by Olanrewaju Oguntoyinbo

If you have not been following my Road to 2015 series, you can do a quick catch up here and here and here.

This week, I'll be discussing about a youthful leader, a man who came into Nigeria politics with a clean character and compelling charisma. This week it's the turn of Mohammed Dele Belgore, the gubernatorial candidate of Action Congress of Nigeria in 2011 general election.

Dele (as he's fondly called amongst his peers) holds an LL.B from the University of Hull, England and got an LL.M from Bristol University in 1985. He attended Capital School Kaduna for his primary school education and the Offa Grammar School and Shoreham Grammar School (now Shoreham College) in England for his secondary education.

He was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1985 at the age of 24 years. He became Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in 2001 at age 40 (which made the learned fellow one of the few that has been conferred with the coveted rank at that age). His father is Justice Babatunde Belgore who was a Chief Justice of the Federation.

Dele Belgore started work with Nigerian Merchant Bank Limited in 1985 as a legal officer until 1986 when he joined Chief Rotimi Williams' Chambers. He worked there as a Counsel till 1989 when he joined his fellow learned friends to establish "Sofunde, Osakwe, Ogundipe & Belgore" chambers, where he works till date.

He lectures widely on arbitration in Nigeria and abroad. Mohammed Dele Belgore is a member of the executive council of the Maritime Arbitrators Association of Nigeria, Nigeria's International Chamber of Commerce and he's on the board of a number of companies.

If by 2015 Dele storms Kwara with the charisma, intellectual act and social appearances he used to penetrate the nooks and crannies of the state in the last election (which he lost to the present Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed) he'll no doubt occupy the Ilorin Government house in 2015.

Mohammed Belgore was the leading candidate in 2011, not until few days to the election that his opponent released a circular alleging his party to be an over taxing party, warning that Kwara indigenes and workers will be extremely taxed. Also the ruling political party PDP was alleged to have rigged the election in villages of Kwara state. Very few residents and indigenes of Kwara state who are enlightened did vote for Dele Belgore and his party Action Congress of Nigeria.

Alhaji Abdulai Abiodun who voted in Oro claimed he doesn't care if he's being taxed by Belgore as that's one of the obligation of a patriotic citizen, but his complaint will be if the ACN government didn't use the tax money judiciously.

During Belgore's campaign, he had declared that the only reasonable city in Kwara state is Ilorin and it's due to the fact that it's the state capital, he promised that his government if elected will link Ilorin with other LGAs and will tar most bad roads in Kwara State. Also, he promised Kwara people free and compulsory education. He promised to improve the educational system of Kwara state, free and sound health care, youth empowerment and make Shonga Banana field as one of the biggest in Africa (sincerely the present government is working on making it so, will Dele Belgore get the credit?)

The question on the lips of many Kwara people is what's the chance of Dele Belgore getting the party ticket in 2015? It's a matter of time that his party will merge with other opposition parties to form the newly proposed All Progressive Congress (APC). Also, with the rumoured political aspiration of ACN National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Mohammed, will Dele Mohammed Belgore get the ACN/APC ticket?

The poll favours Belgore; he's not a politician but a technocrat and the technocrats who are in power has/had performed greatly in office (Tunde Fashola, Rotimi Amaechi, Donald Duke, Kayode Fayemi etc).

Also, Dele Belgore is youthful, and Nigerian youths are pushing for young Nigerians to take the Leviathans of the country, so a Lai Mohammed candidacy might jeopardize that in Kwara state.

I'm not from Kwara state, but my personal belief that lawyers always "do it better" makes me to endorse Dele Belgore. The leadership quality shown by trained lawyers like; Donald Duke, Rotimi Ameachi, Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai, Tunde Fashola etc. are evidence that Dele Belgore will work hard to maintain such standards and uphold the goodwill enjoyed by fellow lawyers in power.

He's from a well known and respected family in professional circle of Nigeria; and he dares not put the family's name to shame. If I have my chance today, I'll vote him as the state governor, that is if I'm to solely choose. But it's not my call but that of Kwara people, they know what they want and they shall decide who to govern them and this time I'm sure they will protect their vote.

On this note, I wish Kwara people best of luck.