By Omowumi Omotosho
A subtle but noticeable face-off between the Kwara State Governor, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, and former House of Representatives member, Honourable Moshood Mustapha, created a moment of drama at the Fidau prayer held in honour of the late Alhaji Suleiman Bayero on Saturday.
The prayer, which took place at the Bayero royal family compound in Baboko area of Ilorin, was presided over by none other than one of the nation’s most eminent cleric, the Chief Imam of Ilorin, Sheikh Muhammad Al-Bashir Solihu, and drew dignitaries from across the state due to the Bayero family’s revered status within the Ilorin Emirate.
The late Alhaji Suleiman Bayero’s familial ties extend into the political space. Notably, the founder of Sobi FM, Lukman Mustapha who is a brother to Moshood Mustapha, is married to one of the late Bayero’s daughters, making him a direct son-in-law to the deceased. This relationship accounted for the strong presence of the Mustapha family at the prayer event.
However, the arrival of Governor AbdulRazaq shortly before the conclusion of the prayer sparked a moment of tension. Dressed in a black kaftan, the governor’s entrance was acknowledged by the popular Islamic scholar anchoring the event, Sheikh Lukman Isalekoto, who conveyed a direct appeal to the governor with the approval of the Chief Imam of Ilorin, Sheikh Al-Bashir Solihu.
According to Isalekoto, Sheikh Al-Bashir beseeched the governor to let go of whatever misunderstanding existed between him and Mustapha, urging forgiveness in the spirit of the solemn occasion.
Isalekoto, then asked Mustapha to greet the governor just as the proprietor of Al-Hikmah University, Alhaji Abdulraheem Oladimeji, had earlier done. His announcement was met with a loud cheer from those present. The moment, however, took another turn when one of the governor’s aides allegedly attempted to push Mustapha, sparking immediate protest from Mustapha’s supporters, who shouted: “Don’t push him! Why are you pushing him”
Moshood Mustapha and siblings were kept standing for several minutes by the security aides of the governor, a situation that sparked discontent, disapproval and and anger among many at the ceremony, who regarded the action of the governor and his security aides as disrespectful, especially to Moshood Mustapha.
Sanity eventually prevailed and Moshood Mustapha moved to the governor and both exchanged greeting and even embraced, an action which drew applause from the gathering.
It was however not clear what both the Governor and Mustapha discussed during the brief meeting. Some accounts at the gathering had it that the governor asked Mustapha to go public and apologise to him. This claim, could not however be confirmed by the National Pilot. What was clearly obvious, however, was that the peace move had achieved little or nothing as the mood around Moshood Mustapha still bore his disapproval to the discourtesy meted to him by governor’s security aides.
However, in an effort to futher douse the tension, Sheikh Al-Bashir after the conclusion of fidau prayer, addressed the matter directly. The revered cleric stood on his feet and pleaded with the governor to forgive Moshood Mustapha for however he might have offended him.
He said: “We are the ones that offended you with Moshood Mustapha, forget about the offence and let it slide.”
The Chief Imam then went on, to once again, called on Mustapha to go back and greet the governor. But Mustapha, still reeling from the earlier public embarrassment, refused, an action that was greeted with wide approval by most present.
This moment created a visibly tense atmosphere at the prayer, with a loud noise, sweeping through the crowd, marking a shift in mood at the otherwise solemn event.
National Pilot findings revealed that this moment was merely a surface expression of deeper tensions. About two months ago, it was gathered, a reconciliation committee which included the Ilorin Ulama Council, Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU), and respected Elders in the Emirate, was set up by the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari to mediate in the feud between Mustapha and the governor. On the part of Mustapha, the reconciliatory arrangement was successful as he reportedly agreed to withdraw his legal action against the governor over the Kwara hotel renovation contract. While on the part of the governor, the reconcilatory plan was not successful as the he did not acknowledge the arrangement of the committee, hence he did not withdraw the defamatory case against Mustapha.
