Sai Kayi and the Parody Of “Amala politics“
By AbdurRaheem Sa’ad Dembo, anipr
I was on Facebook today and I came across a video of how Prince Abubakar Suleiman aka Sai Kaiyi ,SSA to Kwara state Governor on Political matters (Kwara Central) was disparaging Senator Saliu Mustapha.One thing that propelled my mind was the prevailing”Amala politics” , which the action of the young man can be likened to.
He said in the video that Senator Mustapha was not the first to represent Kwara Central in the Senate.Meaning there were senators before Turaki of Ilorin came onboard. Nobody can dispute that, after all “soldier go, soldier come” is the fact about position and power. Both are fleeting in our very eyes and circumstances,and over the years no reasonable person can scuttle this fact.
Sai Kayi as he is fondly called can’t differentiate between personal hate and game of politics”. The fact is, he speaks like a man who doesn’t believe there can be decency in the political realm.Yes, people often refer to politics as a dirty game; when they opine that, they are simply referring to features,indices and players of Amala politics .This kind of politics holds sway in Nigeria’s political space.People can say anything to bring down their perceived political foe.Meanwhile, Senator Mustapha is not even a political enemy, because he is a founding and committed member of APC.
Significantly,Sai Kayi is from Ilorin and is a brother, he should be guided by desisting from making flavourless political vituperation. I met him during the 2023 Ramadan lecture organised by Bayero University Kano Alumni Association, Ilorin Emirate Chapter at FOMWAN Mosque, Ilorin.He was invited by my good brother and friend,Mallam Olalekan Abdulkadir.We related very well because I was sitting just by his left hand side.It is a free world and we can say anything but we should be mindful of the implications of our words.According to Late Kofi Annan, the Former Secretary-General of United Nations,”Freedom of Expression cannot be in absolute, because it goes with responsibility that borders on our peaceful co-existence”.
Senator Mustapha who is currently representing Kwara Central has done well in touching the lives of his constituents. But Mr Sai Kayi has dismissed the empowerment of Senator Saliu Mustapha, describing it as nothing special .In his words, “the Senator’s programme is not special,I can do as much”Bravo! To me, this is sheer arrogance from a man who is enmeshed in Amala politics .Let me educate him since he has decided to look away, the empowerment scheme was widely described as the largest in the history of the state.In fact,on the day of the empowerment, Senator Lola Ashiru said the empowerment was unprecedented. Beneficiaries went home with vehicles, motorcycles, Sewing machines,and other tools.
Abubakar also opined that Senator Mustapha had yet to measure up to the achievements of his predecessors in the Senate, making a particular reference to Senator Ibrahim Oloriegbe.No doubt, Senator Oloriegbe had surpassed his predecessors and I have established that in one of my previous articles.The reality is that Senator Saliu Mustapha is still in office and doing better.To buttress this,he had rolled out unprecedented University Scholarships to 200 indigent students in Kwara Central.No incumbent Senator has achieved such a feat. Anybody can fact check me on this.
Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq remains the leader of APC in Kwara state so Sai Kayi is free to defend his political principal but he should do it with decorum. Attacking Senator Saliu Mustapha unnecessarily can be synonymous with adherents of “Amala politics”.
Senator Mustapha has been doing it differently by bringing dividends of democracy to the good people of Kwara Central and beyond, and would continue to do it against all odds, where politics would not be allowed to annihilate family ties and that of friends
