There is just a single place today that sweet and beautiful wishes were not written for the new Kwara State Governor, His Excellency, Alhaji AbdulRazak AbdulRahman – on the sky. Perhaps that informed the reasons the seemingly sensitive sky, poured torrential rain for the best part of the morning, determinedly in its cause to show prominence.
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Be whatever way you see it, which is of course an unavoidable manifestation of our Nigerianess, you will have problems defending it that the sky wasn’t jealous, that, despite how pronounced the prayers and wishes of Kwarans for the new government were, with several radio stations, papers and TVs making much show of them, no one seemed brave and foresighted enough to show his patriotism by writing his/her wishes on the sky. Or you will really shed blood and not only sweat to explain to an average Kwarans that it rained this morning coincidentally and not because Kwara is changing government. If you will try, good luck.
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As happily expected of the people, the acceptance is unquantifiable and hopefully, the support will be huge. From the look of things, AA would enjoy great goodwill from the good people of Kwara state replica to the one given PMB in his first coming in 2015. No doubts.
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However, that’s as much as their responsibility. Starting tomorrow, the new husband of Kwara state would be expected to swing to action overseeing the broken home he inherited to latch on to the honour accorded him.
Meanwhile, the age long Nigerian democratic practice wouldn’t afford him such opportunity. Unless he kicked against it, fellow party chieftains, friends and acquaintances would be trooping in to congratulate the new Sheriff ( not my own Shagaya oo), toh) in town. As a new husband to the beautiful but unlucky and enstranged wife like Kwara, he would have to be humming and haahing and huh huh to pleasantries from such people. Our people no dey carry last. I hope the heat from patronage wouldn’t beget the new husband early rashes in his new home. If you don’t know greetings can kill, just wish you were in a Nigerian governor shoes for the next few days.
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While I wouldn’t overstep my boundary or dream unnecessarily that I could advise AA, it remains my innate privilege to hope. Hope, they say, gives a wise man strength. Therefore, I earnestly hope AA would cast aside these Political rituals of greetings and Paparazzi and set to work. With such an overwhelming task of redirecting, building and developing the knee-deep Kwara, the early he started wouldn’t only be better, but be the best to him.
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Our new Superhero should as a matter of fact announced in style, albeit with correlating actions, that it won’t be business as usual. He should resume to office with attitudes and characters of a General going to battlefield.
For truth be told, whoever occupies that exalted seat is coming to war. War against his unwholesome personal tendencies; namely impatience, narrow-minded ness, arrogance, insincerity and what-have-you; War against fiends masquerading as friends, the sycophants, leeching incompetent buffoons hellbent on licking Kwara’s honey, thieves determined to steal her gold, the unidentified robbers acting as his devoted police; for AA to succeed, he would need to win many of such wars. The Rebels don’t lose even with death.
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This is why the sense of urgency, sobriety and purpose would be the right message to send out to the public from the very beginning. Aside the fact that it can rouse the masses positively, it’s the most proper message to give to his fellow Civil servants that his tenure would be a clear departure from the rejected past. That politics wouldn’t override governance and mediocrity will not topple competency. That there shall be zero tolerance for negligence, ineffectiveness, absenteeism and condemnations of any contemptuous habits as regards the State Government laws, values and ethics. AA should be radiating this change he preaches with words and actions. He could roar like a lion in the jungle when needed and mellow in silence like a rat before an hungry pack of cats when the time dicated. It’s not cowardice but foreboding wisdom and equanimity.
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Perhaps places that are not pressing for visitations should be shelved too. I am aware that our system could even make an unwilling ant to pay a visit to a mouse’s hole and prevail on a cat to say hello to fishes in the river. However, it’s with needless itineraries like these that he would do well to quash to display uncommon passion, readiness and determination to get the job done.
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The list are inexhaustible. But I know my message has been passed. As a reader, you are to get a message of a patriotic Kwaran calling on his new Governor to start the best way he can.
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However, this is not a proper article. The coming days would bear my thoughts and opinions on the government. And it’s neither a congratulatory note. It could be seen as one more reminder to the new Governor, that, he married a problematic beauty called Kwara, today. There’s something more, it’s supposed to be a vehicle of personal wishes since I couldn’t wrote it on the sky. Let my message be heard.
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May this change reflect desired changes. Good luck, General AbdulRahman, the favoured groom for Kwara for another four years.
Ibraheem Abdullateef writes from Ilorin.