Opinion: Effects Of Bad Governance In Kwara State And Monetisation Of Democratic Processes By Farid Sholagberu

Understanding Governance is the most important factor a leader should possess. In Kwara State, we use to have a Cargo terminal that was built by the PDP led administration. At the moment it is being converted to become a garment factory by the current APC led administration.

A right thinking person would ask questions as to why this is being done. Why would you convert a major facility such as that to a garment factory?

Other questions that needs to be answered are as follow; are we producing enough cotton in Kwara? Do we have a enough demand for textile at the moment in Kwara State? How do we transport what we produce in Kwara state to other states or out of the country? Observers are still confused as to what the APC led administration is doing in Kwara state.

For me I would say, they have gotten their priorities wrong. Rather than growing the state to be an economic hub, they have made us decline us to the bottom.

A state that possesses a cargo terminal is placed at an advantageous position, because when you start exploring your agriculture and minerals potentials. The terminal will serve as a gateway to the outside world in the sense that you can transport your products to anywhere in the world in a matter of hours. Kwara state today has one of the longest flight runways in Nigeria which allows large aircraft land and takeoff.

Kwara state has one of the best soils in Nigeria with a huge expanse of Land. Yet we have not grown our agricultural sector beyond where the PDP led administration did. We have a lot of minerals that are in huge demand across the globe, but what have we done with them? The PDP led administration during their time made sure critical infrastructures such as the cargo terminal was built and completed. As a competent administrator, what you should have been done is to explore ways the facilities would be put to use. However, the lack of vision and will to create something out of nothing is what has killed the APC led administration.

A state that actually wants development would never convert a major facility such as that cargo terminal to a garment factory. It is sad because they are taking us back to old ways.

We cannot continue like this because it is clear that the APC led administration lacks the leadership qualities we need in Kwara state. They are killing our critical infrastructures that can help us become a major economic hub in West Africa.

The APC led administration infrastructure development is misplaced, because they have expended more than 50 billion Naira in 3 years with nothing of note to show for it. They are wasting our resources on lame projects to gain political relevance.

Our roads are nothing to write home about, even in the capital city of ilorin. They are wasting money on a flyover bridge that is not needed, because a minor expansion of the road will solve the problems of traffic in that area.

The state government assumed the responsibilities of the local government authorities. In a progressive state Local government authorities are allowed to function as their own tier of government. What is the business of a state government with upgrading a Garden? It is very laughable because it is the job of the local government authority.

Since the start of this APC administration in Kwara state, we have not held any local government elections. We’ve not had a Democratic elected Local government council. Right thinking people would ask where the funds meant for the local governments are going.

In conclusion, you can never achieve anything in governance if you are not fully prepared for the rigours of governing. When you monetise the activities of Democratic processes, it becomes plutocracy. Governance then becomes an investment for you as an individual. When you campaign on propaganda and lies, you find yourself in a political ditch because rather than making friends and working with competent people to achieve development, you spend most of the time fighting political wars.

My advice is to Kwarans, we have tried two different wives and we have seen what they both have to offer. Let us be wise in the forthcoming 2023 elections. We should not waste our votes on APC again.

We should vote for a party that has been tested before, we should vote for those that are competent and possess the capacity to govern.

We should not vote for those that will be milking our resources in pretence of being humble. We should not vote for those who do not have solutions to our problems, rather than solving our problems they play the blame game.

We need problem solvers and true democrats not plutocrats who try to buy their ways into power. Plutocrats see being in government as an investment instead of seeing it as a service to humanity. Plutocrats hide under different guise to get what they want, after getting it they’ll switch up.

My beloved Kwara people, we cannot allow them fool us for the second time. We have suffered enough not to be wise. APC is bad for Nigeria and APC is bad for Kwara state.

FARID ABDULRAZZAQ SHOLAGBERU