Posted by By KAYODE FASUA on
As realignment of political forces resurge in Kogi State, preparatory to a re-run of the state's governorship elections, immediate past governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, has sneered at emerging plans by opposition All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Action Congress (AC) to merge.
As realignment of political forces resurge in Kogi State, preparatory to a re-run of the state's governorship elections, immediate past governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, has sneered at emerging plans by opposition All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Action Congress (AC) to merge.
Idris, who is the repeat candidate of ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), described the attempt by the ANPP and the AC to team up as a marriage of strange bedfellows.
Speaking with journalists in Lagos during the week, the governorship hopeful reacted to talks of mega alliance against his return as governor and came to the conclusion that, they all amount to sounds and fury, signifying nothing.
Stressing that a proposed alignment of the parties is not likely to work, Idris described its midwives as 'people with AC cap and PDP babariga, coming together for selfish reasons."
'It may also interest you to know that the AC people who are saying they want team up with ANPP are also talking to us in the PDP, they want to join us," he said.
The ex-governor's emergence through the April 14 2007 elections had been nullified by the Court of Appeal, which recently upheld the verdict of the Election Petitions Tribunal in the state, ordering fresh elections.
The tribunal's ruling came in favour of a petition filed by the ANPP candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Audu, also a former governor, who complained against his disqualification by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
INEC at the period had only relied on a perceived indictment of Audu by the dreaded anti fraud-Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
But Idris, fondly called Ibro by his admirers, said he was not in any way threatened by the trend of events, as he would rely on legitimate means and the rule of law, to re-launch a comeback.
He alleged that his opponents in the forthcoming governorship elections 'have recruited boys for thuggery, with the intention to rig."
'As for me, I don't indulge in do-or-die politics as our opponents are already doing. Now, they are finding it difficult to retrieve the guns they gave to their thugs during the last Local Government elections.
'They also gave money to the bullet-hungry boys, today armed with guns, they are now robbing luxury buses on the highways," he averred.
Idris, who appealed for a peaceful conduct of the forthcoming governorship elections, urged the law enforcement agents to be alive to their responsibility by striving to protect lives and property as well as the ballot boxes during the elections. Adequate security measure, he said, will forestall violence.
He alleged that in the last council polls in Okene and Adavi localities, 'boys were given guns to write fake results" in favour of the AC.
'If we had cancelled that election, everywhere would have been on fire. People were angry but we begged them. We allowed them (the AC) to have their way but they still went ahead, burning and killing."
Ex-governor Idris who said he would not be desperate to reclaim the governorship seat, said, 'I like my privacy" stressing 'I believe my performance while I had opportunity to be governor will speak for me."
He also had words of advice for those who are gung-ho in seeing Kogi Central district produce the next governor, saying, 'politics can't be played in isolation, only dialogue is needed for mutual support."
Idris, who is now back on the stump, campaigning across the state, had exulted before newsmen, as he said, 'I'm optimistic, very optimistic."