*How Offa robbery case exposes “irresponsibility” of current Kwara Government – Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq
The Minister of Transport and Director General, Buhari/Osinbajo Presidential Campaign Council, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, Friday amplified the ‘O to Ge’ campaign by giving what he called the real meaning of it.
The Minister spoke just as the Governorship Candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State for 2019 election, Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq, hinted why he thinks the current administration in the state is irresponsible. He said the complicity of Kwara State Government in the issues surrounding the difficulty experienced at getting justice over the crime leading to deaths of 33 people including police officers and a pregnant woman during the Offa robbery incident exposes it as “irresponsible”.
Abdulrasaq said what he got from the police over why the prosecution, by the state Ministry of Justice, of arrested criminals in connection with the incident is delayed showed that the state government deliberately packaged the prosecution in a way that would never be winnable against the criminals.
He however said the police told him it was the reason they were now working assiduously round the clock to ensure that proper thing that needed be done for possible justice over the crime take its course.
Abdulrasaq was dismayed that the state government’s inability to sack officials, found in changing of plate numbers of vehicle used in carrying out the crime and providing logistics for the success of the robbery operation, put it up as having hands in it.
But, he said there was now hope for justice as police was seriously looking into the case in ensuring that prosecution commence in no time.
Amaechi, who is immediate past Governor of Rivers State, was in Ilorin, Kwara State capital as Special Guest of Honour at the formal inauguration of APC Polling Unit Canvasses for the 2019 national and state elections and the commissioning of campaign office of the Buhari/Osinbajo Project in the state.
Giving his unwritten address on the NTA live broadcast event monitored in Lagos by The DEFENDER, Amaechi said: “This election is an election between the rich and the poor. And here I want to tell you the meaning of ‘O to Ge’. It just simply means that now the poor are saying to the rich in Kwara that ‘our eyes are now open and Enough is Enough of the chicken change you are giving to us,” he said.
The Minister continued: “Wrhatyou are seeing in Kwara in ‘O to Ge’ is the modern Tunisia where a poor man set himself on fire to say enough is enough.
“There are big men in all the parties but the big men in our party (APC) are progressives whose interest in politics is for the better of the poor. So, stop taking chicken change dance for those (big men of other parties who do not have concern for your wellbeing),” Amaechi charged Kwara people.
He added that, “Now, big men are very scared. We are here today to simply, peacefully say we are taking power from the rich and giving it back to the poor. This is what we are doing here in Ilorin today.
“It is not about Kwara only but also about Rivers and others places. ‘O to Ge’ means we are tired of the money you are giving us. We now want to take our power back”, Amaechi said at the occasion and thereafter inaugurated the Polling Unit Canvassers and commissioned the campaign office of the Buhari/Osinbajo Project.
Dignitaries also present at the event included the Minister of Information and Culture and Leader of APC in Kwara State, Alhaji Lai Abdur-Rauf Mohammed, Governorship Candidate of the APC in the state for this year’s election, Chairman of Kwara State APC Alhaji Bashir Bolarinwa and other top party leaders.
