisis, late last month when the elders met to form a committee that will interface with the governor on their behalf, rather than abate, the crisis escalated as most of the elders appointed into the committee rejected the offer citing personal issues with the chief executive. The elders ended up unable to form the committee.
The inability of the elders to raise the reconciliation committee also put paid to what many saw as the brightest opportunity to end the face-off between the Assembly members backed by the governor and the elders.
Confirming this to THE INFORMANT247, another party elder who is in the know said, “Yes, we held a meeting to form a reconciliation committee between us and the governor. It was at the meeting that we discovered almost all of us are having one personal issue or the other with him (the governor). We never knew it’s this worst. Most of those that were nominated said they might end up saying what they are not supposed to say if they meet the governor on behalf of the caucus, so the meeting ended in deadlock as we were unable to set up any committee.”
Several efforts to reconcile the governor’s inner camp failed as emissaries of close family associates and aides sent by the governor were not able to settle the differences. “The governor is sending people to meet the elders, though individually, but the meeting is yielding no result,” another source said.
