Humanity and Humility: What I Saw in the Video | Dr MKO Abimbola “Abogun”
It was a Tuesday afternoon at Senator Sharafadeen Alli’s new campaign office complex in Mokola, Ibadan. As usual, the APC Governorship candidate was receiving visitors when a group of students (males and females) from the Ibadan Polytechnic’s Department of Banking and Finance arrived to invite him to their programme scheduled for Thursday.
The students were all standing because every available chair in the office was occupied by various party leaders and other visitors. Suddenly, Senator Sharafadeen Alli noticed the situation and made an effort to ensure that every student had a seat. When it became clear that one of them could not be accommodated, the Senator asked him to sit on his lap.
Interestingly, the student happened to be the Students’ President, the very person designated to ask the candidates the various questions they had prepared.
I recorded and watched the video several times, and what I saw was not arrogance, political calculation, or an attempt to impress anyone. I saw the same down-to-earth man I have known for years. I saw a man whose humility speaks for itself, a man who, in my estimation, is a living testimony of what it means to be a God-fearing politician.
Senator Sharafadeen Alli is the ONLY POLITICIAN I know who will never lie to you. He is an honest and righteous man who found himself in politics. He will never make promises simply to win applause; he will only promise what he genuinely believes he can deliver.
He does not discount anyone. He respects you regardless of your status, position, wealth, age, or background. Unlike many politicians, his home remains open to all. In his home, we sit together, eat from the same pot of soup, and relate as one family, regardless of how many people are gathered in the compound.
Yes, the hand gestures in the video may look funny to some people. But we should be careful not to misinterpret a simple, spontaneous, and human moment as something it was never intended to be.
For those of us who know Senator Sharafadeen Alli personally, this is not new. It is simply who he is.
When choosing whom to vote for, support, or entrust with leadership, we should look beyond political rhetoric and ask ourselves an important question:
Who can genuinely relate with the ordinary person?
Choose someone who respects you; not someone who looks down on you.
Choose someone whose doors are open; not someone who remembers you only during elections.
Choose someone who will sit with you, listen to you, eat with you, and treat you with dignity.
Choose character.
Choose humility.
Choose honesty.
Choose someone who understands the people because he lives among the people.
Senator Sharafadeen Alli is that man.
Proudly written by Dr. MKO Abimbola (Abogun), a former House of Rep Aspirant in Ibadan Northwest/Southwest Federal Constituency.
