How Ex-Lagos Governor Tinubu, Buhari's Minister Lai Mohammed Said No To Free, Fair Primaries In Kwara— Governor AbdulRazaq
The Governor of Kwara State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, has recounted how the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, and the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, manipulated party election results as far back as 2011 under the old Action Congress of Nigeria.
The governor, in an interview with journalists, recalled that Mohammed was the old ACN frontman in Kwara and that he decided to throw him (AbdulRazaq) out because they had their choice candidates.
The governor noted that his days in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were also unpleasant because of the dominance of the former governor and ex-Senate President, Bukola Saraki.
He said, “When this republic started, everybody was with Saraki in the All Nigeria’s People Party. Just a few of us were in PDP then. We launched the party, very few of us. We knew our goal, to remain in opposition and remove these people from power. That’s our goal from then up till now.
“Along the way, they started pulling out because most of them saw that they had a glass ceiling on the Saraki side. They started pulling out. We started in 1998. Where was Lai Mohammed in 1998? He was in Lagos.
“He came in 2003 to contest and went back. The other guy that was shouting was with Saraki. We remained here deliberately. We did not ask for anybody’s structure.
“We had people like Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, as well. He was with us. He was the first Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP. He has never been with Saraki. There were less than 10 of us. We deliberately continued to build our structure. In 2015, when Saraki moved to PDP, we left because we will not be part of it. We left the party for them. I moved out.
“I never contested for office, I was sponsoring candidates and building a party. I was even offered the position of Board of Trustees of the party. I refused. I said I have my business.
“Our goal was to change the system in the state. It was not until 2011 that we found ourselves in the ACN, but then ACN belonged to Asiwaju and Lai Mohammed was his frontman here. So, they had their candidate.
“We said let’s do free and fair primaries, they refused. Eventually, they threw us out and picked their own candidate.”
“The delegates were playing games so I stepped down to contest for Senate. I contested against Saraki. I believe they rigged the election.
“Many times, I have engaged with the traditional rulers, especially to say, let’s be accommodating, it will soon pass,” the governor said.
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