Emmanuel Adeyemi, Lokoja
You are incurring the wrath of the ancestors – grim warning by former Senator Smart Adeyemi, the Director-General of the Yahaya Bello Campaign Organisation, to rival candidates running against the Kogi State Governor in the November 16 election, who added that Bello’s bid has the stamp of “divine” approval.
Adeyemi’s unusual appeal, while addressing reporters over the weekend in Lokoja, rested on Governor Bello having, according to him, received key endorsements from traditional leaders and major stakeholders in Kogi’s western senatorial district.
The APC stalwart called on the Director-General of the Musa Wada Campaign Organisation and PDP member representing Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu in the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Yusuf, to resign his appointment, saying he would be running against the wishes of the people should he fail to do so.
“I advise my brother who hails from the same federal constituency with me, TJ Yusuf to resign as their DG so as not to attract our ancestors’ wrath,” Adeyemi said.
“As we stand, the Obaro of Kabba, who is the chairman, Okun Traditional Council, along with Elulu of Mopa, Agbana of Isanlu, Elegbe of Egbe, Olujumu of Ijumu and other traditional institutions in Okunland, after consulting their ancestors, have all endorsed Governor Bello for another term. Anything, contrary to this is an attempt to confront a moving train with the strength of a pickup van.
“The traditional institution, through divine guidance, has resolved to throw its weight behind Yahaya Bello; TJ Yusuf must take that into account.
“Nobody who has represented or who is representing our people will go against the divine guidance of the traditional institutions. Doing so amounts to incurring the wrath of the ancestors.
“His (Yusuf) political career will be in serious jeopardy and his representation will become anti-people. As an elder brother, I advise him to quit his position before he is tagged anti-people. He should be courageous to tell his party to go back to the drawing board in 2023; this election has been concluded.
“For Aro, he should put into perspective the utterances of his governorship candidate which amount to telling him that his people are inconsequential in the state. It is parochial and amounts to hate speech.
“This election is too important for Kogi West people to fret away; the election is beyond the social media rhetoric.
“There is no moral or political justification for anybody to campaign for a candidate of a younger brother to a former governor who also doubles as an in-law to another former governor. (It is) more disheartening to say that these families all contributed to Kogi’s woes which Governor Bello is tackling gradually.
“If former Governor Ibrahim Idris who is a father in-law of the candidate can reject his appointment as chairman, campaign council, I don’t know what TJ is still waiting for. I advise him to decamp to APC; our doors are opened, we await his arrival.
“TJ should follow the part of honour and integrity, thank PDP and quit. Many who have rejected their appointment in the campaign committee constituted knew the woeful outcome that awaits them.”
Adeyemi said the people of the state would reject any attempt by one family to colonise the state through the backdoor in the November 16 governorship election.
The two-term Senator who represented Kogi West in the fifth and sixth National Assembly, said the emergence of Engineer Musa Wada, who is an in-law to ex-governor Ibrahim Idris (being the husband of his first daughter) and also a younger brother to the immediate past governor, Captain Idris Wada, was an affront and an attempt to colonise the state by one family.
Adeyemi said that from his interaction with the ordinary people of the state, they have unanimously decided to reject this attempt through the ballot in the coming election.
He also berated the junior Wada, saying that he is playing the ethnic card by saying that only the Igala, his ethnic group, could determine the next governor, Adeyemi saying that it was an insult to other tribes in the state.
The former Senator said that such a statement coming from somebody aspiring to lead a multi-ethnic state like Kogi was not acceptable, adding that Wada was out of touch with modern reality as Kogi had moved on from parochial ethnic segregation.