By Victor Gabriel
There is no gainsaying the fact that Kola Abiola, first son of the late MKO Abiola, acclaimed winner of June 12, 1993 presidential election, is a force to be reckoned with in the political sphere and calculus of this nation.
This is especially so if the circumstances that surrounded his emergence as the presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) are taken into consideration.
Highly cerebral, Kola Abiola remains one politician whose parental genes fire his interest in politics. This is indisputably a monumental blessing to his generation because he is not in politics for what he would garner out of the system. Rather, what propels him in this 2023 presidential quest is how to use politics as a veritable tool to make the life of the majority of Nigerian citizens better.
Without doubt, Kola Abiola is of noble birth; but in examining his attributes for leadership he is also widely-travelled, sufficiently educated, highly connected with a solid business background and has been witnessing how genuine democratic governments have been a potent tool of institutional meaningful development in the advanced economies which could be replicated in his fatherland.
One unique attribute that fascinates and draws his numerous admirers and supporters to him is that the scion of the Abiola dynasty of Abeokuta, Ogun State, is an independent-minded man who does not like to hide under his noble birth and the international fame of his father to accomplish his goals.
This is perhaps why he hardly drops or flaunts his father’s name or accomplishment to gain favour.
Another verifiable plus for the PRP presidential candidate is that he is a metaphorical bridge between the youths and the old. He does not joke with philanthropic activities. As the first son of his famous father who died as a political martyr for the sustainability of Nigeria’s democracy, Kola Abiola has proved to be a worthy head of the Abiola family by putting the large family together to the admiration of all and sundry.
Beyond politics, the PRP presidential candidate is at home in all the six geo-political zones of Nigeria as he maintains and oils friendships who have become his political assets. True to type, there cannot be another rare quality that is endearing Kola Abiola to his numerous supporters and admirers in all the spheres of life.
The way and manner that the junior Abiola emerged as the presidential candidate of his party is a testimony to the fact that he is not a rookie in politics as it is on record that he played a significant and prominent role in the electoral success of his late father in the 1993 presidential election when he was in his twenties.
Kola Abiola won against Usman Bugaje, Patience Key and Gboluga Mosugu to pick the PRP ticket. While Kola got 2,097 votes from across the 36 states including the Federal Capital Territory, Bugaje came second with a distant 813 votes while Key and Mosugu got 329 and 263 votes to emerge third and fourth respectively.
A total of 3,625 delegates were accredited with 3,519 valid votes and 141 invalid votes. The collation was witnessed by the officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC).
Kola Abiola unarguably is the best bet for the presidential tenancy of Aso Rock in 2023. He is not an unwilling candidate and he knows his onions as far as governance is concerned. The PRP presidential candidate definitely knows where the shoe pinches as he has promised to reinvent the Nigeria’s security architecture with citizens going about their businesses and sleeping with their eyes closed without any fear of being molested or attacked by bandits who have penetrated the fabrics of the length and breadth of this nation. This is what he will certainly do if elected the president in 2023.
It is only a presidential candidate who is worth his salt like Kola Abiola who could choose to prioritise the issue of security knowing it is the bedrock of all developmental programmes. It is when there is peace that anyone could talk of any other programmes and this explains why security is occupying a first-line charge of Kola Abiola if elected the president.
At a speech at the Presidential Townhall Meeting Series organised by Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) in collaboration with Arise TV in Abuja recently, the junior Abiola had vowed to improve on the welfare of the men of the Armed Forces, stating that “we need to address the security architecture. This will is there. We need to ensure implementation and look at the welfare of our Armed Forces. The trust has been eroded. The common man cannot feel the presence of a government.”
Above all, he has shown great enthusiasm of working with Nigerians of like minds to win next year’s election by repeating his father, the late MKO Abiola’s feat during the June 12, 1993 election as he is in the presidential race to disrupt the process and to win the next year’s election.
In his words: “I led the campaign planning and execution that earned my late father victory during the controversial 1993 presidential election when I was 28 years old. I will adopt grassroots approach and pursue a recruitment drive that will change the face of politics in Nigeria. Similarly, I want to reset Nigeria with my party, which is one of the oldest in this country. I want to be president because I believe it is time for complete reset of Nigeria. And I did not make a mistake by joining the PRP. I did my homework thoroughly before joining the PRP. And I joined it because it is the only party that has no baggage, no problems or legacy issues. “
Undoubtedly, the chances of Kola Abiolais a surprise factor in this race.
•Gabriel wrote from Lagos