Kwara Opposition Campaigning On Another Chance, APC on Its Record (I)
Usman Yunusa Lade
The opposition is asking Kwarans for another chance. That is their right in a democracy. But beyond the slogans and political ṣàlàyé, the question remains: another chance to do what?
For many Kwarans, the answer lies not in campaign speeches but in lived experiences.
In the water sector, I have seen firsthand what the difference looks like. There was a time when the Kwara State Water Corporation was better known for protests than productivity. Workers who should have been operating waterworks and delivering essential services to the people were instead on the streets carrying placards. The Corporation’s headquarters was under lock and chain. An institution created to serve the people had become a symbol of neglect.
Today, that same institution receives its subventions and operational allocations consistently. Rather than struggling for survival, it is focused on service delivery. That transformation is not just about one agency; it reflects a broader shift in governance across Kwara State.
The same can be said of the public service. There was a time when salaries, pensions, gratuities, and promotions came with uncertainty. Workers worried about when they would be paid, while retirees waited endlessly for benefits they had earned through years of service.
Today, regular salary payments have become the norm. Beyond that, the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration has steadily cleared inherited salary arrears owed to local government workers, SUBEB teachers, and pensioners. Between 2020 and 2024 alone, over ₦5.5 billion was committed to offsetting these inherited obligations, eventually bringing closure to arrears that had lingered for years.
The administration has also taken steps to cash-back promotions that existed only on paper for years. Across the state civil service, local governments, and SUBEB, workers are increasingly enjoying the financial benefits attached to their career progression. Promotion exercises have become more regular and predictable. In 2025 alone, over 2,000 state civil servants received promotion letters following the completion of the 2023 promotion exercise. For many public servants, this has restored confidence in a system that once appeared indifferent to their welfare.
Health workers have also seen tangible improvements in their welfare. While the adjustment of CONHESS remained a subject of agitation in many places, the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration implemented the revised CONMESS and CONHESS salary structures, bringing remuneration for health workers in Kwara in line with what obtains at the Federal Government level. The administration also approved 100 percent CONHESS for local government health workers, and it took effect in January 2024. A gesture publicly confirmed by Comrade Saheed Olayinka (the state NLC Chairman)
For pensioners, the story is equally significant. Beyond regular monthly payments, the government has continued to offset inherited gratuity and pension liabilities. Billions of naira have been committed to reducing the backlog, including approvals exceeding ₦8 billion for gratuity payments to retired state and local government workers. For thousands of retirees, this has restored a measure of dignity after years of uncertainty.
Perhaps nowhere is the difference more evident than in education.
When the AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq administration assumed office in 2019, Kwara had lost access to critical UBEC intervention funds and was on the commission’s blacklist. Rather than trade blame, the administration confronted the challenge, paid the ₦450 million sanction required to delist the state, and committed over ₦7 billion in counterpart funding to unlock federal education interventions.
The results are visible across the state. Nearly 800 public schools have benefited from the construction of new classrooms, renovation projects, furniture, learning materials, and other infrastructure upgrades. To complement these investments, the government introduced KwaraLEARN, a technology-driven reform designed to improve learning outcomes, strengthen teacher accountability, and enhance classroom delivery.
Today, enrolment is rising, learning outcomes are improving, and public confidence in government schools is gradually being restored. What was once a struggling sector is now becoming a reference point for education reform.
The impact is also evident in the performance of Kwara students. Since 2020, they have consistently distinguished themselves in national and international academic competitions. Team Kwara has dominated the Presidential School Debate Championship back-to-back and made history by representing Nigeria and emerging champions at the International Junior Secondary School Debate Championship in Malaysia. These achievements are not accidental; they reflect deliberate investments in public education and the future of Kwara’s children.
These are not promises. They are results.
This is why the opposition faces a difficult challenge. It is one thing to ask for another chance; it is another thing to explain why Kwarans should ignore the progress they can see and return to what they left behind.
Kwarans know the difference between promises and performance. They know the difference between ṣàlàyé and results can see and feel in each of the 193 wards in ths state.
To be continued….
*Hon Usman Yunusa Lade is the Commissioner for Water Resources, Kwara State.