Ilorin convention disruption by PDP thugs, Saraki apologises to Emir as IEDPU leader resigns

*Development absolves APC’s candidate of wrong doing – Kwara Source

National President of Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU), Ambassador Usman AbdulAziz, has reportedly been forced to resign his position following the barbaric disruption of the union’s annual convention by some thugs allegedly paid and sent by Senate President Bukolal Saraki.

The disruption was one in which the President himself was said to be uncleared from, as a source said  that the he  recently got an appointment into the National Assembly Commission from Senate President Bukola Saraki before the convention.

The appointment by the union’s leader by Saraki was claimed to have provided a window to plan for the disruption of the convention aimed at embarrassing Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, who is the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s governorship candidate in the state, when he mounted the podium at the event.

Saraki himself was said to have also apologized to the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari over the shameful acts by thugs suspected to be his supporters due to their open display and chants of “Sai Bukky”.

The Saraki’s apology, which came after an earlier apology by the IEDPU leader to the Emir, was said to have absolved the APC governorship candidate of any wrong doing during the disrupted event.

It will be recalled Saraki was conspicuously embarrassed as crowd of people bearing brooms in their hands shouted “Saraki Ole” to the chagrin of the Awujale of Ijebu Land, Oba Sikiru Adetona, during the last Ojude Oba annual festival in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State.

“Saraki, alongside, his aides visited the Emir of Ilorin today to apologize and beg for forgiveness over the happenings at the convention after he observed the occurrence had made him further unpopular and bruised his fast fading value,” The DEFENDER’s source said.

He continued: “The resignation of the IEDPU president and the apology made by Saraki to the Emir absolve Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of any accusation by the PDP. The picture of what happens at the 53rd annual conference of IEDPU is now in the public glare,” he said.

What happened

Senate President Bukola Saraki and All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Kwara State, Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, had traded words over the abrupt end of the annual convention of the Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressives Union (IEDPU), which was held on Christmas Day.

Political urchins disrupted the IEDPU 53rd annual conference.

The event held at the Emir of Ilorin palace forecourt.

It was going on smoothly until the launching of the 2019 calendar of the union, which was opened by Alhaji Fatai Ishola Ajidagba, the Chairman of Ifelodun Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State, with the donation of N5 million.

When Abdulrazak was asked to launch the almanac, some people who dressed in the same uniform (aso ebi) started shouting to prevent him from speaking.

But his supporters started shouting his slogan O To Ge! (Enough is enough!) to counter his aggressors.

The incident forced the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, to leave the venue in anger when the crowd became uncontrollable.

When the APC governorship candidate was also called to the podium to announce his donation, he made an attempt to echo the slogan of his campaign organisation.

Suspected supporters of Senate President Bukola Saraki started shouting: “Sai leader, Sai Bukki, Atunwa 1”.

Attempts by the organisers to restore normalcy and continue the programme proved abortive.

The security guards had a hectic time before the Emir could be ferried out of venue.

The highly disappointed IEDPU National Executive Council members, led by their National President, Ambassador Usman AbdulAziz, later went to the palace to apologise to the Emir.

The IEDPU’s calendar, a major source of revenue generation for the union, could not be launched because of the development.

Abdulaziz warned politicians against turning the state into a battle ground with their behaviour and utterances.

He said: “Politics should not be reduced to unnecessary bickering, unproductive name-calling, mischievous allegations, callous comments, character assassination, hate speeches, encouragement of chaos, whipping up religious or ethnic sentiments, among other negative strategies which politicians exploit and explore to win the sympathy of gullible voters.

“Our take on 2019 elections is very simple. Ilorin should not be turned to a battle ground by political gladiators.”

Reacting to the incident, Abdulrazaq’s media team said: “The development at the IEDPU programme, where some louts and street urchins shouting ‘Sai Bukky’ disrupted a community event, is disappointing, embarrassing and antithetical to good moral and ethics for which Ilorin community is known.

“Apart from reminding everyone of the desperation for which the evil status quo in Kwara is known, the sad event clearly points at the extent to which the parasitic gangs will go in the coming months to continue to keep Kwara and its people down.

“The disruption of the event, just when …AbdulRazaq was about to give his speech, exposed the shenanigans of the urchins and their paymasters whose uninspiring radio programme earlier in the day had drawn the scorn and condemnation of every Kwaran, home and abroad. The disruption was probably a damage control for their insulting radio programme.

“The intention was to damage the good image of the APC candidate and slow down the tsunami that is already consuming their unproductive political fiefdom in Kwara. But they clearly failed in their evil plot as their thugs – similar to what they did in Offa, where their ankara wears betrayed their allegiance – were too crude to conceal the fact that they were on an errand to attack Abdulrazaq and make it look like the fine gentleman was going about with thugs.

“Like a cobra fighting for its life, everybody knows that they have since lost the battle of ideas and are unabashedly desperate to wrestle in the mud to survive. It is too late. The people of Kwara are saying O To Ge! – Enough is Enough.

“We will not wrestle with the pigs. We won’t fall for their gutter politics. We are for decent debate, even as we mobilise the people of Kwara to end the years of tyranny and corruption.

“Regardless, we wish to state that we are bona fides of not just Ilorin Emirates but also Kwara State and we won’t watch while some political merchants, who have no real stake in Kwara, deploy their sidekicks and thugs to unleash violence on our people. We will ensure that the characters who disrupted the IEDPU event for political reasons are arrested and made to face the full weight of the law. We call on the police and other security agencies to be alive to their constitutional duties and bring those characters to book…”

The media aide to the Senate President, Abdullahi Olesin, said: “Saraki was not the cause of the disruption because he was not present at the convention but for people to act that way when he was not there indicated how popular he is among his people.

“What happened at the IEDPU convention showed how much the people of the state love Saraki. It was a clear signal to the opposition that Kwara remains the stronghold of Saraki. Those who rose in stout defence of Saraki are not politicians but ordinary citizens who appreciate the purposeful leadership that Saraki is rendering.”