It is still fresh in the memories of some of the political players and participants at the time, many youth who were too young to recollect what transpired or weren’t born at the time have been told and enlightened on how the first democratically elected governor of old Kwara state, late Alhaji Adamu Atta was prevented and failed to secure a second term in office as governor in the second republic.
Some persons have blamed the inability of Alhaji Atta to get a re-election for a second term on his ill-advised feud and political muscle flexing with the then acclaimed god-father of Kwara politics, Chief Olusola Saraki, while others were of the opinion that the betrayal from Alhaji Atta’s home, Ebiraland was largely responsible and made his defeat so easy for his National Party of Nigeria (NPN) to be edged out by the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) of Chief Cornelius Olatunji Adebayo.
Whichever line of thought one chose to believe or align, the fact remains that a people who goes to war with a divided house should not expect victory. An African proverb says “it is easy to break a single broom stick, but a man who tries to break a bunch of broom sticks labors in vain”.
Regardless of what anyone believes, the singular fact that the then opposition UPN which eventually won the Kwara state governorship election in 1983 fielded an Ebiraman, late Alhaji Umar Usman Abatemi as a running mate and was able to garner substantive votes from Ebiraland only shows the fact that it is either late Alhaji Atta didn’t do much to earn and win the respect, loyalty and support of his fellow Anebira or some persons by their nature were just hell bent at pursuing a personal and selfish interest at the expense of the overall interest of the entire Anebira.
In the next few days, we shall once again be going to the polls to elect a governor who will paddle the affairs of Kogi state for the next four years. The forthcoming governorship election is not only significant because we have an Ebira son who is seeking a re-election like it happened in 1983 with late Adamu Atta, but this election presents us with a rare second chance to right the wrongs of the second republic. It is symbolic therefore and worthy of note that the man whose father ganged up with the opposition to scuttle the chances of Alhaji Atta, Senator Nurudeen Abatemi has fully aligned himself and supports the re-election bid of governor Yahaya Bello.
The defeat of Alhaji Adamu Atta exposed and portrayed Anebira as a people who are disunited, a people who rarely speaks in one voice, a people who easily betrays themselves, a people who are more interested in pursuing their individual selfish interest in disregard to the general interest of Ebiraland and a people who can easily be divided by power and money.
The above weaknesses were capitalized on and have been used against us since creation of Kogi state in 1991 which made it almost impossible for Anebira to become governor of the state, before Governor Yahaya Bello emerged through a divine arrangement.
God almighty has powers to send us into this world by simply dropping us from the sky, but he has willed and permitted us to come through the womb of a woman so that we can have parents to respect, families, clans and tribes to love and protect. Protecting the overall interest of our tribes is therefore a religious duty. As the November 16th governorship election knocks at the door, it is the time not only for all of us as Anebira to go out and vote enmass for Governor Yahaya Bello but to also go round the entire state to appeal to the good conscience of the Igalas, Okuns, and all the tribes that makes up Kogi state to give our son a chance to put smiles on the faces of Kogites four the next four years.
Election is not war. Vote, don’t fight.
#LetCommonSensePrevail
– Hussain Obaro.
08157719456, oseniobaro@yahoo.com
