…Party Officials got 3 slots each per LG – Source
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…Govt sponsor individuals by obligations – Rafiu Ajakaye
Some analysts have expressed mixed feelings over the alleged plans by the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, to sponsor over one hundred members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, including notable clerics for the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
The plans, according to top sources, would see the government spending millions of Naira from the state treasury to sponsor the APC officials, influential clerics, and Muslim faithful for the Hajj.
The pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca will take place between April and May 2024 and is expected to cost at least five million naira per pilgrim.
“This year’s Hajj pilgrimage for Kwara would witness new development especially as the 2027 politicking and successor plans from the incumbent governor’s camp take off in earnest.
“While the Sarakis are planning to sponsor sizable numbers of Influential Ilorin clerics to Saudi Arabia for the hajj, the Kwara State Governor AbdulRazaq has also procured not less than a hundred beneficiaries for the 2024 hajj pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca,” one of the top sources who is informed told THE ELITES WATCH.
A top source alleged that Governor AbdulRazaq has gifted three slots of the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage to three each of the APC officials from across some identified local government areas in the state.
“It was the norm in the past, but I can confirm to you that the present Kwara State government plans to sponsor at least three APC officials each to the holy city of Mecca for the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage which is a departure from what he preached against since his assumption of office in May 2019.
“For example in Ilorin South, the local government party chairman, the Secretary, and the Woman leader would be among the top beneficiaries of the governor’s latest gesture.”
Findings revealed that Governor AbdulRazaq recently embarked on a strategic move via his programs and initiatives targeted at building confidence in some influential clerics, who are a powerful bloc in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.
It was gathered that the governor recently attended the weekly prayer session by the Nasrul‐Lahi‐il Fathi Society of Nigeria (NASFAT) in Ilorin, the first of its kind since his assumption of office in May 2019.
He was reportedly cheered by the congregations who were all excited to see the governor in their midst.
“The congregation expressed happiness over the Governor’s gentle demeanor and humility by choosing to pray with them, putting smiles on their faces and reassuring them of his unwavering commitment to bring governance closer to the real people at the grassroots,” a statement by the Governor’s media team after his visit to NASFAT partly reads.
In another recent visit, the governor paid an unscheduled visit to the Khalifa Adabiya, Sheikh AbdulKadir Kamaldeen Al-Adaby late last year. These moves, according to some analysts, are part of the governor’s strategy to gain acceptance and increase his visibility within the Muslim community.
The powerful bloc within the Islamic folks otherwise called ‘Ulamah’ is believed to be second in rating to the traditional rulers in the ancient city of Ilorin.
Meanwhile, there are indications that the former senate president Bukola Saraki in his usual gesture has also perfected plans to sponsor some highly influential individuals including Islamic scholars for the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage.
The former Kwara Governor recently met with some Ilorin clerics who visited his home in Abuja, the federal capital territory. This development attracted several speculations from political analysts alleging plans by the Waziri of Ilorin to further strengthen his relationship with the powerful bloc in the Ilorin Emirate.
It was alleged by Kwara Government sources that the meeting was convened by a top national official and not unconnected to the brewing crisis amongst the Islamic scholars who were lovers of the former senate president.
The Waziri of Ilorin was equally said to have appeased the scholars by providing a lasting solution to the impending crisis.
Gov. AbdulRazaq who is serving his second term in office will not be eligible to contest in 2027, however, there are heated plans to install a successor from his camp, further findings revealed.
According to a top member of the Kwara State Pilgrimage Welfare Board for 2024 hajj, the sponsorship spree by the incumbent governor will gulp half a billion naira as travel costs, logistics, and subsistence allowances for the benefitting pilgrims.
“With the updated cost of the Hajj pilgrimage for the year 2024, each intending pilgrim will be paying a sum of five million nairas, and yes, Kwara state will accommodate over a hundred people under the state government sponsorship,” the board member who preferred not to be named because he is not authorized to speak officially to the media said.
A public policy analyst, Mr Yahya Habib has, meanwhile, condemned the politicization of religious customs, describing the development as an “Unfortunate occurrence in our political landscape.”
When contacted for his viewpoint as a public policy analyst, Habib confirmed the rumours of politicians sponsoring significant numbers of pilgrims for hajj in the year 2024, adding that “it is a misguided and conceivable decision, especially when poverty is ravaging the people.”
“Instead of spending millions of Naira to send people on Hajj, it would be more rational to empower those who struggle to afford basic necessities like food. This excessive spending only serves to exploit Hajj for cheap political gains.
“If true, the allegation that the state government intends to use public resources to send a selected group of party loyalists and scholars for Hajj is highly condemnable, especially in a state like Kwara where poverty pervades every household.
“It is imperative that the state government refrains from such irrational actions that further marginalise the poor Kwara State masses,” the public policy analyst wrote in an 8-paragraph response.
When contacted for comment, the Kwara State Governor Spokesman, Rafiu Ajakaye said it is a standard practice for government to pay the bills of certain members of the Kwara contingent to Hajj or Christian pilgrimage to make the exercise seamless as a matter of obligation and that could include clerics and some important dignitaries.
“I can not speak authoritatively on issues that I am not privy to. If you ask me about the hajj exercise, I think the best thing to do is to speak with the Kwara Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board. We sometimes have on the state contingent senior bureaucrats and individuals who are experienced and saddled with the responsibility of making the hajj a seamless exercise for the pilgrims, including Islamic scholars, even from outside of the board.
“I am careful about people hiding under anonymity to make allegations. At any rate, I think the government has not violated any law by sponsoring some persons, including clerics and dignitaries, to represent and coordinate the exercise and make the hajj a seamless exercise. I am speaking within the scope of state delegation or contingent. This is a standard you see around the country and beyond,” the Chief Press Secretary to Kwara Governor, Rafiu Ajakaye said in a telephone conversation.