Kwara residents set agenda for new governor

The people of Kwara State, writes SUCCESS NWOGU, are clamouring for good governance; one that will make human and economic development a priority

Kwara is one of the states created on May 27, 1967 when the Federal Military Government under Gen. Yakubu Gowon carved up the four regions of the then Nigeria into 12 states. It was created from the defunct Northern Region and at inception, consisted of the former Ilorin and Kabba provinces. Initially, it was named the West Central State, but later changed to Kwara, which is a local name for the River Niger. It shares a boundary in the west with the Republic of Benin and the north with the River Niger.

The state has, since its creation, been further carved up because of other state creation exercises in Nigeria. On February 13, 1976, the Idah/Dekina part of the state was carved out and merged with a part of the then Benue/Plateau State to form Benue State. Also on August 27, 1991, five local government areas, namely Yagba, Okehi, Oyi, Okene and Kogi were carved out from it to form part of the new Kogi State, while Borgu Local Government Area was merged with Niger State.

There are 16 LGAs in the state. They are Asa, Baruten, Edu, Ekiti, Ifelodun, Ilorin East Ilorin, South, Ilorin West, Irepodun, Isin, Kaiama, Moro, Offa, Oke Ero, Oyun and Pategi. Its major towns are Jebba and Offa located on the Niger River, Adeleke Igbewere, Omu-Aran, Patigi, Erin-lIe, lIoffa, Isanlu-lsin, Iponrin, Ejidongari, Egbejila, Kaiama, Igbaja, Lafiagi, Gure, Afon, lIota and Osi.

Adherents of Islam, Christianity and traditional religions coexist in the state, while the primary ethnic group of Yoruba, with significant Nupe, Bariba and Fulani minorities are found in the state.

The state had been governed by David Bamigboye, Ibrahim Taiwo, George Innih, Sunday Ifere, Adamu Atta, Cornelius Adebayo, Salaudeen Latinwo, Mohammed Umaru, Ahmed Abdullahi, Ibrahim Alkali, Alwali Kazir, Shaaba Lafiaji, Mustapha Ismail, Adamu Iyam, Peter Ogar, Rasheed Shekoni, Mohammed Lawal, Bukola Saraki and currently Abdulfatah Ahmed.

With a population of about 2,371,089, according to the 2006 census, Kwara is one of the states in Nigeria endowed with mineral resources, mass arable land for agriculture and other developments and abundant human resources. Though with a land mass of about 32,500 square kilometres, sadly, the natural resources of the state are yet to be fully exploited and harnessed for societal growth. Also, a great number of the residents are of the lower income class. While there are still many people begging for alms, a large population of its teeming educated and some unskilled youths are without a means of livelihood.

The state’s immediate past governor, Dr. Bukola Saraki, had during his inaugural speech in 2003, said his administration inherited a lot of developmental burden, adding that the state was not rich as it currently occupied the 33rd position out of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory in the federal allocation ladder.

Saraki had said, “There are enormous backlogs to clear in all areas: education and health, agriculture and industry, water and sanitation, rural development, women empowerment, youth development, unpaid salaries, pensions and many more. I do not pretend to have a quick fix to all these problems nor do I intend to work on them single-handedly. I, therefore, ask you not to expect any miracles of me, even though you have reasons to do so. I ask you not to expect all answers to all problems from me, even though you expect me to lead the way. I ask you not to expect me to solve all your problems, even though you voted for me to do that. I only ask you to join hands with me to be the best we can be, and together lay the foundation for a future that is more secure and certain for our children and generations to come.

“While we must devise effective strategies to broaden our revenue base, we would be careful not to outstretch the limited resources that we have by attempting to take on all our problems at the same time. Therefore, the government has identified a few strategic sectors that will attract our priority attention. These include the provision of water, good roads and employment, especially for women and youth through agriculture and agro-allied industries and education.”

Saraki, true to his words of not having answers to all the needs of the society and the citizens, tried his best, but there are still many developmental challenges confronting the state after his exit last Sunday.

Many people are of the view that Saraki’s administration laid a solid foundation for the socioeconomic development of the state as according to them, the eight-year administration improved the environmental and aesthetic outlook of the state by constructing and rehabilitating many roads, building a N2.3bn flyover near Post Office, and putting in place a programme of daily cleaning of the streets, especially in Ilorin, by paid workers. It also created some jobs, especially for the low income earners, improved the civil service and reportedly started a process that would transform the state from a civil service-dominated economy to a commercial-driven one.

It improved education through its reform policy. The administration implemented a programme meant to revolutionise agriculture in the state through its Shonga Farms and recently got President Goodluck Jonathan to inaugurate the International Cargo Terminal building, the International Aviation College, Ilorin; Kwara State University, Malete; Ilorin Water Works Project, Asa-Dam and Mass Train Transit Scheme.

Yet, some people feel that the last administration did not live up to expectations in significantly improving the welfare and living standard of the masses. They said most of Saraki’s programmes were elitist. They have, therefore, urged the current administration to focus on what they called priority areas.

In their reactions, most residents told SATURDAY PUNCH that the new administration should focus on job creation for the youths.

Alhaji Yekini Mohammed said job creation and poverty alleviation should be the focal points of Ahmed, who was sworn in last Sunday. He stated that there was the urgent need to create jobs for many of the state’s teeming youths to avoid the upsurge in organised crime and the attendant insecurity of lives and property.

Mohammed said, “Though the governor had during his inaugural speech on May 29, 2011, said his administration would collate the data of unemployed people with a view to creating a structured programme for job creation, we anxiously employ Ahmed to make this pronouncement a reality because danger lurks if our numerous unemployed youths are not empowered and provided with something to occupy their creative and adventurous minds.”

Mr. Arowana Ishola urged the government to develop tourism. He said, “We have good tourist attractions like Owu Falls, National Park, Esie Museum, Kainji Lake, Ogunjokoro, Imoleboja Rock Shelter and Agbonna Hill. Ahmed should develop these tourist potential.”

Alhaji Mogaji Ibrahim urged the governor to develop agriculture in the state. He stated that the agricultural policies and programmes of the Saraki administration seemed to be elitist, adding that Ahmed should invest in the rural farmers, provide incentives and improved seedlings and get agriculturists to teach the farmers modern farming practices. According to him, the government should encourage mechanised and commercial farming. He urged the government to rehabilitate and construct more roads in the rural areas for the easy transportation of agricultural produce to the urban areas and markets for sale.

Mr. Issa Yekini urged Ahmed to industrialise the state as according to him, there is the need to activate ailing industries and attract new ones to the state.

“We have many industries in the state, some of them are ailing, while some functional ones are not operating at full capacity. We have such industries as Resinoplast Plastic Industry, Ijagbo Global Soap and Detergent Industry, Tate and Lyle Company, Phamatech Nigeria Limited, United Match Company, Kwara Breweries, Textile and Kwara Furniture Company all in Ilorin. Others are Sugar Producing Company, Ganmo and Kwara Paper Converters Limited, Jebba; Okin Foam and Okin Biscuits, Offa. Any of these companies that is not functioning or not functioning well should be resuscitated. Even new ones should be attracted,” he said.

Another resident, Ms. Jovita Kadiri, urged the government to improve on the provision of essential amenities and utilities such as water and electricity. She said it was sad that electricity and water supply were still epileptic in the state, even in the Ilorin metropolis despite the information that Saraki had spent part of the money the government got from the bond market on water reticulation.

Another indigene of the state, Mr. Lucky Afolabi, said the government should include sports development in its priority policies.

A Lagos-based lawyer and a Kwaran, Mr. Wahab Shittu, encapsulated the feelings of many of the residents.

He said, “The governor should take steps to unite the entire Kwarans. Unity is crucial. The second major challenge is how he can deploy the rare opportunity afforded him by destiny to bring real development to Kwara in nearly all the major sectors that affect the lives of the people. I mean real transformation in the lives of the people. He should improve the living standard. Third, I expect him to harness all the talents and resources of the state because the state is uniquely gifted in terms of human and natural resources. How we can then translate all of this into real progress is a major challenge. I expect him to focus critically on key sectors of the economy such as education.

“There is no reason he should not declare free and compulsory education throughout the state at nearly all the levels: primary, secondary and tertiary. The state can afford free tertiary education because education is key. A majority of people in Kwara State lack the resources, in spite of the enthusiasm to take their children to the highest level of education. So, I expect him to address that. If he cannot ensure free university education, primary, secondary and other tertiary education should be declared free.

“I expect him to be able to sustain the tempo in the agricultural sector initiated by his predecessor, (Bukola) Saraki. I‘m talking of agricultural revolution that gets Kwarans, old and young back to the farm. There is also the need to industrialise the state effectively, given the amount of resources and minerals and raw materials available in the state. He should attract industries across the state. I believe that security is critical against the ugly event that characterised the departure of his predecessor. I‘m talking of the stampede in which many people died during a valedictory party for Saraki.

“I understand he is a technocrat; I believe he should be able to assemble the best team to work with him because he cannot do the job alone and he can only effectively do the job if he looks beyond party loyalty to other areas.

“Above all, he should ensure that the resources of the state are used to develop the state. He should de-emphasise politicking and look forward to the examples of Lagos and Rivers states, where real development is taking place as reference points to drive his developmental agenda. He should deploy the massive resources of the state, both human and material, to really serve the people.”