Tag: Abdulrazaq

United Nations Women, an agency of the world body, has decorated Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as a global ‘HeforShe champion’ for his supportive policies on women.

UN Women is the UN organisation that delivers programmes, policies, and standards that uphold women’s human rights and ensure that every woman and girl lives up to her full potential.

The body said the Governor has made Kwara a gold standard for gender mainstreaming in not just Nigeria but in the world, adding that the award, especially the lapel pin tacked to his chest, means that the Governor is now a UN Women ambassador anywhere he goes to in the world.

Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Beatrice Eyong, who led a delegation on a courtesy visit to Government House, Ilorin, said the Governor merits the global honour for his exceptional dedication to gender inclusion, women empowerment, and overall development, as has been recorded in Kwara in the last five years.

An initiative of the Governor, the administration had in 2021 enacted a Gender Composition Law, which mandates Kwara to have at least 35% gender representation in all public sector appointments

Eyong said Kwara is a shining example for giving women their fair share of representation in governance.

“Kwara State is a very important state to women, and one of the reasons the state is important to us is because of what you have done in the state. We are here to thank and congratulate you for all that you’ve been doing over the years for gender equality, women empowerment and overall development,” she said shortly before decorating the Governor with the UN Women badge.

“You have made Kwara state a shining example in that regard. We are here to recognize you as a UN Women Global HEforSHE Champion. We learnt that in your first term in office, we had a female majority cabinet. And we’ve learnt that we now have a 50/50 cabinet in the state.

“We also learnt that the majority of the appointments that you make go to women and youth. Those are real progressive moves that you are doing. You have created a favourable environment for gender equality and women empowerment by passing affirmative action into law. These are parts of the reasons we chose Kwara.”

Eyong requested AbdulRazaq to speak with his colleagues at the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) to equally adopt 35 per cent affirmative action on gender inclusion, noting this will stimulate the federal government to adopt the policy.

She said they were partly in Kwara to inform the Governor about the UN Women’s advocacies on issues and programmes affecting women, such as a training on low cost biogas technology that she said is targeted at easing cooking for women.  

“Low-cost biogas is a technology that has so many advantages for our women. With low-cost biogas technology, women can produce their own cooking gas. And that will mean that they don’t need to buy charcoal, kerosine, or cut firewood,” she said. 

Read Also: Five years on, Kwara takes new identity under Governor AbdulRazaq

Eyong said the biogas programme is due for launch in Kwara next month, while similar initiatives will also be flagged off in the state ahead of any other states owing to its strategic importance to the UN Women. 

She requested the Governor to consider another legislation that gives women more access to public sector contracting process as a form of economic empowerment, saying 90% of government’s contracts go to enterprises owned by men while women struggle with just 10%.

She also requested the Governor to rally the political establishments to support women for elective positions.

They were received by the Governor with the First Lady Ambassador Mrs Olufolake AbdulRazaq; Commissioner for Women Affairs Bosede Olaitan Buraimoh; Commissioner for Business, Innovation and Technology Damilola Yusuf Adelodun; Commissioner for Water Resources Usman Lade; and Special Adviser to the Governor on Special Duties Alhaji Abdulrazhaq Jiddah. 

The Governor thanked the organisation for the honour, which he said will encourage him and others to do more. 

AbdulRazaq said he has no regrets appointing women to key positions because “they have done so well.”

“I thank you for the award as a Global HeforShe champion. It encourages us to do more. If you see what is going on in other states you could see we have to put on a lot of energy in it to achieve what we have been able to achieve and will continue to achieve,” he said. 

“When we came in 2019, there was no single elected female official in Kwara State. By the time we crossed over to 2023, we have five members in the State House of Assembly. It was a deliberate advocacy, and we hope to make more progress in the next elections. 

“By and large, we are crushing the stereotype that ‘women can’t do this, women can’t do that, no one should vote for women’. I think we are getting to a stage where what matters is the performance and what you do for the people, not your gender. The women we have put into public offices do not disappoint us. They are doing very extremely well.”

Rafiu Ajakaye 

History is not always written by the victors. Historical narratives are sometimes dominated by the villains who make the loudest noise and have the platforms. Empress Wu expanded the Tang dynasty, reopened China’s Silk Road, and funnelled government’s funding into social services for the poor and the vulnerable. But she made the mistake of letting others tell her story when she left her epitaph blank. In place of her great legacies, those who found her rule unbefitting and at odds with their narrative gave her a new identity: ‘she killed her sister, slaughtered her brothers, murdered her emperor, and poisoned her mother. Both gods and humans hate her’.

Even as Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s administration expended more than N15bn to clear many years of salary, promotion arrears and gratuities, and faces up the daunting task of bridging the infrastructure gaps in basic schools such as fixing classrooms in more than 605 locations, it is commonplace to hear apologists of the past regimes saying nothing good has happened in the last five years. The idea is to talk down the gains of the past five years in the hope that history may forget or disregard how far Kwara has come since the old order was ousted. It is truthiness. Shouldn’t people of good conscience then take the ‘good trouble’ of preserving history?

Kwara has turned the corners for positive reasons, while pending deficits progressively get good attention on a sustainable basis. The administration is five years old today, with Governor Abdulrazaq overwhelmingly winning re-election last year.

The state is emerging from a backwater civil service state to a go-to place for tech-enabled basic education, conferencing, tourism, and entertainment hub and north central economic powerhouse as the Governor ramps up work on the country’s largest garment factory, sugar factory film studio, innovation hub, visual arts centre, international conference centre, revenue house, the industrial park at Eiyenkorin and agroprocessing zone, and the legacy Kwara Hotel. He has built new dental and eye care centres, modern intensive care units, and newly-equipped hospital wards. And he maintains the bits he inherited. Numerous agric programmes are ongoing to support farmers and boost food security.

The massive garment factory is now operational, even if not officially launched yet. So has the Gbugbu international market. The sugar factory film studio is already receiving industry veterans, while the visual arts centre prepares to host dignitaries from across Nigeria to an event that would grab national headlines. These are facilities built to give Kwara a comfortable share of the multimillion dollar industry and redirect its economy. Power of dream. The international conference centre, equipped with a choice hospitality facility, and the Kwara hotel are to complement the dream.

Investments in the education and health sectors have yielded huge returns. Within the first 43 weeks of introducing KwaraLEARN, literacy and numerical levels have peaked, amid 30% rise in basic public school enrolments, while learning deprivation has dropped to 56.3% by the end of the 2022/2023 school calendar, down from 73.4% before the programme. In the primary health sector, the state wears the crown for its best immunisation services in the north central, earning some $500,000 from the UNICEF to scale up its efforts. Access to potable water and sanitation facilities has never been higher in the state. Today, the Jebba waterworks is being launched. It was built from scratch.

Under AbdulRazaq, Kwara is now accredited to have a university teaching hospital, thanks to its consistent investments in human capital, improved welfare, and modern equipment. The implementation of 100% CONMESS and CONHESS for doctors and ancillary workers in the health sector — along with similar welfare packages in other areas — is a watershed as governments struggle to keep competent manpower.

A process has commenced to open up the Owu Fall, the highest waterfall in the west Africa subregion – the same way he constructed the 11-kilometre Osi-Obbo Aiyegunle road, linking Kwara to Ekiti State borders with asphalt road for the first time. He had also given the iconic 79-year-old Esie Museum, a pioneer tourism centre in Nigeria, its first asphalt road. 

Read Also: Abdulrazaq speaks on personal development, use of new media at Kwara youth summit

The first term served to stabilise Kwara for growth; the second half consolidates and expands the gains. Ilorin is shedding its old features. With its hinterlands dotted with interlocked roads, old road networks are undergoing massive upgrades, with new flyovers (Tunde Idiagbon Bridge and Unity Flyover) changing its landscape, reducing travel time, and beautifying the capital city. The Wahab Folawiyo Road (Unity Road) now has the quality and aesthetics that you can find in major capital cities on the continent. In a few months from now, Ahmadu Bello Way and Sulu Gambari Road will join the league, adorning Ilorin with astonishingly scenic roads for residents and visitors to behold!

No fewer than 30 inner roads (including the 4.7km Yebumot-Adeta-Oloje, which is due for commissioning today) are in various stages of completion within the capital city, while dozen others are being constructed or rehabilitated in the Kwara hinterlands, such as the 13km Ile Ire District road, Ora township road, first post-colonial Orisa Bridge (Oro Ago), Igbaja township road, newly awarded Arandun-Esie-Oro, Omu Aran-Oko, Ajase-Oke Iya, among others. In the north, the government has facilitated the 128-kilometre Bode Saadu/Kaiama/Kosubosu road, which has since started and is, alongside 74.3km Bacita-Shonga-Lafiagi, 37km Okuta-Kenu-Teberu, and 42.5km Eiyenkorin-Afon-Offa-Odo Otin, valued at over N400bn. Upon completion, the Bode Saadu road will redefine the travel history for travellers from the capital city or other areas to Kaiama and some parts of Baruten axis of the state.

This is apart from such projects like the Emir Palace Road/erosion control at Dumagi, Ketu road in Baruten, Malete Youth Farm-waterworks road in Moro, Bukka Adena bridge in Kaiama. On top of these are the 84.7km rural roads, which are underway across the state.

Scanty regard for building regulations, increasingly weak and old infrastructure, as well as population growth have taken a toll on Ilorin, with its original master plan (drawn up in the 1970s) long discarded. Abdulrazaq is restoring sanity with the new Ilorin City Master Plan, a component of which has made provisions for a decent extension of the capital town. It is called the Ilorin Smart City Project, which is due for unveiling today, May 29. It is modelled after New Delhi and Washington DC in its compliant with UN prescriptions for sustainable living. Without jeopardising our culture and tradition as Africans.

The administration’s progressive programmes are supported by appropriate policy frameworks for sustainability. Its six month maternity policy, announced on May 29, 2023 and about the third in Nigeria, complements its investments in basic education and healthcare as women in civil service are given the opportunity to expose their children to exclusive breastfeeding without a fear of losing their job or salaries and other perks. His education programmes are now being supported by the Education Trust Fund. The Fund, due for launch soon, is a platform to bring in philanthropists and private sector players to support government’s efforts to make education more inclusive and accessible. To save the colleges of education from collapse, the Governor has inaugurated the process to upgrade them in phases to allow for sustainability. These big dreams, intentional and ambitious, are well-articulated in the state’s sustainable development plan 2020-2030. And so is the 20,000-hectare smart city.

Kwara’s leading position as a bastion for gender inclusion is supported by the Kwara State Gender Composition Law, which mandates the state to have at least 35% of either gender in public appointments. Described by the United Nations (UN) Women as ‘a shining example that should be emulated by the federal government and other states’, the gender law is the first of its kind in Nigeria.

In youth empowerment, the state is the gold standard. Governor Abdulrazaq is surrounded by a team of brilliant young people who are, at the same time, willing to learn from older, more experienced people.

So it is in the sports sector. In April, the government approved the turnaround of the indoor sports hall for the first time since 1991. That complements the many facilities the Governor has added: the largest squash racket centre in Nigeria with eight courts and a new table tennis arena that accommodates many players at a go, among many others already done or are in the greater Kwara plan.

This will not only attract national and international championships to the state, with its trickle down effects on the economy, but it also offers a strategic platform to wean young people off violent crimes, drug, idleness, and other anti-social behaviour. The objective is to transform the sprawling Kwara State Sports Complex from a den of the underworld to a haven of recreation for the state’s active, talented youths.

If one attempts a mental analysis of what the Governor is doing across the state, what one sees is the emergence of a new economy anchored around hospitality, creativity and entertainment, agribusiness, entrepreneurship, innovation, and tourism — a dream clearly supported by the race to build the right human capital and an efficient health care system, among others. 

Governor AbdulRazaq has steered Kwara away from the violent politics and thuggery of the past, making it one of the most peaceful states in the country, while at the same time supporting different state and federal institutions to achieve their mandates and redirect the energy of youths to hard work, digital skills, and legitimate earnings. 

These, ladies and gentlemen, summarise the impressive scorecards of Governor Abdulrazaq as he marks the first of the four years in the last lap of his administration. The right story about him is that he is a fine gentleman who refocuses Kwara for a greater tomorrow. He remains committed to his lofty agenda, without rubbishing the legacies of the founding fathers of the state. As he steps forward to higher callings, the nation acknowledges and speaks well of his humility, patriotism, and vision.

• Rafiu Ajakaye is Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Thursday inspected the 42.5-kilometre Eiyenkorin-Afon-Ojoku-Offa-Odo Otin road project, which is now under construction.

The road, which is certain to unleash vast socioeconomic growth along that corridor, is one of the four major roads that the Governor facilitated under the FG’s tax credit scheme and are being constructed by the BUA Group. The three others are: Lafiagi-Shonga-Bacita (74.3km); Bode Saadu-Kaiama-Kosubosu(128km); and Okuta-Gwanara-Bukuro (37km). 

These massive road projects complement several other intra-state road networks and the urban renewal initiative of Governor AbdulRazaq within the state. 

Accompanied by the Commissioner for Works and Transport Engr. AbdulQuawiy Olododo, Special Adviser on Special Duties Alhaji Abdulrazaq Jiddah, and BUA Site Engineer Samson Adebiyi, Governor AbdulRazaq expressed immense joy on the project and commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for greenlighting the construction works even unannounced.

“We keep hearing about the renewed hope agenda and what it means. This is a summary of renewed hope. Many people, including Kwarans, are not aware that something as massive as this is ongoing already. We thank the President for this,” the Governor told reporters after the inspection.

“This is the new Ilorin-Offa road. It is going to open up the entire economy of the area. And this is not the only road project in Kwara that the Federal government has invested in. 

“Two months ago, I visited Bode Sa’adu-Kaiama-Kosubosu road, which is also a federal government road. Then, there is the 83km Lafiagi-Shonga-Bacita road. We are truly lucky in Kwara; we are happy that these investments are being placed in the state.

Read Also: Kwara opens new health insurance office

“A couple of months ago, I visited the President in his office to discuss some issues, and also to congratulate him on the decision to embark on the Calabar-Lagos Coastal Highway, and the President showed me a document on his table on the Badagry-Sokoto Highway. That is foresight. I was truly excited and went straight to the section that concerns Kwara. I also saw the Kishi-Kaiama-Wawa road, which has also been approved.”

The Governor also inspected the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) station that is under construction around Post Office, in Ilorin, saying the project should be ready soon.

He said the project underlines the efforts of the President to refocus the economy on sustainable energy and lesser dependence on petrol.

AbdulRazaq said these massive infrastructural initiatives have placed Nigeria and Kwara State in a better position. 

He said the President is focused on attaining a trillion-dollar economy that he said can be partly achieved through the development of basic infrastructure.

“So you can see that over the next two, three, four years, the infrastructure development in Kwara will attain another level. Why am I particular about infrastructure? The President talked about a trillion-dollar economy by the time we finished this administration,” the Governor said.

“Hopefully, insha Allaah, we are talking about the end of the second term. To achieve a trillion-dollar economy, you have to have the basic infrastructure to do that. 

“This is what these infrastructure projects are meant to achieve because it simply means opening up the country for investments and more production. We have to produce to export and to survive. We are talking about a manufacturing economy, not just in Kwara but across Nigeria.

“If you ask me, what has the President done for us? This, among others, is an example of what we have benefited from the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We will strive to get more. But this is evidence of development.”

Ibraheem Abdullateef 

I will waste no time on the preamble. Former Senate President Bukola Saraki’s reign as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) bore little fruit for Kwara. If anything, it only qualifies as an over-glorified tenure which was whitewashed by an expensive public relations machinery to mask its shortcomings. This will be clearer when you compare what successive chairmen of the forum facilitated to their states in terms of infrastructure, investments, and appointments from the centre. However, Saraki’s failure would be more understood when placed side by side the success of his fellow Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq who has only spent one year in office.

Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has facilitated 294km of roads. Kwara got approval for the rehabilitation of four major roads under the Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme. The roads include Kosubosu–Kaiama–Bode Saadu (130km); Bacita-Shonga-Lafiagi (83km); Eiyenkorin–Afon–Offa–Odo Otin (49km); and Okuta–Bokuro (32km), which connects the state to the Benin Republic. Following years of persistent lobbying, he bore his weight on these demands and got them. And we could have lost it when tensions mounted on the legal status of the tax credit scheme. But he used his goodwill with the President and his team to secure those gains. How else does a man work for his state? Let Sarakites bring anything that compare to that huge infrastructural gain during his tenure. 

Work has since commenced on some of them. A major breakthrough, this will open Nigeria to other West African countries, and crystallise the state’s social and economic development. 

Barely a week ago, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the construction of Kaiama — Tesse road, less than two months after AbdulRazaq led Kwara federal lawmakers on a working visit to the Minister of Works and Transport Engr. David Umahi. It would be the fifth approval for major federal roads barely his one year in office. If we are talking about scorecards, it goes without saying these are huge achievements on infrastructural development, which is a sine qua non to bringing sustainable development to the state.

What did Saraki get?

AbdulRazaq has stabilised the political temperature between the Governors and the Presidency. There is so much peace in the system, courtesy of his mature handling of issues. AbdulRazaq’s hands-on diplomatic relationships with the Presidency were instrumental to managing the ensuing national crisis after the fuel subsidy removal and related issues. Backed by his colleagues and good heads at Aso Rock, he successfully maintained mutual respect and peace between the two institutions.

By contrast, Saraki’s tenure was infamous for in-fighting among caucuses or hostility with the executive, as seen with his documented disrespect for the former vice president Goodluck Ebele Jonathan at the villa. Instead of prioritising state and national development, he was constantly scheming to contest the Presidency and seize power for himself. The leopard took this into his tenure as senate president. It always had its consequences for the fortunes of the state. 

Did he not almost get removed as NGF chair? 

Kwara’s political space has changed following the annihilation of the Saraki dynasty in 2019. It is no longer in the breast pocket of anyone. This was one of the reasons for the revolution in the first instance — a political system where opportunities are not decided by the whims and caprices of a lord of the Manor.

With that said, I wonder why anyone would think that the emergence of any Kwaran for any position at the federal level could be without the knowledge and tacit support of the Governor. Those people could use a lesson from the past. I think what to cheer for in our democracy is the absence of dog-eats-dog politics that ultimately denies the state of progress. Think Benjamin Yissa and Professor Oba AbdulRaheem.

Whether Sarakites like it or not, Kwara has two SUBSTANTIVE Ministers. We started getting two ministers after the collapse of the dynasty. If Kwara hadn’t got two, there would be attacks on the Governor. This is the progress we are talking about. We now also have two Director Generals of federal agencies. They are all members of APC. These will always come to count. The Governor is not an egotist like them. They know themselves.

Notwithstanding our genuine interests in having more, being one of the best states that delivered for the APC, eight (8) Kwarans were appointed into federal boards for tertiary institutions. Yes, we want a lot more and deserve more, but we got more than some other states. 

These appointments followed the previous appointment of Dr Ghali Alaya as a non-executive director of the NNPC board, and a couple of others. 

On top of that, the Governor has recently got a Kwaran Abdullateef Shittu to become the NGF Ag. Director General. 

The easing out of the DG without a fight with the cabals is a major masterstroke on his part. This is all within one year.

I also find the reference to the many slots that went to Adamawa and Osun States in the recently constituted governing councils of federal academic institutions as a demonstration of poor understanding of political dynamics. These, for crying out loud, are states governed by the opposition. It’s only logical that party loyalists there are open to some more board appointments at the centre, which is controlled by APC. This is to give them some strengths that states with huge representations like Kwara command in multiple folds, especially in elected offices such as at the Senate and House of Representatives and state Parliaments.

Also, these two states have one Minister each, whereas Kwara has two very important Ministers. There is no basis for comparison.

Now, let’s take a brief look at investment. In February, Kwara got Harmony Advanced Diagnostic Centre (HADC) enlisted among the health facilities slated for upgrade by the federal government across the six geopolitical zones. Despite being a project initiated by the previous administration, AbdulRazaq rose above partisanship to get it captured, thereby saving it from extinction, in the interest of the people and state. 

In a similar vein, Kwara has also secured approval for its highly-rated Ilorin Smart City Project initiated by the Governor in line with Ilorin City Master Plan to house 1,000 Federal Renewed Hope housing units. These strategic investments will make lasting impacts on the growth and development of Kwara State for generations to come. The question is, what did Saraki get Kwara as NGF chairman in one year?

Abdullateef is Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Communications

Kwara State Government took the welfare of judges at the State High Court a step higher on Tuesday when Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq presented 11 top-of the range Toyota Fortuner Jeeps to the them. 

The Chief Judge, Hon. Justice Abiodun Ayodele Adebara, also got a 2024 Toyota Land Cruiser for his office.

At the official presentation of the vehicles to the Judges at the State High Court Ilorin, Adebara informed in February 2024, five Toyota Fortuner Jeeps were allocated to five of the State High Court Judges from the money made available by the State Government under the 2023 Budget. 

The Chief Judge added five new Toyota Fortuner Jeeps procured under the 2024 approved budget were to be allocated to another five of the judges of the High Court.

“Also, this morning, His Excellency Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq released another seven Toyota vehicles to the judiciary. Six of which are meant for the six new judges to be  appointed,” Justice Adebara announced. 

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The Chief Judge explained further that  the purchase of a brand new vehicle is a condition precedent for the appointment of a new judge. 

“These appointments are in the offing, and this is one of the requirements of the National Judicial Council (NJC). There must be a vehicle on the ground before the appointment of a new judge for inspection. His Excellency has supplied six vehicles, and the seventh one is for the office of the Chief Judge,” he said.

“I want to sincerely thank His Excellency, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq CON who has been so friendly to the judiciary of Kwara State. He has been treating our requests with despatch in positive ways.

“What we are witnessing today is another positive impact of his administration on the money allocated to the judiciary in the 2024 budget under vehicle procurement. He promptly approved it. The money was released to the judiciary,” Justice Adebara explained. 

The CJ recalled that the last time judges received vehicles from the government was eight years ago apart from the judges appointed on 2020 and applauded AbdulRazaq for his care for the state judiciary. 

“The last time these judges had vehicles from the government was eight years ago. How will eight-year-old vehicles look like today in term of  efficiency? Some of our judges are not even within Ilorin. It will enhance our jobs and the dignity of the office of a judge. So, it will complement our jobs and boost the morale of judges.

“I give glory to God, and I appreciate the amiable governor of the state for prioritising this important needs of the judiciary among other competing needs in the state. 

“We are very grateful. We still have some judges who are yet to have their vehicles. I believe very soon, we’ll have their own.”