~ Debo Akinbami, PhD
Before Isaac Duerimini Kekemeke took a short-course in political pedagogy (as I assumed he did); the same that qualified him for the ‘dome discuss’, he careered in law, with lustre. At a closer gauge, his new syllabus appears to have seasoned politics with political party administration. And, if that be the case, the study must make a doodle for him; since the forte, for obvious reasons, is his.
He matched toward the podium in top spirit. His shoulders held high. He spiced his delivery with elocution; his tone laced with authority. His mettle justified both his antecedent and dossier as pioneer secretary of the People’s Democratic Party in Ondo state; pioneer state chairman; and incumbent National Vice Chairman (south west) of the All Progressives Congress.
He did not just speak as an accomplished lawyer; he spoke with the charge of an ex-law officer of the state. That could be felt in a voice that filled ‘The Dome’ with quivering. Kekemeke was not originally saddled to sermonise on the subject, meanwhile. He chose it, at personal risk, with its entire burden; yet he was masterful of the subject; extempore yet excellent.
Of the layers of his lecture, Kekemeke reminded his valued audience, of the place of preeminence that the Governor of a state sits in party affairs. He must be cognizant of the veiled rivalry to have been so declarative in his tone: “Governor Aiyedatiwa is the leader of the party in the state. This is not my making. That’s the position of the Law.”
What, I dare ask, could have provoked Kekemeke to unleash such a barefaced fact. Why count the leper’s faulty fingers to his face? Could it be for the fact that he saw the party rise through its rough edges as a founding member and could tell the difference?. Or that he has seen its sides in seasons, in a manner only a few had? Whatever his motivations, he should have, at least, be mindful of the huge investment of political pirates into blurring the same truth he brushed.
Kekemeke shall be pardoned; but the lessons of his lecture shall be possessed in clench, so that desperate pirates of power don’t perish in a haste. So that doubters can indulge the truism that to accept and respect the leadership of Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa as the party’s numero uno is to acquire inner peace. The lessons should, among other things, warn future racers to acknowledge the place of God in human transactions.
Kekemeke should do well to pleasure in conveying his conviction with courage. He should leave us with the burden. He could not have convinced all, for disciples bear different persuasions. Not even in a season when “abusing lucky” ranks high among the lucrative businesses around. But, again, you cannot teach a drunk spender where to put his money.
“Money burning”- call it wasteful spending if you care- is part of the game; but that too has its limits. The rule books are clear enough. No amount of sponsored calumny can veil it; not even the heavy investment in the “make -him-look-less” campaign against the governor who is doing so well to emplace the state on the global map, for good reasons.
Governor Aiyedatiwa must be getting something right. Perhaps that provoked Kekemeke’s conscience as a veteran and tall teacher on party affairs. Maybe the now-admirable institution named Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), formed, with utmost humility, to guide the Governor on state development and party growth excited Kekemeke uniquely; for that, in itself, exposes the finesse of the governor’s heart.
As for the burdens of Kekemeke’s new aptitude for political pedagogy, every committed party man or woman shall bear them, either with pain or pleasure, or both. Whatever happens after now, we all shall live with the inalterable truth to the extent that there can only be one governor at a time. Anyone else is at liberty to pick the future governor isignia. It doesn’t cost a thing!
***Dr. Akinbami is the Senior Special Assistant on Strategic Communication to the Governor of Ondo State.
