Abdulrazaq’s 5 years in office has suffocated Kwarans, reverse gains of past leaders – Kwara PDP

…..Knocks Gov’s poor performance, wasteful spending

The Kwara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the five years in office of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq as a period of suffocating Kwarans and reversing the gains of past leaders of the State, stressing that the incumbent governor had failed woefully in all fonts of governnace.

The party noted that Governor Abdulrazaq had failed to meet the expectations, yearnings and aspirations of Kwarans and has no tangible projects to parade as his achievements in office in the last 5 years, adding that people of the State continue to suffer from anti-masses policies, financial profligacy, and unprecedented impoverishment since 2019.

The Kwara PDP in a statement issued by its State Publicity Secretary, Olusegun Olusola Adewara, however celebrated with Kwarans on the sustenance of democratic rule since 1999 while also hailing their perseverance and resilience in the face of economic hardship they had been subjected to by the APC-led administration in the State and at the national.

The party lamented that despite the huge financial inflow to the state since 2019, Kwara has not witnessed significant infrastructure and economic development, “with many of its inhabitants living below the poverty line while small-scale businesses are folding up in their hundreds due to unfavourable government policies.”

It noted that “it is shameful and unfortunate that while other state governors were busy inaugurating notable and landmark developmental projects, Governor Abdulrazaq could only commission two poorly-renovated road projects that had even developed potholes. The party also wondered why the Governor refused to commission the Tunde Idiagbon Bridge that he expended close to N4bn of taxpayers’ money on, saying “this shows the government isn’t proud of the quality of job done on the project that took over 3 years to be completed.”

Continuing, the Kwara PDP condemned the anti-masses policies of Governor Abdulrazaq, saying latest of such is the vicious demolition of shops in the metropolis, depriving countless of shop owners their livelihoods and leaving them and their families in ruins and with no hope.

“At a time when the government should be implementing programs and policies to ameliorate the hardship in the country, the Abdulrazaq administration decided to embark on the massive demolition of people’s businesses and sources of livelihood along Taiwo-Unity Road, Ahmadu Bello Way, Sulu Gambari Road, Post Office, Tanke Road, Kaiama Road, Oloje, and Adeta-Alfa Yahaya Road, among others. Our party stands in solidarity with all affected persons and urges them to be strong.

“All this summed up to the recent report of decline in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rating of Kwara State, further attesting to the fact that Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has been creating more poverty and crippling the state’s once vibrant economy rather than creating wealth. This is a most unfortunate situation that calls for sober reflection from all Kwarans.”

“The welfare of workers in Kwara State is one of the worst in the country, with the payment of a paltry N10,000 temporary wage award when other states are paying over N30,000. Today, states under PDP rule have embarked on a N70,000 minimum wage for their workers, while Kwara, despite the huge undisclosed financial inflow to the state, has been unable to efficiently prosecute the old N30,000 wage. Kwarans will recall that the issue of workers’ salary and welfare formed a major component of the Otoge campaign before they came on board in 2019. Our party asks all Kwarans to put aside propaganda and ask themselves what has changed so far.”

“It is worrisome that the Abdulrazaq-led APC government has also embarked on reckless mismanagement of the state’s public funds, with the execution of capital projects which have had no positive impacts on the populace.

“Despite the over-inflated cost of projects like the needless Tunde Idiagbon Bridge at Tanke, the bridge remains a major embarrassment and the amount spent on its renovation is now surpassing the budget initially planned for the project. Today, our governor is commissioning merely renovated roads but feels ashamed to cut tapes on the overloaded Tunde Idiagbon Bridge. We therefore demand explanations from the Abdulrahman-led government on the reason why the controversial bridge remains uncommissioned despite media propaganda that it would be opened for public use by April 2024.”

“The same can be said of the ongoing Unity Flyover, Adeta-Oloje Road, and the controversial N17.8bn Kwara Hotel renovation.

“This government takes pride in its acclaimed investment in Kwara’s education sector, claiming to have embarked on massive construction, renovation, and equipping of schools with taxpayers’ funds worth about N18.7bn.

“However, the latest BBC documentary revealing the appalling state of education infrastructure in Kankan LGEA School and other places is enough to show the lip service paid to education in Kwara despite access to funds.”

The party lamented that despite the worsening standard of living in the state, Governor Abdulrazaq has chosen to live more in Abuja, governing the state via a WhatsApp platform. He has reduced governance in Kwara to only paying condolence visits to bereaved people while taking photos which his media promoters spread across media spaces to deceive the public about the governor’s presence in the state.

“Just for hiring a private jet which takes the governor to Abuja and returns him to Kwara anytime he wants to take a photo with a bereaved family alone, a report featured earlier this year that Kwara State had spent a whopping sum of N1.4bn on the governor’s transportation while close to N700 million was spent on fuel and lubricant to power the governor’s convoy anytime he moves within the city. This is unprecedented wasteful spending on adventures and condolence visits without any expected turnover for the state.

“The most unfortunate situation is the deliberate suppression of democratic ideals in the state, with non-tolerance of dissenting voices, and harassment of opposition voices with arrests and court cases, including threatening and abysmal postings of civil servants who exhibit any link with the opposition.”

“The Abdulrazaq-led APC government in Kwara has since lost its goodwill and the confidence of the people due to several anti-masses policies, wanton stealing of public funds through several unreasonable projects undertaken on behalf of the state, inability to account for N10bn out of the N35bn borrowed fund kept in a secret bank, lack of accountability and transparency in the finances of the state, especially the non-disclosure of allocation figures coming to the state and LGAs, and most importantly, the refusal to conduct local government elections since 2019, thereby subjecting people at the grassroots to untold hardship and insecurity.

“Kwara people are in total regret of their choice in 2019 and a repeat in 2023, by allowing massive vote-buying and scientific rigging of the elections.”

“The PDP in Kwara urges the people not to lose hope but to be more determined to vote out the present government and install one that truly engenders democracy in subsequent elections.”

Signed:

Olusegun Olusola Adewara,
State Publicity Secretary,
Kwara PDP.