The kwara state Government has expressed satisfaction with the quality of work done at the just completed construction of Afon waterworks in Asa local government Ilorin.

The Honourable Commissioner of Water Resources Usman Yunusa Lade Reteraited this yesterday during the inspection assessment of the Afon Waterworks Project in Asa Local Government Ilorin.

The commissioner has commended the Contractor for the good job and he said the Afon Waterworks Project is fully ready for use.

The Permanent Secretary of Water Resources Mrs Asonibare Omolola Christiana said Kwara State Government is always concerned about the masses so therefore let the masses take good proper care of the facilities in their community.

The Director of Water Services Engineer Yusuf Wopa said the Afon Waterworks is ready but the blackout in the entire Community has affected its operation to enable the facility to supply water for use.

Earlier, an Elder Statesman from the Community, Alhaji Issa applauded the Kwara State Government under the leadership of Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq on his good performance in the water sector and they were delighted about it.

Issa briefed the commissioner about how flood had taken all over the dam site and appealed to the State Government to come to their aid before the dry season.

Adewoye Abosede Oluwatosin

Assistant Press secretary

MWR

• Hails COAS Abubakar’s effort to check insecurity, sustain peace

• COAS Abubakar asks operators to follow laid down practices.

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Wednesday took delivery of the last 2 sets of four Diamond 62 multi-purpose platform special mission aircraft to the 303 Medium Aircraft Group in Ilorin, amid optimism that the aircraft will strengthen the country’s surveillance and search-and-rescue capabilities.

The Governor said the presence of the Nigerian Air Force and other sister security agencies in the state has helped to sustain the peace and secure Kwara state.

“These sophisticated aircrafts could not have come at a more auspicious time as the Nigerian Air Force maintains its robust presence in all theatres of operation across the country,” AbdulRazaq said in Ilorin at the event.

The Diamond-62 multi-purpose platform aircraft had been inducted into the Nigerian Air Force Inventory in May 2023 during the 59th Anniversary of the Nigerian Air Force Day Celebration which took place in Enugu.

The Governor congratulated the Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Hassan Bala Abubakar on the successful delivery and reception of the aircrafts which AbdulRazaq said would be a “game changer” as they serve to unmask the hideouts of criminal elements within and outside Kwara.

“I believe this aircraft will strengthen the surveillance and search-and-rescue capability of the Nigerian nation, including in Kwara State. It will also boost internal security operations, especially the indigenous operation HARMONY. I am confident that these air assets will also serve to haunt down all criminal elements wherever they may want to hide,” he added.

The Governor commended the efforts of the Commander 303 Medium Airlift Group (MAG), Captain Dan Apyeyak, who “has actively been supporting the efforts of the State Government to keep the peace and secure the State since his assumption of office as the Commander in June this year”.

The event was attended by the Air Officer Commanding Mobility Command Air Vice Marshal Tajudeen Yusuf; Commander 303 Medium Airlift Group (MAG) Captain Dan Apyeyak; Commissioner of Police Victor Olaiya; and some heads of other security agencies

Air Marshal Abubakar, for his part, said the additional Diamond 62 aircraft delivered to 303 Medium Aircraft Group in Ilorin will be deployed to operational areas where they are most needed in any part of the country.

“I am delighted to inform you that the 2 Diamond 62 aircraft earlier delivered were deployed to Op HADARIN DAJI and Op HADIN KAI in the North-East and North-West respectively, and have greatly enhanced the effectiveness of our land, sea and air operations in these areas,” he said.

He said the federal government is set to acquire additional combat platforms for the Force.

The security chief urged all personnel handling the platform to handle them properly and continue to operate in line with the recommended practices of the Original Equipment Manufacturer.

He also implored the air officers to leverage the capabilities available on these ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) platforms to enhance operational efficiency for successful internal security operations.

The Officer Commanding Mobility Command, Air Vice Marshal Tajudeen Yusuf, said the NAF acquired the Diamond 62 Multi-Purpose Platform mainly to strengthen the aircraft’s capability to carry out robust ISR missions during combat operations.

“The Diamond DA62 is a five-to seven-seat, twin-engine light multipurpose aircraft produced by Messrs Diamond Aircraft Industries of Austria. The Diamond 62 aircraft can be used for pilot training and light liaison missions. It can also be configured for manned Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions,” he said.

Rafiu Ajakaye

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

October 11, 2023

•5,545 Nano, Micro & Small-Scale Businesses to receive support operational cost grant

The Kwara NG-CARES For MSMEs has set the ball rolling as they continue the implementation of the 2nd phase of the programme where operational cost grant shall be disbursed to 5,545 nano, micro and small-scale businesses in the State.

The Ag. GM KWASSIP, Dr. Abdulwasiu Olayinka Tejidini said that the 2nd phase of the programme by the NG-CARES RA3 delivery platform is coming as one of the interventions of succor intended by His Excellency Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazak to provide relief, facilitate recovery, and enhance the capabilities of the State MSMEs through support designed to reduce the vulnerability and cushion the effect of income loss brought about by COVID-19 pandemic and its resultant disruption to regular commercial activity.

Dr. Tejidini thank the Kwara State Government for constantly including the MSMEs sector of the State in various beneficial programs and for always coming to the aid of vulnerable businesses.

The Acting Technical Head, Kwara NG-CARES For MSMEs, Mrs Rukayat Yahaya confirmed that NANO Businesses category has been introduced to benefit from the 2nd Phase of the programme. She also said that the 2nd Phase of the programme Received a total number of 21,432 applications across the 16 local government areas in the State.

Our team carefully reviewed all documents by conducting an eligibility criteria vetting process immediately after the applications were received and a total number of 12,032 PASSED while 9,399 FAILED.

She emphasized that physical verification is crucial to ensure fairness, authenticity and also confirm the existence of all the 12,032 businesses that passed the eligibility criteria vetting procedure. As the just concluded physical verification further helps prevent applicants with no existent businesses from benefitting and ensures that each applicant receives the appropriate grant size based on their business categorization and eligibility.

Mrs Yahaya urge the beneficiaries to utilize the fund received on their business’ operations such as payment of shop/office rent, payment of staff salaries and utility bills. She said the beneficiaries should NOT give kickbacks percentage out of the grant received to anybody/officials as facilitation fee BECAUSE the selected beneficiaries earned the spot by fairly going through all KWARA NG-CARES FOR MSMEs implementing procedures. Please note also that KWARA NG-CARES FOR MSMEs would not ask for account details or ATM card details from any beneficiary.

Mrs Fatima Issa

Media Officer,

Kwara NG-CARES For MSMEs

11/10/2023.

My colleagues in the media have asked me to respond to the Kwara PDP’s press conference of today, October 10, 2023. There is hardly anything to respond to other than to project the party for what it is: a band of dishonest politicians who remain stuck in the past.

The best way to know the real characters of the PDP is to interrogate their different statements on the same issue of how much they left in the coffers on May 29, 2019.

On May 29, 2019, former Governor Abdulfatahi Ahmed said in his handover note read by the Head of Service that the administration left a total sums of N5bn in the treasury which, according to them, was the tax refund from the Federal Government that the EFCC froze. Of course, the exact amount that came to Kwara State was actually N4.8bn as we have consistently mentioned.

On January 20, 2023, as it desperately churned out lies, PDP’s chieftain and former commissioner for Finance Mr. Ademola Banu said in an interview in the New Telegraph that their administration left N8.5bn in the treasury.

Today, October 10, 2023, at their press briefing, the PDP chairman Hon. Babatunde Mohammed said they actually left over N10bn in the treasury. Which of these three conflicting figures is right? He, of course, conveniently omitted that their administration left a public debt of at least N100bn, including the dollar component.

These mind-boggling inconsistencies and barefaced falsehood typify the character of Kwara PDP yesterday and today, and it is the reason Kwarans are so glad to have rejected them back-to-back in two electoral cycles.

There is no surprise therefore that a party that keeps changing figures of its own regime in a barefaced show of dishonesty cannot truly represent the financial record of another administration, regardless of the fact that such records of finances are a click away on the state government’s official website where budget implementation reports are constantly uploaded and acknowledged to be very credible by different pro-transparency organisations.

While it actually applied for N35bn bond and was adjudged healthy enough to get even more, the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq actually accessed a total sums of N27.260bn in 2021. This fact is everywhere in the media. The projects for which the bond is being used for have been repeatedly reported in the media, and they include the long-commissioned 11.1km Osi-Obbo Aiyegunle road, the ready-for-commissioning garment factory, General Tunde Idiagbon Flyover, Sugar Film Factory, which has Nigeria’s first-ever sound stage, Innovation Hub, Visual Arts Centre, long-commissioned Gbugbu International Market (Phase 1), Industrial Park Eiyenkorin (Phase 1), Ilesha Baruba and Osi campuses of the Kwara State University, Yebumot Adeta Oloje Road, 33km Ilesha Gwanara Road, Shea nut processing factory (Kaiama), rehabilitation of water works including Offa, Erin Ile, Asa Dam, and Afon, etc, and a couple of other township roads.

A few of these projects are completed while many of them are ongoing and are steadily being funded through the bond as they hit different milestones. In a media exposure early 2022, the Governor said only N10bn of the N27.260bn had been spent on the ongoing projects and that the money was being disbursed to contractors handling the projects as they are certified due for next payment. It speaks to the ‘brilliance’ of Kwara PDP that they expected that the N17.260bn that was in the bank for ongoing projects in early 2022 — which are expected to be paid for as they hit different stages — is just lying there unused. But psychologists have rightly posited that depraved minds often see every other person in their own image — after all, the PDP never executed a couple of the projects it listed on their bonds as far back as 2009, including the much-touted industrial park. Our own industrial park is under construction and can be seen by all at Eiyenkorin, not like their own nonexistent one that was fraudulently listed in their bond.

The Kwara PDP is today no more than a band of mostly lousy and dishonest politicians who have no respect for the people in their public statements, such as dishing out outright falsehood. The party and its idols belong in the political dustbin of history. And no amount of fake political re-engineering can save the party if it does not abandon its lying ways — a culture that its so-called new breeds appear to have taken to a new height to the chagrin of serious minded members of the public.

Rafiu Ajakaye
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor
October 10, 2023

• says PDP ran state aground, chased devt partners away

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara has called on the residents of the state to consider the statement of the opposition party Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the whining of a party ashamed about the growth and development under the current government in the state.

This was contained in a statement issued by the Publicity Secretary of the party, Alhaji Tajudeen Folaranmi Aro, on Sunday.

Aro explained that PDP was unhappy that Kwara has become the darling of the private sector and the development bodies barely five years after the previous government under their party scared many of them away with anti-business policies and ostentation for greed and wealth at the expense of the public.

“We have seen the wishy-washy statement written by the PDP over the foundation laying of the N2.5bn first-of-its-kind oncology and research centre facilitated by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Friday. It does betray their sadness over the fulfilment of yet another promise to Kwarans and I offer our sympathy to them.

“PDP is grieving that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has repositioned Kwara as an investment destination for investors and go-to state for global and development partners. From 2019, Kwara has had the good fortune to benefit massively from World Bank, UBEC, UNICEF due to the strategic alliances and trust the administration built with world leaders for the progress of the state.

“Also, several philanthropists, community-based associations and groups have offered to support the administration because they are buoyed by its honesty and passion for people and community. It is trite that no government anywhere in the world can provide all the needs of the people without the support of the well-meaning public. However, history shows that only the honest, loved administration enjoys such goodwill.

“The PDP must have thought it was wise and patriotic to close doors to good advice and intervention of interested well-meaning groups when it ran the state down 2003 – 2019. The PDP is now dismayed by the massive love and support the governor and the state enjoys from the development partners under the government of APC, but should think of public interest first before their political harakiri,” Aro said.

He added that Kwarans are the ultimate beneficiaries of all the interventions from local and development partners, calling the PDP to stop suggesting they do not deserve good governance and quality standard of living.

“One will become enemy of progress to begin to complain about the turnaround of that sad, debilitating public-private posturing in the state.

“Five years ago when AbdulRazaq came on board, he promised Kwarans to make the state a darling of investors and development bodies locally and internationally to drive the agenda of inclusive growth and development of the state. As of that time, the PDP had already put the state in the black book of UBEC, UNICEF, and BOI to mention a few.

“Similarly, household government and private entreprises like Okin Biscuits, St. Moritz, Bacita Sugar Company and Jebba Paper Mill disappeared overnight turning Kwara — one of the most industrialised states in the 70s — to a civil service state.

“This led to attrition and stunted growth across key sectors like education, health, and socioeconomic standard of living.

“We are as excited as over 3 million Kwarans who have now benefitted in part from the UBEC smart schools, UNICEF-Kwara newly formed partnership on health care, or Sight Savers eye care services among others under the strategic leadership of APC government in the state.

“We urge members of PDP to begin to take copious lessons on business of inclusive governance from the governor as this is a lifetime opportunity to unlearn the politics of me-and-my-family the party is run by for decades. Kwara is moving forward.”

Aro expressed gratitude to Abdul Samad Rabiu Initiative (ASR Africa) for the project, urging philanthropists and other well-meaning groups locally and nationally to continue to partner with Kwara Government in the interest of the state and development of the country.

Signed:

Alhaji Tajudeen Folaranmi Aro

APC Publicity Secretary

•Says River Basin Development Authorities key to food security

•Gov receives Minister of Water Prof. Utsev on visit

•Commends FG on WASH, ODF programmes

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has again called on the Federal government to expedite action on the dredging of the Rivers Niger and Benue to check the annual flooding and human losses along their banks and tributaries as well promote food security.

The Governor expressed concerns over the human and material damages the annual flooding inflicts on the country, especially communities living along their tributaries.

The Governor spoke when he received a delegation from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation led by the Minister Prof Joseph Terlumun Utsev on a courtesy visit to the Government House in Ilorin.

“One of the main challenges I want your Ministry to take up is the dredging of the River Niger, Benue down to the Delta. It is essential for (the Ministry) to start that immediately, because of the damages it is causing to the national economy and food security,” he said.

“Issues of internally displaced persons are of concerns. People are leaving their traditional abodes because of the water level. We know that on both banks of River Niger and Benue, rice is being farmed a lot. Two years ago, we saw how OLAM Farm in Benue State was devastated. The issue of dredging is not just about the navigation. It is also about agriculture and building the marine economy from those rivers.”

AbdulRazaq commended the Ministry’s usual support for the country, particularly the state, on the success recorded in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programmes and Open Defecation Free (ODF).

He also sought the assistance of the Ministry for smooth implementation of a water master plan, which the state government is proposing, saying their collaboration is key to achieving the set goal.

“I commend your Ministry for the push on ODF. When we came in 2019, Nigeria overtook Bangladesh as one of the worst cases in ODF, and so we became number one in the World. Kwara was number one in North Central and last worst case in Nigeria. But with the efforts we made with your Ministry, we’ve gone up and we are no longer the worst case in ODF. We thank your Ministry’s support and engagement in that period,” he said.

“We also want to collaborate with and seek assistance from the Ministry on our new water master plan for Kwara.”

The Governor also acknowledged the important role of river basin development authorities in achieving food security, and tasked them to do more to achieve more.

“Without river basin development authorities, we cannot achieve the level of food security we want to achieve. That is something we really need to do. All your programmes on water and sanitation are basically essential things. If we get that right we will have less traffic in our primary healthcare facilities across the Nation. So, your Ministry is key to food security, good health, and human capital development,” the Governor added.

Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation Prof Joseph Terlumun Utsev, for his part, said they are in the state to kickstart a nationwide tour of projects, programmes and assessment of the challenges facing the River Basin Development Authorities for improved results, starting with Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority Ilorin.

The Minister sought the support of AbdulRazaq to use his office as NGF Chairman to talk to his colleagues to also key into the activities of River Basin Development Authorities across the federation.

“Your Excellency, this is a familiarisation visit and assessment of the projects and programmes, including challenges of the River Basin Development Authorities in Nigeria. And we are here in Kwara state to start this tour because you are the Chairman Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), and we feel it is important to do that in order to receive your blessings and support,” the Minister added.

He said his Ministry is key in driving the renewed hope agenda of Mr. President, one of which he said is to achieve food security, improve on WASH programmes, and strengthen the national economy.

“During this visit to the state, we also aim to assess ongoing federal government projects in the state, and to commission those that are completed. Among these projects, the federal government has constructed are for the purposes of irrigation, water supply and hydropower, and other empowerment programmes,” he added.

Rafiu Ajakaye

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

October 8, 2023

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on Thursday led policy direction talks with top officials to guide government’s ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) as different stakeholders commence preparations for the 2024 budget.

This is coming ahead of the citizens’ budget engagements, which are due to begin shortly.

The Governor said the budget will prioritise the completion of the ongoing capital projects and inauguration of same to improve living standards and create more jobs for the people of the state, as well as on social protection to support the vulnerable.

He also said that the government will continue to prioritise the workers’ welfare, including making provision for discussions around the new minimum wage.

The Policy Direction hangout for Kwara State 2024 Budget Preparation was attended by Deputy Governor Kayode Alabi; Hon. Gabriel Ganiyu Abolarin, who stood in for the House of Assembly Speaker Rt. Hon. Yakubu Danladi Salihu; cabinet members led by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Prince AbdulKadir Aliyu Mahe; Permanent Secretaries; and directors of planning.

“In the new year, our focus will be to complete and inaugurate many of our projects, thereby creating jobs for the people. Workers’ welfare and social protection for the vulnerable will remain a top priority,” the Governor said.

“The government will also make provision for discussions around the new minimum wage. We will also strengthen our ease of doing business efforts through advocacies, legislations, and collaboration with all players in the economy.

“The direction of our administration has been clearly outlined in the Sustainable Development Plan (SDP: 2021-2030). The 10-year economic blueprint detailed our policy objectives and priorities. I urge every cabinet member and government official to familiarise themselves with this key document, along with a few others like the Agricultural Transformation Plan.

“Our projects, programmes, policy pronouncements, and other priorities as an administration have been inspired by the visions expressed in these documents. For that reason, the 2024 budget will be tailored to the same objective.

“On top of this agenda is human capital development which include access to quality education, sanitation facility, infrastructural upgrade and expansion, improved and diversified economic base and revenue generation, strong fiscal base, youth empowerment, social protection, and gender inclusion, sustainable environment, sustainable energy, sports development, food security through promotion of smallholder and commercial agriculture, safety of lives and property, and create the right environment for capital investments.”

He charged all government officials in the state to act in their various duty posts in line with the current economic reality, as the government continues to meet obligations and impact the lives of Kwarans.

Prince Mahe, for his part, said the 2024 budget policy direction hangout was an important moment for the state to discuss the financial roadmap that will guide it in the coming year.

He encouraged all key stakeholders to engage in constructive dialogue and provide valuable insights in the course of deliberation on the budget.

Hon. Sabi, in his introductory remarks, said the event was aimed at providing step-by-step directions to make the 2024 budget preparation task easier and implementable.

He thanked AbdulRazaq for his outstanding leadership style and support for the Ministry, especially the approval to train officers on zero-based budgeting systems and processes.

The event also devolved into a question and answer session during which permanent secretaries sought clarifications and made observations on different developments affecting their ministries, including the need to adopt the new Energy Act and some current economic trends in the country and how to mitigate them.

Rafiu Ajakaye
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor
October 5, 2023

….Free Care extended to Woman in Labour, delivered of a Baby Boy.

The Kwara State Government- sponsored free medical and surgical outreach, which started in the previous week at Erin-Ile General Hospital, in the Oyun local government has entered its second week with the health team providing services at the General Hospital in Offa.

The Commissioner for Health in the State, Dr. Amina Ahmed El-Imam, who also joined the team, was received at the Offa General Hospital by the Medical Director, Dr. Abdulsalam Olabisi, the Transition Implementation Committee Chairman for Offa Local Government Area in the state, Chief Jare Thomas, and the Supervisory councillor for Health, Mr. Bashir Olaotun.

The Commissioner expressed delight at the turnout of the people to access the free health care opportunity. She further appreciated the professional touch being given by the experts in handling the various health problems.

Dr. El-lmam also used the opportunity to call on members of the public who require interventions for surgically amenable ailments like hernia, lipomas, cataract and other related diseases to avail themselves of this great opportunity created by Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, CON, the executive governor of the state, at our doorsteps.

Speaking to our media crew, one of the surgeons in the team, who is also a Deputy Director for Medical Services and Training in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Stephen Arigidi, said ‘today’s outreach was so special that we were able to integrate a woman who needed an emergency ceasarean section into the free health care opportunity provided by our Governor’.

The woman, name withheld, was successfully delivered of a bouncing baby boy by the visiting free health team through the timely intervention for a ceasarean section without the unprepared woman paying any fee.

The team were also able to provide free health care services, as planned, for people from the twelve wards in Offa LGA who had trooped to the hospital to get medical consultation and appropriate drugs for their respective ailments like hypertension, diabetes and specific care to resolve problems associated with eye sight, reading glasses or surgical care for relevant conditions.

Falade Gbenga Tayo

Press Secretary

KWSMoH.

Kwara made a very significant history on Monday, September 4, but it got buried in the deluge of media reportage that expectedly attended the swearing in of the cabinet members. Not many people paid attention to the swearing of two persons living with disabilities (PLWD) — Ayanwale Peter Kayode and Abdullahi Wahab Kayode — as Permanent Secretaries by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

It was another first in the state, according to recent institutional memories. Also, on that day, the Governor consolidated the place of Kwara as the state with the most gender-diverse government in Nigeria —a trophy it first won in 2019. Nine in the 18 cabinet members are women, representing 50% of the pick. He had earlier initiated and signed a legislation that requires at least 35% gender balance in government appointments.

The Governor is also known for his socially responsible policies with huge impacts on the community he governs. He recently approved for female civil servants to have optional six-month maternity leave, which is designed to encourage exclusive breastfeeding. Kwara is about the third state in Nigeria to have this policy. The UNICEF has identified six-month exclusive breastfeeding as a major incentive for raising healthy children, improved mother-child bonding, and better prospects for a stronger economy and happier society.

The policy on exclusive breastfeeding ranks in the same category as other programmes, pronouncements, and appointments that intentionally support disadvantaged people such as the aged, poor, children, women, and persons living with disabilities.

The significance of these developments is not necessarily in the number of persons covered, appointed or the portfolios they hold. The significance is in their far-reaching consequences for human capital development, power relations, social mobility of the affected demographics, and cohesion and harmony in the society.

Among other things that people hold it to, government has a duty to give hope (of security and better tomorrow) to every member of the community it governs — be they powerful, weak, rich, poor, or underserved. Author of the Policy Paradox, Rebecca Stone, put this role of the government in a stronger perspective in the following words: “When Thomas Jefferson (third US President) declared that ‘all men are created equal’, he meant morally equal, not physically, mentally, or financially equal. A well-designed government should counteract these nonmoral differences in order to render moral equality real to enable every person to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. Democratic theories differ, of course, in what they identify as the weak and strong interests and in the means they assign to government for protecting the weak. But they share these two key assumptions: that some important, good interests are too weak to flourish on their own, and that one important function of government is to foster these types of interests.”

In a world clearly skewed in favour of men, a policy instrument that bolsters equitable representation for either gender is necessary. This is what the Governor has done with a legal instrument and personal examples of his government. The decision to elevate a visually impaired civil servant and another one confined to the wheelchair by fate is a loud testament to how AbdulRazaq has given voice to people living with disabilities (PLWDs) — a critical segment of the underserved population.

This does more than just fostering inclusion and a sense of fulfilment in the affected persons. Beyond that, it gives practical hope to thousands of little children or persons who have been dealt a painful blow by fate of accidents or diseases. It shows them how to never give up on their dreams and that, like these new Permanent Secretaries, they can get to the height of their career if they work hard, work smart, and tick other boxes of ethical practices.

The same holds true for the legislation that concretises the Governor’s gender inclusion policy. It serves to encourage little girls that the only barrier to the attainment of their lofty dreams is no longer an unfavourable political environment. If that is a legacy the Governor bequeathes to this community, it is significant enough for writers of history to note.

• Ajakaye is Chief Press Secretary to the Governor

Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq sends his hearty congratulations to three young Kwarans who recently won medals for their brilliant outings at the recent African Youth Scrabble Championship.

The Kwara trio are Aliu Qudus who placed 2nd; Olojoku Boluwatife Sufyan (5th); and Olosun Khalid (8th). Their feats mean they are among the best Scrabble players on the continent. The three are students of Government High School Ilorin.

Unlike other games where only the best three are recognized, Scrabble championships honour players who place between 1st and 10th in the game that involves strategic joggling of letter tiles to form meaningful words,
while players are timed and guided by stringent rules.

The Governor says the feats of the Kwara children point up their high intellects, time management skills, and
ability to strategise and plan, think fast, and respect rules — a skills set AbdulRazaq says are necessary for anyone aspiring to greater success in life.

AbdulRazaq urges the young champs to continue to develop themselves in the games of their choice, and work harder next time to break new records for posterity.

“The future is definitely bright for these champions, and we pray to Almighty God to grant them good fortunes always,” the Governor says.

He also wishes the players the best of luck as they get set to represent Kwara State at the forthcoming Youth Games in Delta later this year.

Rafiu Ajakaye
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor
September 1, 2023