A coalition of youths and women on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) from Kwara North has called on the leadership of the party to zone the governorship ticket to the zone.
The youths, under the aegis of the voice of Kwara North movement against inequity, injustice, and unfairness in politics of Kwara since 1999, made the appeal on Wednesday in Ilorin at a news conference.
Mr Mustapha Mohammed, who read the text of the conference, said the zone has been marginalised from becoming governor of the state since 1999.
“Therefore, we, the youths and women of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) hereby pray the leadership and entire members of our great party to approach this coming election with sincerity and not discount Kwara North at this most auspicious time.
“If we are truly Democrats, which I believe we are, we must work to ensure a Kwara Northerner emerges as the gubernatorial candidate in the coming 2023 elections under the Social Democratic Party (SDP) platform.
“This should be taken seriously by the party leadership; Kwara Northerners have long come together and are determined not to support any other zone in the race for the governorship seat this time.
“Any Northerner clamouring for a candidate outside Kwara North is doing so as a money-making venture that will not translate to electoral votes comes 2023.
“Our people’s position is quite simple: if the party fails to pick a governorship candidate from Kwara North, we might as well kiss their votes ‘goodbye’.
“The Social Democratic Party (SDP) is known for social justice, and the majority of her members in Kwara State have also stood against injustice by fighting past hegemonic dominance.
“As such, this must be re-echoed in the current political discourse in the SDP, if the party must win the gubernatorial election come 2023,” Mohammed said.
They said that there cannot be any meaningful state-wide development if there was a prevalence of injustice amongst the people of a state.
Mohammed said there were politicians in Kwara North who were capable, competent, intelligent and intellectually vibrant.
“There are technocrats and politicians in Kwara North that are men of integrity, who have also made remarkable achievements in their chosen careers. Politically, Kwara North is a powerhouse of no mean repute.
“The senatorial district had the second highest votes cast in the 2019 election results (34 per cent); Kwara Central about (39 per cent) while Kwara South (27 per cent),” he added.
According to him, any argument in favour of the Kwara Central factor was a fallacy as incumbency will only serve to further split the vote of Kwara Central more than that of Kwara North, which he said has SDP in the majority.
“The people of Kwara North are fully prepared to bring more votes than ever if given the gubernatorial ticket under the platform of SDP.
“This is evident as we, the major politically grass-rooted youths with our structures had left APC for SDP.
“The prior dominance of power in the Central was similarly adduced in 2019 for giving the gubernatorial ticket to the Central under the APC.
“But it later became apparent that the ‘Otoge’ wind of change would have produced the same effect if the candidate was from the North as the electorate of Kwara Central are not or capable of making good political judgments, but also abhor injustice in whatever form,” he said.
Mohammed declared that if the SDP failed to take the ticket to Kwara North, it would be an indication of the continuous marginalisation of Kwara Northerners.
He said that if this was the case, members of the party from the zone and their supporters would have no option but to leave the party for a better option, adding “that will signify the death of SDP in the zone. God forbids”.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that placards carrying youths and women besieged the SPD secretariat, the venue of the news conference calling on the state executive of the party to zone the governorship slot to Kwara North. (NAN)
