Bolaji Abdullahi: Silence at Home, Thunder in Abuja By Moyo Odunlami

There is a saying in politics: charity begins at home. Another says: every politics is local. Yet, in Kwara State today, we are witnessing a curious contradiction — a loud national megaphone paired with a deafening local silence.
Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, has mastered the art of swift condemnation — especially when it concerns President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Before the dust settles on any perceived misstep in Abuja, his statements are out, polished and pointed. He is quick to draw the sword, quicker to summon outrage, and quickest to accuse. But when the same urgency is required at home in Kwara, the megaphone goes mute. Unlike Lai Mohammed, who as APC National Publicity Secretary did not spare Kwara when he deemed it necessary, Bolaji’s courage appears to fade at the River Niger.
One would be forgiven for wondering: why this selective activism? Kwara has not exactly been a model of calm governance in recent years under Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq. Insecurity has crept steadily from the fringes into the heart of communities. Bandit attacks have scarred towns in both the northern and southern parts of the state — from Kaiama and Baruten to Edu, Patigi, Oke-Ero, Ifelodun, Isin, Irepodun and Ekiti LGAs.
Communities have mourned. Farmers have fled their lands. Families have buried their loved ones in silence and fear. The tragic massacre in Woro Community, Kaiama LGA — where close to 300 lives were reportedly lost — shook consciences far beyond Kwara. It drew national attention. It attracted statements and action from the Commander-in-Chief, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It echoed even within international circles.
Yet, from the ADC’s national spokesman — a son of the soil who has benefitted hugely from the state — there was silence. Not a press statement. Not a firm condemnation. Not even a symbolic paragraph of solidarity. Or is it because it will affect the public image of Gov Abdulrazaq negatively? Is Kwara not deserving of outrage? Is the blood of its people less red?
Under Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, insecurity has worsened by many accounts. Public schools are gasping for survival. Tertiary institutions struggle under administrative and financial strain. NYSC orientation camps have been relocated. Polytechnic students have been displaced from their campuses to make room for corps members. Peaceful student protesters have faced tear gas and, in disturbing instances, live ammunition. Peaceful women protesting insecurity have reportedly been flogged in broad daylight, even in the presence of security operatives.
Through it all, the ADC — and its most visible national voice — has chosen restraint. But restraint in the face of suffering is not neutrality. It is complicity by silence. This is where questions naturally arise. Many Kwara-based groups have insinuated that there exists a quiet political understanding between Governor Abdulrazaq and the ADC leadership in the state. Some even go as far as alleging financial undercurrents sustaining that relationship. Whether these claims are true or false, one undeniable fact remains: neither the ADC national body, nor its Kwara chapter, nor Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi in his personal capacity has issued any strong, sustained criticism of the governance failures widely discussed within the state. Yet, President Tinubu — leader of the APC — remains a constant target.
The irony is glaring. Both President Tinubu and Governor Abdulrazaq are of the same political party. If governance standards are to be interrogated, why is scrutiny selective? Why does Abuja receive daily lectures while Ilorin enjoys studied quietness?
As an APC member from a neighbouring state, I find this contradiction troubling — not because criticism is unwelcome in democracy, but because consistency is the soul of credibility. If Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi believes in accountability, then Kwara must be his first constituency of conscience.
You cannot continually attack the President of the Federal Republic — the leader of the APC — while tiptoeing around the shortcomings of an APC governor whose policies directly affect the people in your immediate environment. Politics should not be “bokor bokor” — shadow boxing in public while embracing in private.
The people of Kwara deserve transparency. They deserve to know whether this silence is strategic, coincidental, or contractual. A spokesman’s voice should not tremble at the gates of his own home.
If governance in Kwara is excellent, let it be defended boldly. If it is failing, let it be challenged courageously. But selective outrage erodes moral authority. Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi has shown that he can speak. The question is: will he speak for Kwara?
Because in the end, history will not remember how loud we shouted in distant capitals. It will remember whether we stood up for our own people when it mattered most. And in Kwara today, it matters.
Moyo Odunlami writes from offa