By Abubakar Yunusa.
An Igala social-cultural group, Igala Vanguard, has advised Usman Jibrin of the Accord Party to declare support for Social Democratic Party (SDP) standard bearer, Murtala Ajaka instead of running a parallel campaign that will ultimately benefit Ododo Usman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The group also warned the retired naval boss, Usman Jibrin, not to allow what happened between him and the late Prof Sheidu Mohammed Onailo repeat itself.
The group, in a statement signed by its coordinator, Engr. Lawrence Akpa, said Admiral Jibrin’s excuse that Ajaka had a hand in his disqualification in 2019 when he wanted to contest the Kogi State gubernatorial election is a mere excuse and window dressing.
Lawrence added that several others, including Babatunde Irukera, who is a close friend of the former Vice President, was also disqualified, just like Hassan Baiwa, who is a younger brother to the former APC National Woman leader and a member of House of Representatives contestant in the same 2019 general elections.
“All the APC candidates that were dubiously disqualified through the manipulative actions of Yahaya Bello except retired Admiral Jibrin ran to APC’s national headquarters in Abuja to complain and had their grievances corrected.
“However, Admiral Jibrin (RTD) traveled to London from where he was calling surreptitiously to ask his friends and associates to support the Igala candidacy of Engr. Musa Wada of the PDP.
“On return to the country, Jibrin went ahead to reconcile with Governor Yahaya Bello, his own very oppressor.
“The Igala nation had thrown their support and expectations behind the retired general when it was obvious that Governor Yahaya Bello had perfected plans to use the instrument of State violence and the electoral institutions to perpetrate violence on the electorate and rig the 2019 elections.
“Admiral Jibrin (rtd) did not only disappoint them but betrayed them by groveling to the same Yahaya Bello that had unleashed his political thugs and security agencies to kill, maim, and commit arson on Igala people.
“We observed that retired General Jibrin, by all these antics, is only trying to rubbish the good deeds and commendable sacrifice that he made for Igala by bringing a Navy Secondary School to Okura in Igala land just as late Isah Edime gave Igala land the Radio station at Ochaja.
“We will hold retired Admiral Usman Oyibe Jibrin responsible should Igala lose out this time around just the same way he made Late Prof Sheidu Onailo lose out on becoming NIMASA Boss.
“We wondered why Admiral Jibrin Usman (rtd) is always at loggerheads with his own kinsmen?,” the statement queried.
Engr. Akpa also narrated how late Prof Sheidu fell out with Admiral Jibrin Usman (rtd) over the Kogi governorship race in 2019 after the late Professor had confided in the retired Naval chief of his intention to contest for Kogi State Governorship and relied on his childhood friend and classmate at St Charles College, Ankpa.
“Little did late Prof Sheidu know that Jibrin was going to make a U-Turn to begin to eye the same seat,” Akpa added.
Igala Vanguards also reminded Admiral Usman Jibrin that he once, in his capacity as an APC stalwart, recommended Murtala Ajaka as Kogi East APC consensus candidate and wondered what changed later that warranted his current stand.
“He, Admiral Usman Jibrin, was never part of those who intended to contest in the forthcoming gubernatorial race initially,” said Akpa.
“He did not buy the form of any party originally but only jumped into the fray when we started the Igala Agenda, wanting to take advantage of a swelling Igala renaissance just the same way he did to late Prof Sheidu.
“Late Prof Sheidu was the one that showed interest in the 2019 gubernatorial election in Kogi State, while retired Admiral Jibrin only got the idea from his late friend and classmate and went ahead to take advantage of his late brother because he is a big soldier.
“Today, in a similar fashion, he is busy telling those who care to listen to him, who is Muri to tell him a retired General and former Service Chief to step down? What retired Admiral Jibrin Oyibe Usman does not know is that just as he is a military General, Muri is a ‘political General’ in his right that had been in the political battlefront some 15 or more years before him.
“We noted that some political jobbers and losers that live off deceiving ambitious politicians are deceiving the former naval boss. However, posterity will not be kind to all of them should Igala suffer yet another humiliating defeat in the hands of some devious politicians that are out for an ethnic cleansing agenda in Kogi State.
“We advise retired Admiral Jibrin Oyibe Usman to heed wise counsel, follow the building political tide in Igala land as a tested and excellent sailor that he is and save himself impending shame and odium by honorably dropping his gubernatorial ambition for now and throw his support behind the one loved by all Igala people currently, Alhaji Murtala Yakubu Ajaka, a.k.a. Muri. God bless the retired Admiral for listening to our wise counsel. Amen.”
