IF AYUBA BECOMES THE SPILLED MILK, WHY WOULD ALIMOSHO HAVE TO CRY? NAVIGATING CHAPTER 25 OF THE BOOK OF HISTORY:

By Razaq Adedeji Jimoh

If Hon Ganiyu Adele Ayuba becomes the spilled milk today, why should Alimosho cry over it? Should she cry, the plausible thing to say is perhaps she forgets too soon the pains of Ayuba"s origin of today inflicted on her this time of 2023. Well, short memory could not be her sole peculiarity nor being any type of pathology. It is all about humans and nature makes it so. If not, no woman would ever venture into pregnancy again after the first experience of labour pain. Thus, there should be no use blaming Alimosho for getting ensnared in the value of nature, which makes the tendency of forgetfulness a beauty of future outlook, even if the path to that future holds an open knowledge that the tread through it is yet a course of 360 revolution back to the pain that had just been experienced.

But God is Almighty as Allah is Merciful in making the nature does it works in compensatory manner. That is why the lure of forgetfulness of the few hours of labour pain is lurked in the pleasure of sex for another several months before a renewed encounter of the pain.

However, to evaluate the case of Ayuba's electoral process to renew his representative ambition in similitude of pain and pleasure of procreation process; it could be a misguided way of reading the nature in the obverse.of its essence. This is to understand that nature's essence in the guidance of humans is multidimensional. Every deed has its reward or comeuppance in relative but commensurate size. That is why Karma is also about the essence of nature.

Yes, nature does not operate in vacuum. It operates through the medium of, or in alliance with, destiny as its metaphysics prelude to the manifest deeds of physical realm.

Thus the question: If Ayuba's victorious valour or, to equally say in the language of the opposition camp, his 'parlous and purported' victory at the just concluded primaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC) now appears to be challenged, could it be a case of Karma or destiny? It could be deemed a Karma of comeuppance for deserting his origin of fame and ppwer for which his benefactor, Alhaji Abdullahi Enilolobo is desperately seeking a vengeance. It could as well be a course of destiny that his path to the Green Chamber should always be rough and tormenting just as the simile of same origin when then incumbent Hon Femi Adebanjo (Eyes Open), espelly through the unfathomable indiscretions of Taiwo Lasisi (Apon), tormented his victory to psychological torture, however pyrrich that victory was with blood stain in 2023. That here again, he's been tormented with rumour -- or reality -- of his APC candidature for House of Reps being dished off for Hon Adebisi Adebajo (Abisco). To all this, the question to ask is: what does the History tell about him and his origin of today?

It is for cases like this that History holds its value in reminder of a forgotten past. Thank God that Alimosho is blessed with source of typical history that tells the Ayuba's origin in membership of House of Representatives he bids to return to outside the realm and against the will of the House that made him. The narration of this origin as documented in Chapter 25 of the book Once a Girl-child is a serial publication to begin here thence as a course to rejigging the short Memory of the Alimosho progressives and the public at large.

Against all odds, Enilolobo appears desperate to kill Ayuba's dream for vengeance of what he believes to be "betrayal" of a covenant. While the covenant may not be assertively defined, it could rationally be implied by the fatality of the primary that brought Ayuba to the House of Reps as the consequence of electoral war Enilolobo fought to make it. The history tells it whole and raw.

Enjoy the first serial of unedited and unabridged narratives of Chaoter 25 of the book: Once a Girl-child

THE primary elections for the state and federal parliaments had come and gone but not without leaving their characteristic fractures of party limbs and loosening them off cohesion with the torso. This time, it added the rare fatality extremes in content of the peculiar affray in Alimosho. Characteristically, I caused to respond to the brutality invoked in yet another of my unsolicited press release in the words of Oga about noon of that day. I should think it was a piece he marveled at because he could not wait to tell me what he had in stock for me. But I was wrong to think Singapore and Arole should worth to be taken to confidence with Oga's offer.

The atmosphere had been tensed in the politicians' caves across political parties. It was the season of struggle over who gets the party ticket to fight for inclusion in the next government. The tension was higher in the APC as the ruling party in Lagos. Alimosho Federal Constituency could not have made an exception. It was the period of intra-party elections among contenders bidding to stand as visage of the party in the 2023 general elections for the formation of next government to rule Nigeria for another four years. If there should be any fear of politics as a game of death, the primary elections of political party is one vulnerable exercise for the assay.

Not unexpected as a possibility at such clime to receive emergency call at odd hours, the caller identity that appeared on my phone at about 6:40am that morning was the surprise. Therefore, it did not give any basis to hope for calms.

“Dr. Where are you?” Oga asked from the caller end. “Please let's meet this morning”. I did not hope to make this meeting any time soon within the next two hours. He could have read this in me from his end. A second call to vindicate this came in before I could put down my phone. “Or can you make it now? Please I will be expecting you in the next few minutes”, he so concluded to my affirmative answer.

“Tomorrow is my birthday”, Oga started his brief of the assignment for me. “I want you to send out a press release that there will not be any celebration of it. I want to do that in memory of those who lost their lives yesterday in the primary elections”.

I had thought the assignment would be something to change my itinerary for the day. It was not to be so. The job was swiftly delivered because the mandate was to release it in the next two hours. I had found out that Oga was not one to give you assignment and go to sleep for the delivery at your convenience. He would be on your neck, trailing you against indolence with phone calls.

The primary elections ran between 26th and 29th of May, 2022. His birthday was June 1st thereabout. I had barely seated on arrival at the House in the evening of two days after when Oga's Black SUV Benz drove in. I was alone at our rendezvous table as the first to arrive about few minutes past six. Alighting from the car at his owner's corner, the convention for him would have been to greet those in the House at the distance in walk to his abode for a change to casuals for the evening. “Mo n bo” – I'm coming – he would say while acknowledging our cheers of welcome greetings on our feet. It was not to be so this time. He rather walked straight to me in unmistakable impulse of the urgency in what he had to say.

“Good, Doctor!” he started. “What happened, we didn't see you yesterday”.

“I returned home late from an engagement”, I replied.

“Please I would like you to liaise with Apon for arrangement on how both of you will work together. If you will have to be coming to Acme, I will let you know”, he said just in time Monsuru walked in but not lucky to catch the last words.

Further into the night of that day, a convenience of confidential setting opened for me to have only Arole and Singapore at the table. I opened up to them about what Oga said. I could only wonder afterwards that Oga never revisited what he had rather offered with discernible passion. The narrative of the issue’s death from the both need not be released from its confinement. But for a hint, it’s a classical case of intrigues of destructive politics to experience in the abode of politicians' cave should not be in doubt it. I should nevertheless put it in doubt if it could have been the wish of Singapore to play a role in it if he had his voice free of the coercive ensnare of his co-aides. But this personal ugly experience would pale to naught the very night I would see Arole strike our Woman General with his sharp venomous fangs.

The State Assembly election for Constituency 01 was scheduled to hold at Mosan/Okunola LCDA Secretariat off the Highway of Ipaja Road at water Bus stop. In the race were Muyideen Adewale (“MD”), Lukmon Orelope (“LOCO”) and Barrister Rotimi Ogunwuyi (“Legal”). MD may have had the endorsement of leaders like Hon Bisi Yusuf, the outgoing third term member of the House for the constituency as I thought and unverified. I had never met MD until the night of reference a while past. In the opinion of majority in the House, he was already a winner by their mere measure of his crowd pulling capacity. From the further tips I could pick about him, he campaigned like a political orphan with far reaching publicity that almost gave him out as a made-believe candidate of the party while being an aspirant.

Nevertheless, I did not see all this for personal evaluation of the feasible fact. But from the reports within the House, he should hold a partial credit for the rebirth of APC in Agbado/Okeodo where the party's electoral fortune had been in the decline since the years of Alhaji Busari Ayinde (Jawe's) exit from the progressives in 2012.

MD is a young man blessed with early prosperity through the business of financial technology in cashless system. Beyond Bisi Yusuf, whose political strength and influence in his constituency appeared to have been attenuated by the Oranmiyan Dynasty, it was a hope of additional bigwig strength for his aspiration when Aboyade replaced Enilolobo at the state executive body of APC. In like manner, there could not have been any doubt that he would have been Joke Orelope's darling candidate if necessity had not pulled her brother into the race. LOCO from Alimosho LGA joined the race belatedly as I could pick from the House.

“Aintin yin ma tun ti gb'aburo re jade” – Your Aunty has also pushed his brother into the race – Arole anxiously said to Oga in his heavily accented Yoruba language while dusting his seat to settle down this night.

A discerning mind would not fail to read the malicious motive in his news breaking. Hon Monsuru who arrived soon after also aptly corroborated it without any prompting. Thence the analysis of right and wrongness of it that began and lasted through the better part of our deliberations for the evening. I was to be the lone voice for the Woman General in the ensuing debate by about six member panel of debaters. I could notice that there concern and basis for condemning Mama's action was the diminishing impact it would have, in their strong belief, on the ‘affirmative’ brighter chance of MD to clinch the ticket. In summary of their view to be paraphrased: she had used her overriding “selfish interest” to divide her group's chances of clinching the ticket. Of course, this argument could hardly be deemed wrong, given its face and intrinsic value of splitting the group's delegates vote when it was clear that the establishment was presenting a sole candidate. CONTINUES IN SERIAL 2