Kaduna State Governor Nasir El–Rufai has stated that the All Progressives Congress (APC) governments are the beneficiaries of the progressive legacies of the late Yoruba sage and first Premier of Western Nigeria, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
The governor said the legacies Awolowo left behind should drive APC leaders and members to strive as he did to meet the expectations of all Nigerians.
The governor spoke in Ikenne, Ogun State, as the Chairman of the symposium titled: “Awo, Then and Now: Politics, Economics and Education” to mark the sage’s 2016 posthumous birthday.
Speaking at the event, El- Rufai expressed confidence that if the political marriage between the North and Southwest is “managed and nurtured”, the country would be the better for it.
According to him, “Change” alliance was forged by the trio of President Muhammadu Buhari, APC national leader Bola Tinubu and former interim chairman Chief Bisi Akande.
He said Kaduna State had started Awolowo’s journey of good governance in an era of increasingly dwindling revenue, adding that what is “important and consequential” should drive governance and not what is “popular”.
El – Rufai recalled that the late sage reached an understanding with some prominent northerners in 1983, to stop the hegemony of the then National Party of Nigeria (NPN).
His words: “The topic chosen for the symposium features aspects of Awo’s legacy as a man whose politics were governed by progressive ideas, and a leader who combined what he called mental magnitude with an ability to implement his policies.
“He was rightly regarded as a giant in his lifetime. His achievements were legendary.
“Chief Awolowo stood his ground for the common good. It is a lesson for political office holders, an admonition to do what is necessary, important and consequential.
“As the inheritors of the progressive legacies of Awo, we, the leaders and members of the APC, must strive as he did, to meet the expectations of our people.”
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