Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin

The All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders and thought leaders were awestruck on Monday evening as cabinet members took turns to give data, figures, and footages of how far the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration has gone in delivering its campaign promises across the State.

Commissioner for Works Abdulquawy Olododo said official records show that the AbdulRazaq administration now has more completed, ongoing, or facilitated (tax credit) road projects than the three previous administrations since 1999 combined.

He said the administration has completed 302.4kms of roads between 2019 and now, has 275.25km ongoing, including the 209.7km under RAAMP, along with the 294km tax credit road — totaling 871.65km of roads.

“Between 1999 and 2019, available records show that a total of 651.2km roads were done by the three administrations of His Excellencies Mohammed Lawal, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, and Abdulfatah Ahmed, including the 120km FG-funded Chickanda Road under Senator Saraki. When you juxtapose these records, it is clear that His Excellency AbdulRazaq has surpassed that record today,”
Olododo said, backing his presentation with footages of achievements of the administration.

Commissioner for Finance Dr. Hauwa Nuhu said the government has also implemented two minimum wages and paid more counterpart funds than any previous administrations, restating the commitment of the Governor to the wellbeing of Kwarans, including civil servants.

She said the administration has grown the state’s internal revenue from N30.6bn in 2019 to N87.1bn as at Dec 19, 2025 — more than 100 per cent growth in six years.

She mentioned that the administration has cleared all salary and pension arrears the administration inherited — while 100% CONMESS and CONHESS have also been paid and a new 27.5% Teachers Specific Allowance (TSA) has just been approved.

Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development Dr. Lawal Olohungbebe, who detailed the trajectory of school infrastructure and other efforts of the government, said the AbdulRazaq administration has hired more than 8000 teachers, constructed more than 2,000 classrooms, and bridged gaps in staff welfare, including fixing promotion arrears since 2016 to date.

A presentation on the urban renewal initiative and the Kwara Smart City added vistas to the event as Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development Dr. Segun Ogunsola explained the vision and the steps so far taken, including the construction work on the Kwara State University of Education.

Dignitaries at the event said the achievements of the Governor are unprecedented, phenomenal, visible
to all, and laudable within the context of Kwara’s sociopolitical history.

Senator Salihu Mustapha (Kwara Central) said: “With these achievements that we have seen here today, I think it’s a thing of joy that it is in our lifetime that we have a Governor who, in his quiet moment, has been able to achieve this. If anybody has told us that the state has progressed to this level, we will not believe it but we have seen it first hand.

“From today, I am one of those who will carry the flag out there and say come to Kwara and see what the Governor has done. This is a gathering of APC family and it indicates that we were not wrong in the choice of our leader.

“We have seen the human capital development, we have seen the infrastructural development, we have seen the social welfare, what else do you need in a society again? All we need to do is to continue to pray and beg Allah for a peaceful co-existence.

“For me at the end of this programme, Kwarans should go on a celebration galore because in the last 16 years before His Excellency, I don’t think anybody can boast of infrastructural development like this. I want to thank His Excellency, who has led us this far and also to the committed team God has given him.”

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Prince Lateef Fagbemi said the Governor has done very well, calling on critics to be fair in pointing out areas they want improvements on as no system is ever perfect.

“I want to say that the meeting of today is not just to eat. We have been treated to the achievements of the Governor. Believe me, if you bring a blind man to Kwara State, he would know and appreciate that developments are taking place,” he said.

“Don’t let us be sentimental. We are all living witnesses to the good performance of this administration. If we allow this chance to slip away we will all suffer for it. We are bound to disagree but the solution is not in destroying ourselves.

“When the thing is not going in the way you think, or perceive, and the way you would have loved it to be, the solution is not in destroying the programme. We have seen how the Governor has managed labour issues. We have also seen his achievements in education and healthcare, and others.”

Speaker of the House of House of Assembly Engr. Salihu Yakubu-Danladi said the lawmakers in the state have always been convinced that the Governor is a superlative achiever whose footprints exist everywhere in the state.

His words: “On behalf of my colleagues in the 10th Assembly, I want to state that we have been part and parcel of this government in the last six years. Most of these achievements are what we see in every budget circle, just as we are aware that the Governor has just presented the 2026 budget today.

“The Governor of Kwara State has done wonderfully well in the 24 state constituencies. In all 193 wards, there are projects everywhere. Aside from the physical infrastructure, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has done very well in the areas of stomach infrastructure through social investment programmes.”

Director General, Nigeria Orientation Agency (NOA), Alhaji Issa Lanre Onilu, said with the catalogue of sectoral achievements projected at the event, Governor AbdulRazaq has performed beyond his initial estimation.

He enjoined AbdulRazaq to focus more on how to sustain some of his legacy projects, including the iconic Garment Factory, Innovation Hub, and the Kwara Smart City.

“I have always thanked our Governor and our leader for the wonderful job he is doing. But let me admit that even when I was commending him, I didn’t know this much. So, the commendations I gave to him were based on what I saw. But what I have seen today is far more than what I have ever imagined.

“I want to say clearly that we all have every reason to be proud of what has happened in the last six years. If you are not proud of it, it means you really do not know what is on the ground.

“The people I want to talk to are those in charge of our communication: please do not fall into the trap of exchanging words with the people who set us back for several years. They want you to discuss politics, they want you to discuss the mundane and irrelevant things, but let me tell you clearly that you have a lot to showcase. Focus on what we have done in the last six years, focus on the development in all the local government areas that people can see and feel. As far as governance is concerned, we have done well and Otoge has proven to be a remarkable success for this state.”

Director General, Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), Dr. Abdullateef Shittu,
commended the Governor’s style of leadership both as NGF Chairman and as Governor of the state.

He described AbdulRazaq as a leader who is calm but firm, consultative but decisive, and one who is grounded in institutional respect.

“This gathering speaks to a deeper leadership instinct: the understanding that political success is sustained when dialogue remains open, when differences are managed with wisdom, and when collective responsibility is placed above individual ambition. These are values that Kwara State has come to be known for under the leadership of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq,” he said.

State ALGON Chairman, Hon. Abdullahi Abubakar Danladi, said no single political ward in the state has not benefitted one form of capital project or the other, adding that the impacts are already being felt.

Amb. Abdulfatai Yahaya Seriki, Dr. Amina Ahmed and Engr Nurudeen Adeyemi, who spoke for the three Senatorial Districts, commended the Governor’s style of leadership, his political tolerance, and a dedication to rewrite the story of Kwara.

In a short address to party leaders and thought leaders who attended the event, Governor AbdulRazaq said “I am just interested in building a legacy of leaving this state far more than I met it, a legacy of a state that is viable. I am not interested in building a dynasty, and I urge that we work together for a greater state”.

He also spoke extensively on security matters, giving insights into the successes and the challenges and reassuring the people of the government’s commitment to rid the state of kidnappers and terrorists.

Governor Abdulrazaq commended everyone for turning up for the event, which he said was a continuation of the parley that held in Abuja a few weeks ago.

He acknowledged the support of President Bola Tinubu whose economic policies the Governor said has freed up resources with which the government is able to expand infrastructure at various layers.