November 15, 2006
By Babajide Kolade-Otitoju Former executive governor of Kwara State, Rear Admiral Mohammed Alabi Lawal (retd) is dead. P.M.NEWS gathered that Lawal, who was also one-time military administrator of Ogun State, died yesterday in United Kingdom after a brief illness. He was aged 60 years. The former stalwart of the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, was until his death, the rallying point for elements opposed to the political overlordship of the Olusola Saraki family that has dominated Kwara politics for over 40 years. Lawal’s last publicised public appearance was a rally organised in September (in Ilorin) by his supporters. It came after a long absence by the deceased, from the political scene. At that rally, Lawal affirmed his commitment to emancipating Kwara State from the “strangulating grip of the oligarchy,” and urged opposition forces to sink their differences and work together. He condemned Governor Bukola Saraki for spending millions of Naira planting flowers, while the people wallowed in abject poverty and debilitating hunger. “Saraki’s claim to being the kingpin of Kwara State politics is artificial, because he has only been rigging elections. Our people are fed up with the monopoly of the Sarakis,’’ he averred, as the crowd cheered. Lawal’s death is seen as a huge blow to descendants of Afonja in Kwara State, coming just over a year after the death of another prominent Afonja son, General Abdulkarim Adisa (retd). He was seen as the most solid opposition to the Sarakis, who has also got the financial muscle to tackle them. Though not incorruptible, the late Lawal was seen as a liberator, who came to give everyone a level playing field in Kwara State. For example, as a product of his running battle with the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Sulu Gambari, he upgraded many traditional rulers and increased their allowances by 1000 per cent. But the elevations were reversed by the Bukola Saraki administration. He also created 36 local government areas from the original 16. Again, this was reversed by Saraki, who has been on a mission to dismantle Lawal’s legacies. Lawal was controversial and his love for women remarkable. After he married a third wife at a lavish ceremony in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, he attacked his critics for opposing the idea. “It has nothing to do with my job. A writer said I am an unserious governor, that I am either marrying or travelling to Abuja. I hope it is not out of personal jealousy or animosity. I certainly think the writer is a little below the level of a responsible columnist,’’ he contended.
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