2027: Kwara PDP promises free and fair primary elections

Kwara State Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon Babatunde Mohammed has assured party members that necessary measures will be taken to ensure a level playing field for all the aspirants, even as he promised that the primary elections will be free, fair and credible.

Alhaji Babatunde Mohammed, a former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, said this while giving his speech during the visit of a gubernatorial aspirant, Alhaji Ladi Hassan, to the state PDP secretariat in Ilorin on Tuesday.

He urged aspirants seeking to get party nominations in the state to ‘collaborate’ rather than ‘compete’ urging them to focus on achieving the common objective of making Kwara become a PDP-controlled state in 2027.

He noted that Alhaji Ladi Hassan played a pivotal role in the party’s electoral success in 2002 and was later a member of the Bukola Saraki administration that ensured the delivery of dividends of democracy in the nooks and crannies of the state.

He also described the former Chief of Staff ‘a true party man’, noting that he is the first gubernatorial aspirant to make the state secretariat the first port of call which, according to him, is ‘highly commendable’.

Hon Babatunde Mohammed, who urged the people of the state to participate in the party’s ongoing online membership registration, also emphasized the need for all the aspirants to consider the ‘competition’ as a ‘family affair’.

‘At the end of the day, only one of you will get the gubernatorial nomination and we have to work together during the general election’ he said.

Also speaking, Chairman of the party in Kwara South, Chief Bisi Fakayode described Alhaji Ladi Hassan as an experienced politician, who knows the right thing to do.

‘Everyone will attest to it that this is the first time that I will join others to welcome any aspirant, Iam here physically because of the uniqueness of Hon Ladi Hassan’s candidacy, he does not need to be told what to do.

“Many of the aspirants are out there doing their things without showing that they recognize the party officials but you started with a prayer service and now you are here, it is commendable’ he said.

Speaking in the same vein, the state PRO, Mr Olusegun Adewara, submitted that Alhaji Ladi Hassan possesses the qualities required in a good leader.

‘I personally have good relationship with you and I see you as a good father figure and a role model and you have every ingredient required to lead a multilingual and multipurpose state like Kwara’ he said.

In his speech, Alhaji Ladi Hassan, a former Chief of Staff, Government House, noted that being a true party man, he had taken a decision to make the party secretariat his first port of call because the party officials deserve respect.

” We are delighted to be here today to stand in front of you and inform you of my decision to join the guber race, the party is supreme, we are in politics and we have to respect our party officials and the leaders.

“If the party is not supreme or we do not respect the party leaders, there will be chaos, that is why our constitution does not give room for an independent candidate, you have to go through the party, so that we can have an organized system. We are happy to be here before you today, we are here to formally tell you that I, Oladimeji Aliu Hassan of Mogaji Geri Ward in Ilorin West Local Government have decided to throw my hat into the ring, I am joining the 2027 governorship race and Iam seeking the PDP guber nomination.

“So far, we have not visited anywhere, you may have heard that Ladi and his team are doing this and that, but we have not done anything political, all we have done was to put our team together and organize a prayer service to seek spiritual guidance, that is the only thing we have done. So, the first political outing that we are having is to come before you as a way of showing respect to the party’ he said.

Alhaji Ladi Hassan, who noted that he is a familiar face, added that he is uniquely qualified and would make himself accessible to all if elected as governor of the state.

‘I am a familiar face to everyone here, there is hardly anyone in PDP or Saraki group that I don’t know, I am not a stranger, I know virtually everybody and it is one of the reasons I have put myself forward, so that if I have the opportunity and Almighty Allah says it is me, everybody will enjoy dividends of democracy”he submitted

‘My interest in the party, my interest in PDP, my interest in Saraki dynasty is unrivalled. I do all these with passion, anything that will tarnish the image of our leader, the image of Saraki as a group, I will stand in defence of the group, that is why I am putting myself forward to serve Kwara State but you can’t serve Kwara State, without having a platform and that platform is PDP and PDP in Kwara State is synonymous with the Saraki dynasty’ .he added

Alhaji Ladi Hassan, who noted that he is seeking to become the governor of Kwara State to fight poverty and change things for the better in the state, also asserted that the Bukola Saraki administration has been the best in the state since democracy began in 1999.

He also added that if elected as governor, his administration will fight poverty in the state through agriculture.

‘I want to use this opportunity to tell you and our party members here, that since the advent of democracy in 1999, there is no administration that has done much as the Bukola Saraki administration had done between 2003 and 2011, I am proud to be part of the team that worked with him, I was very prominent in that administration and I put in my own little best to ensure the success of the administration and I believe that if somebody like me who was part of his administration comes forward and gets the nomination, the confidence that people had in Saraki since that time will help our party reclaim the state. Everyone knows that Dr Saraki changed the face of the state’ he said