By Basheer Luqman Olarewaju
Prophets are the messengers of God who came from time to time to guide mankind to His way; the path of righteousness. Amongst the many who came as guides and warners to the people, Prophet Noah (Alaihisalam) was one of them. He lived long before the time of our Holy Prophet Muhammad (Salallahu alaihi wasalam), the last of the prophets. God appointed Noah as the prophet for his people, so as to guide them to the right path and turn them away from their evil ways. The Holy Qur’an tells us the story of Prophet Noah and his people in a number of suras, namely sura 57 (Nuh), sura 11 (Hud), and sura 23 (al-Mu’minun), and many ayats therein. It tells us of the strong faith which the Prophet had in Almighty God and about the final destruction of those who ignored the Divine Message.
Genesis 7:7-9 describes how pairs of animals came to Noah and entered the ark. Noah didn’t have to trap them; they instinctively came to him. How do geese intuitively know where to go for the winter? How do bears know it’s time to gorge on food and then sleep through the winter while their body organs slow down? It’s just instinctive. God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it, only a few people, eight in all, were saved. When Noah and his people entered the ark, it must have looked silly to the skeptics at that time. It might look foolish too. However, “the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom” (1 Corinthians 1:25).
A select few animals in Noah’s day somehow sensed an impending disaster and instinctively came to him. The people there had to be astonished (and nervous) when they saw the odd sight of two of every species voluntarily parading into the ark. That peculiar sight must have given the scoffers second thoughts. The Bible says Noah preached righteousness. What if all his rants about the need for repentance from sin and God’s impending judgment were true?
Genesis 6:3 quotes God as saying, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever . . .” Even God’s mercy has limits, and His patience with the wickedness and violence in the pre-flood world had reached an end. Once the animals and Noah and his people were safely in the ark, the Lord closed the door, and it started to rain. The opportunity for salvation was over; the time for panic had begun. Faith sometimes appears stupid, until it starts to rain. No one was ridiculing Noah when the flood came. They now realized the old prophet knew what he was talking about. Sometimes faith appears stupid until it starts to rain.
The flood waters began to rise. Believers who had so far suffered at the hands of the chiefs and idol worshippers found themselves safe in Noah’s Ark. They offered their prayers and prostration to Almighty God as thanksgiving for the Mercy He had bestowed upon them. The unbelievers who had ignored God’s guidance were in a grievous state. All was lost to them. The heavy downpour of rain, the strong winds, the deafening thunder and the blinding lightning created confusion in their minds and fear in their hearts. They ran helter-skelter in search for safety. They climbed the roof-tops and the trees but nothing could save them now as the waters rose higher and higher.
In our today’s Kwara, we have a vision-driven leader who commits himself to rebuilding the state by constantly bringing policies and strategies that will amplify the socio-economic, cultural, political and religious values of the towns and gowns in the state. Amongst many of his qualifiers; ‘Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq is easy going but he is a complicated leader’, ‘he is unfazed by hate-driven criticism; he is unmoved by sycophancy’, ‘when you praise him, the best thing you get is a smile’.
AbdulRazaq is a well reserved man and extremely forethoughtful. You can’t goad nor quicken him to execute. He seeks to demystify and simplify executive authority. In many occasions, he has proven to us in the state that his vision for new Kwara will bring indelible mark and genuinely he is working the talk. Amorous to add is, unlike many leaders of the past, he attends functions unobstructively. His message is simply: “I’m just like you, the ordinary Kwaran”.
In a state perforated with autocratic malfeasance, cluelessness, insouciance and lawlessness, it is a fresh breath of air. Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq makes our collective situations feel new, different, and exciting. The arrival of #OToGe government is creating a very different landscape for the interest of the general public. Firstly we are facing a significant reduction in public expenditure and secondly we are seeing a fundamental shift to local decision making with a focus on devolution to CSOs, business, communities and individuals. No longer will government be unaccountable to citizens; through social indicators and targets, inspection and intervention we are entering a new era where government will be more accountable to her people.
In this new landscape with a greater focus on efficiency, productivity and effectiveness, expenditure on governance is increasingly being judged in terms of the contribution they are making to improve the outcomes that matter to both local and urban people; health and wellbeing, the local economy, community safety and a general sense of satisfaction with where people live. Rehabilitation and construction of Rural-Urban roads and basic health facilities are tangible examples.
Today, we have a working scheme for the senior citizens. Increased survival of senior citizens is linked with provision of owo arugbo: the AbdulRazaq administration had in May last year earmarked the sum of N300m to fund the state’s social investment programmes targeted at the poorest of the poor, including the aged, the widow, and others at the lowest level of the economy. Largely, this administration is designed to support poor and vulnerable families, middle class, high class, petty traders, and young people at various levels; increasing their chances of continuing independent life in their own home.
AbdulRazaq’s dictum can be widely acknowledged that it is mostly a product of his own thoughts and plans. By the way and strategy he is implementing them, it is obvious that he is not governing on impulse nor is he ruling on autocracy. It is however disservice to keep reckoning that he was not the winner but ‘Abuja helped him’, ‘Jagaban imposed him’, ‘he bought the ticket’, ‘he boycotted the structure’, and failed to support his administration. All his great feats recorded so far are pointer to the fact that even if some fail to see positives in today’s administration, the progressives should not be deterred, Noah looked stupid until it started to rain.
