FREEDOM AT LAST
Being a text of speech by Convener of Kwara Must Change, Abdulrazaq O Hamzat at the Kwara Women Summit, Ilorin
Honorable Ladies and respected gentlemen, all protocol dully observed.
It’s a great privilege to be standing here with you all today.
My name is Abdulrazaq Hamzat and I am by the grace of God, the
convener of Kwara Must Change. Kwara Must Change is a pro-democracy
group known for its advocacy for Kwara liberation.
Kwara Must Change has been functioning for years as a grassroots
movement; but in 2013, we intruded the new media space and create a
voice for the platform to amplify our advocacy.
Today, KMC is now a household name, operating in all 16 local
government of Kwara State and having most popular Kwara based platform
online with millions of visitors every month.
After the woeful performance of Kwara opposition in 2015 election, we
learned that we don’t have to rely on others to lead a struggle we are
a part of. If the struggle is to succeed like we all wanted it to, we
must all take ownership of the struggle and not wait for others to do
so.
This resolution led KMC to undergo reforms in 2015 and position itself
for sustained public mobilization which eventually culminated into our
call for the recall of the leader of the outgoing government from the
senate, an agitation that put our lives in danger.
I recall that when we were mobilizing for the attempted recall of the
outgoing senate president, I personally received over 100 threats and
so are many of our comrades. And between that period in 2017 and now,
some of us have been declared wanted by the state, others taken to
court and some kidnapped and dehumanized. Yet, we endure, persevere
and continue to match forward, trusting that Allah will crown our
efforts and we thank God for a day like this that we can finally say
that it is freedom at all.
Although, it is easy today for different individuals to claim success
of Kwara liberation. However, I am of the view that, the major reason
why we succeeded in this struggle this time around is because of the
extreme patience of our governor, Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me say that without an extremely patient and
strategic person like Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, it is very doubtful if
the opposition party would not have collapsed before election and
without a united opposition, this struggle wouldn’t have succeeded. I
therefore urge each and every one of us to learn the acts of patience
from our incoming governor.
For us in KMC, we recognize the role of women in this success, hence
our resolve to begin by celebrating women, while also seeking to
articulate a common agenda for future engagements.
Thank you and God Bless
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