By Biyi Orilabawaye

Hon Abayomi Sheba is my benefactor and during the last federal elections, because he was a contestant, flurry of lies were unleashed on his person. Though, an aspirant in PDP, I couldn’t stomach the assault and brazen lies against him and therefore replied those rabid critics. Within few minutes, they literally let loose the hell, all manners of insinuations and conclusions were conjured. Before you could say, Jack Robinson, APC’S secretariats have called Barr Morayo Lebi to explain why his media coordinator was campaigning for the candidate of another party! Lebi simply punctured their paranoid and advised the people to differentiate politics from relationships and humanity.

Now to the crux of this writing. It’s about loyalty to political, spiritual, corporate or any leader. How do we reciprocate the gesture of our benefactors? It amazes me to no end the disposition of our people towards the aspirations of their benefactors. You belong to the platform where the person you were ones mouthing as your ” principal” and you wouldn’t raise a finger to support his candidacy? What’s this ” cash and carry” loyalty all about?

Someone recently declared his preference for another contestant ( there’s no problem in changing your candidate for any election but, the approach you adopt should be humane and decent). When he was asked why he left his benefactor and leader, he simply accused me of not including him among the media crew! Unknown to him, he didn’t even know or care to find out if I’m actually still part of the Barr Morayo Lebi media team!

And that is the difference. I don’t even need to discuss with Barr Lebi to start promoting and campaigning for him. He’s my leader and that’s how he remains until I have any reason to change camp. And, whenever such occasion occurs, I will be decent enough to discuss it with him….

Again, I ask, how do we demonstrate loyalty and reciprocate the favour we once enjoyed from our benefactors? I knew those who Barr Lebi supported their businesses just few years ago, I knew several of those who he paid for their children, parents, siblings hospital bills, I know those whose children school fees he’s responsible for and, yet, they maintain undignified silence when he needs them most. If you cannot write, at least you can choose to bombard several social media platforms with his stories.

Can we please infuse the fear of God into our activities. Everything shouldn’t be about Naira and Kobo.

Biyi Orilabawaye is a Chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Media Adviser of Barr Morayo Lebi.