By 
By Babatunde Olokooba
With his crashing at the just concluded Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) presidential primary election , It may just be the right time for Senator Bukola Saraki to throw in the towel in partisan politics and save his family name .
Reports from the sidelines of the Presidential Primary indicate that his dismal performance, despite the media hypes, throws him up as a perpetual loser in all elections in recent times .
This is the 4th time Saraki lost woefully in critical elections .
During the 2015 Presidential Primary among Nothern aspirants , Saraki lost woefully to the former Vice President ,Atiku Abubakar .
In the Presidential primaries of the party in Port Harcourt ,Saraki lost woefully in the primaries.
In 20 19 , Bukola was completely humbled in his home State , Kwara, losing out all seats to the All Progressives Congress (APC ) winning team under Governor AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq as the new Executive Governor and leader of the State .
Not only did he lose his return bid to the Senate , all his candidates in Governorship , National and State’s Assemblies lost to APC .
Humiliated by the results of the 2019 elections , those who are close to him said it was then Saraki first mooted the idea of throwing in the towel in partisan politics .
Based on the disorientation and grave disbelief he suffered from the 2019 elections , he had refused to reach out to majority of his lieutenants and rebuffed any financial request to support any of them .
Inspirations and encouragements for him to give another trial came from his marabout who prophecised that he would be Nigeria President in 2023 and regained control of Kwara political leadership .
Though taken with pinch of salt , Saraki was said to have regained enthusiasm and hope by prophecy coming from some of his manrabouts , yet , he was said to have maintained a calculated and lean purse in his political financing .
Some sources close to him claimed he might have lived on tactical sponsorship of one or 2 fellow Presidential aspirants .
Currently , Governor AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq’s most impressive performance in all sectors in 3 years and his leadership style particularly in prudent transparent management of resources as different from the ineptitude legacies of 16 years of PDP under Saraki’s leadership in Kwara appear to have given Governor AbdulRahaman a clean bill and easy ride to his 2023 second term bid .
Already , while Saraki is left alone with no one empowered in his political camp to support his leadership financially , Governor AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq has endless list of young multi- billionaires with him in all the three senatorial districts in the Sate .
The list includes the famous Amazon of Ilorin , Hajia Muinat Bola Sagaya , Salihu Mustapha , APC Senstorial candidate who beat the incumbent, Dr. Yahaya Oloriegbe in the just concluded primaries in Kwara Central Senatorial district and Mashood Mustapha , a former aide of Senator Saraki .
Others include Yahaya Sarki , die hard billionaire loyalist of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq .
Same endless list of Governor AbdluRahaman AbdulRazaq ‘s die hard loyalists who are multi billionaire abound in Kwara South and Kwara North .
Lately , all traditional rulers in the State led by the Emir of Ilorin ,Dr. Ibrahim Sulu- Gambari have endorsed AbdulRahman ‘s second term .
Because of AbdulRahman’s pace setting records in gender and youths incusiveness in governance , majority of the youths , women and stakeholders across the State have endorsed him and indeed APC for a second term.
Elites who are indegines of the State in major cities such as Abuja , Lagos , Kano , Kaduna and Port Harcourt have resolved never to allow Saraki’s dynasty to return to power in Kwara State
At both state and national levels , Saraki appeared to have lost the golden opportunity he had to consolidate on the political legacies of his late father .
Bukola’s former supporters and die hard loyalists , in their thousands , accross the State are reportedly holding meetings with Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq to decamp enmasse to APC in the next few weeks .
Vice President Atiku Abubakar , unlike 2019 when he appointed Saraki as his Presidential Campaign Director General is said to have lost confidence in Saraki and never to see in him trusted in any capacity.
In the build to the primary election, Saraki tried to play a fast one on his fellow aspirants by foisting a consensus on them. A committee headed by Professor Ango Abdullahi could not reach a deal among aspirants but Saraki allegedly issued a statement claiming he has been endorsed as the annointed candidate. This was discovered not to be true in a interview granted with Professor Abdullahi.
Two of the aspirants, Governor Aminu Tambuwal and Mohammed Hayyatudeen took their pound of flesh from Saraki by withdrawing at the last minute at the presidential primary to ensure smooth emergence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s flag bearer for 2023 .
Finally , Saraki’s blunder in zoning PDP Governorship ticket to Kwara North at a time Ilorin and the State are witnessing the best of governance in the State in all sectors under Governor AbdulRazaq is seen by many Kwarans as the last straw that would break the camel’s back .
Governor AbdulRahaman AbdulRazaq is currently being celebrated for his uncommon political strategy which has brought together the best of the State in all the candidates running with him for 2023 .
The likes of the famous current Turaki of Ilorin and APC Senatorial candidate for Kwara Central, Saliu Mustapha, Senator Abubakar Sadique for Kwara North and Senator Ashiru for Kwara South, Mukhtar Sagaya for Asa/ Ilorin West Rep., Yinka Aluko for Ilorin East and South Rep , the Son of former Governor of the State , C.O. Adebayo and Tajudeen Abioye for Reps.in Kwara South , Honourable Omar Bio and others in Kwara North and all for the State House of Assembly including not less than five popular female candidates in fulfillment of gender inclusiveness puts APC team as the best winning team to repeat the 2019 landslides victory for the party in 2023 .
Except miracles , a supoorter of Saraki vowed that “ Oga is done with party politics with this his crashing again in the just concluded PDP presidential primary election .”
We hope Saraki will heed the wise counsel by bowing out and save his family name.
Olokooba writes from Ilorin, the Kwara State Capital
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