……… Vows to send ruling APC packing

By Olufemi Oni, Ilorin

A political group, under the aegis of Kwara Redemption Movement (KRM), unveiled over a year ago, has inaugurated its local government chapters across the 16 local government areas of Kwara State.

Performing the inauguration on Thursday in Ilorin, the state capital, the Coordinator of KRM, Akogun Iyiola Oyedepo, said the major philosophy of the organisation is to provide a positive paradigm shift in the politics of the State, pointing out that they are not satisfied with the state of affairs generally under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Coordinator, who enumerated the achievements of the KRM within one year of its establishment to include four days of radio programmes, establishment of an online radio called Redemption Radio, said “our sensitisation efforts on Radio are second to none in both reach and impacts”, adding that, “no wonder within one year of our establishment, KRM is a household name within and outside Kwara State”.

He said: “The difference between us and others is that while others have taken the people out of politics, we continually create strong bond with the people of Kwara State. While others lord it over the people, KRM subscribes to servanthood in leadership. Others may see leadership as showmanship of fleets of glittering cars, using public money to deck themselves in expensive jeweleries or even engrossed in other conspicuous consumption life style; we shall strive to create a culture of leading people with fairness, compassion and fidelity.

“Our desire is to upturn what we know about bad leadership that has failed us thus far by creating a new culture that is beneficial to the people of Kwara State. The people of Kwara must know that we are not only different from others, we are ready and serious to always make a difference.”

According to Oyedepo, the inauguration of the local government chapters of the KRM marked the movement of retail politics from the state level to the local government level, adding that the next level is the ward, community, and subsequently to the pooling booths.

He added: “The only tool we need to change the minds of the people from our current ignoble circumstances, is to meet and convince to follow us as many people as possible. The tools to do this are our developed concept called Sensitisation, Mobilisation and Organisation (SMO) when we create political awareness or consciousness that makes people to understand their plights, the cause of it and what they can do to change their sometimes-deplorable conditions. Mobilization is when we gather and assemble the sensitised and ready to show them the way, while Organisation is when we send out people to arrange the people for the desired political destination. Organisation is more about creating Party faithful and workers. We have been doing a lot of work of sensitisation and this will not cease.”

The Coordinator opined that by this inauguration, they are creating faithful and committed workers for the KRM, urging those being inaugurated to take the messages of the organisation to the grassroots level, using the SMO tools.

Oyedepo, who stated that Party workers would work more as volunteers promoting the ideals and the cause of the organisation, implored them to always aspire to be men and women of integrity and character that can be relied on always.

He added: “When they do not have money or when the money given to them for an assignment is not enough, they should be ready to accomplish the assignment either through their sweats or by making their own financial contributions. Party members should be party workers. If this is done, people will take ownership of the party, thereby killing the disdained godfather syndrome in politics.

“We are all involved, all members of KRM are party workers. The people inaugurated today have today been given their own assignments which will make them earn their places in the history of this State, especially if they act well their parts. Those that are not part of the people inaugurated today shall have their roles cut out for them in the other 13 committees.”

He charged the 160 officers who had been inaugurated for the 16 local government areas to get registered into KRM in their various wards, while ensuring that within the next 60 days, KRM has no fewer than 300,000 members in the State.