Date: 2015-02-18

Dr. Sulaiman Olarewaju Abubakar until his appointment as Minister for National Planning and deputy chairman, National Planning Commission, was a lecturer at the University of Abuja. He fielded questions from journalists in Ilorin and touched on various issues including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential campaign tour of Kwara State and sundry issues. BISI ADEDAYO captured it for Newswatch Times.

What is your impression on the recent President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign tour of Kwara State?

I want to put it on record that at the initial stage of the build up to the campaign, there were some issues that bothered on assault, issues that bother on public insults on Mr. President that perhaps inform our party’s reaction. But the initiative of Mr. President to enter into a kind of accord with the opposition party by way of ensuring that this coming election is peaceful,

rancour-free and devoid of acrimony has doused tension that was initially started. I want to put it on record too that it is never done anywhere in the world where the office of Mr. President will be subjected to humiliation and ridicule. The recent developments in some parts of the country, especially in the north are not something that helps our nation. It is not something that helps any government; it is not something that helps Nigerians. Therefore, we want to commend the people of Kwara State both the PDP members and our opponents, our loving people of Kwara

State to have allowed the rally to take place in a rancour free atmosphere, in its peaceful environment to have conducted themselves in a civilized manner is an orientation that we feel is commendable. That is to tell you that Kwara State remains a State of Harmony, a peaceful State, a State where brothers and sisters live in spite of their differences on party basis as sportsmen and women.

How prepared is your party, PDP towards the general elections scheduled to hold in March and April?

Yes, we have just few weeks to the election. Our party, PDP, has been running out issues, programmes, manifestoes, vision and missions and in the course of our rally today. I tried to catalogue what I believe are Mr. President’s achievements in Kwara State which bother on road construction, water and irrigation, rail system, educational development, health system, interventions and

our attempt to assist the small scale entrepreneurs in the state. These are achievements that are visible. On the basis of these, we are asking the people of Kwara State to vote in PDP and vote out APC in the state so that Nigeria will remain a transformative country, so that our bid to achieve lasting peace in Nigeria in spite of the security challenges in the northern part of the country would be realized.

But don’t you think that primordial sentiments like religion and ethnicity may influence the electorates’ voting pattern in the forthcoming election in the State?

The outing today which was massive in nature was a product of collective synergy on the part of everybody in the party and I am happy to inform you that PDP in Kwara today is united. Nobody would eat religion because the way Christians feel when they are hungry is the same way Muslims feel. It is not a matter of religion, it is a matter of liberty, it is a matter of crave for development; it is a matter of transformation in the state. Therefore, no electorate can be deceived on account of these two sentiments.

It is believed in certain quarters that N80 million presidential grants to organize campaign rally is causing ripples among leaders of your party in the state. What is your reaction on this?

I wouldn’t know where that story emanated from. It is normal to receive presidential grants for the presidential rally and when the money was given, up till this moment, I have never heard of any rancour or acrimony on it. It has not torn anybody apart and members of PDP have been using their money to move the party forward. So N80 million or whatever the amount is cannot be an issue. As a matter of fact, while we praise the party’s efforts for giving out that money, stakeholders at the state level added a lot of money to complement the PDP at the centre’s effort in hosting the rally. Nobody raised any uproar or fuss. The row is the imagination of our opponent.

It is also believed that Senator Gbemi Saraki’s absence at the presidential campaign rally is a further confirmation that the State PDP is divided. How far is it true?

I think it is high time for us to address issues and shun what I believe are trivial issues. That Gbemi did not attend the campaign rally shouldn’t be an issue. Even though she didn’t communicate to the party to the best of my knowledge on why she didn’t attend. Again, as one family, we can’t stand even her absence. It is my prayer that she is okay wherever she is. But as far as I am concerned, as far as the party is concerned, she still remains a member of our great party.

There is this allegation that Kwara State did not benefit anything from President Jonathan led Federal Government in terms federal projects. What is your take on this?

We trivialize issues in Nigeria here. Before I mention those projects undertaken by the federal government, the question I try to ask our opponent is that while they were in PDP, why didn’t they raise issues like this? Why they were in PDP and at times they were more or less de facto number two at the federal level, why didn’t they ask all these questions? Why are the questions

coming now on the eve of election? And why they were there, we should ask questions, what were their achievements? What are their various interventions? I am a member of Federal Executive Council (FEC) and three months ago, we approved a water project in Malete purposely for the students of the Kwara State University (KWASU). This is on record. It was read out after council meeting. This is a laudable project that is on-going in the State. Secondly, the railway system is being rehabilitated, from Lagos to Kano, which passes through Offa and Ilorin.

There is no how you want to move from here to Kano through railway system without you enjoying that facility. When you talk of rail transportation in the country, Kwara State is one of the major beneficiaries-Offa/Ilorin/Jebba/Mokwa, it is a laudable achievement that would ease transportation of goods and services in the state. When you talk of remodeling of our airport, re-modeling of Ilorin International Airport and expansion of cargo terminal should be mentioned. Dualisation of Ibadan-Ilorin section, and expansion of Oko Olowo-Igbeti road. Expansion of

University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) permanent site. Rehabilitation and expansion of Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa road. Intercity passengers’ services between Offa-Kano express train services and that of Lagos-Ibadan -Ilorin -Lagos train. Construction of water Dam at Malete for KWASU. TETFUND/UBEC intervention funds to institutions of higher learning in the state. KWASU, Colleges of Education in Oro, Ilorin and Lafiagi (Technical).   Now, go to Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin, Kwara State University, College of Education, Oro, ask them

whether they have not received their TETFUND intervention funds that run into millions to assist in alleviating the suffering of our students there. Every year government makes available this money, not N100 million or N200 million, sometimes up to N300 million and N400 million. The state government is doing less when it comes to such intervention. Federal Government in spite of difference in party is still meeting its obligations in assisting most of these institutions in Kwara State. In spite of that they still believe that government is not doing anything. Under

UBEC, we gave intervention funds to primary schools and to secondary schools. Again, how this money is being utilized by the state government is a question you need to put to them. You know better what is happening and I just believe you will have gut to ask them. There is service of almajir schools located at different places in Kwara State. Also there are so many almajir schools in about six locations in Kwara State. You might not know because most of these schools are being constructed under Arabic and Islamic studies. So these and some others are what the

Federal Government is doing in Kwara State. And I made one statement which is very remarkable, in the ranking of universities in the country; University of Ilorin is number one. Kwara State government is not the one behind University of Ilorin, if the Federal Government had not been doing what it should do as a founder of that university, as a regulator of that university, Ilorin University would not be where it is. We should commend the Federal Government for that. These are the series of projects undertaken by Federal Government in Kwara State; some are

completed, some are on-going which I believe is enough for any serious government to point to. Construction of agro- industrial estate in Irepodun local government area of the state; construction of rice processing complex at Patigi LG, construction of export crops handling preservation and conditioning centre at Ilorin; construction of small scale garri and cassava agro- processing plant at Omu-Aran; introduction of e-wallet system for distribution of inputs to farmers in the state.

Construction of about 54 kilometers rural feeder roads and 30 boreholes along Patigi where we have silos; Araromi Eiyenkorin dam is on-going. Tpada Shonga irrigation project in Edu and Dukulade irrigation projects also in Edu.

One of key areas where the present administration at the federal level comes under criticism from the state bothers on corruption. How do you react to this?

Here, I raised questions on the various contracts being awarded under UBEC in Ilorin here. I asked them questions; I even asked them to take me to court if actually what I am saying is wrong. Corruption that is here in Kwara government is what Mr. President has been able to wipe out at the level of fertilizer procurement in this country. These are visible things. I raised these issues recently and up till now nobody has challenged me. The corruption that is going on in this Kwara State needs to be addressed. So, when you talk of corruption, I think their flag bearer is talking

about wiping away corruption or jail people in Nigeria that are corrupt, I think he would start from APC members most of whom are from the state. I am repeating and I am saying that I should be quoted anywhere, corruption is pervasive, corruption is everywhere in Kwara State. And if corruption is now being allowed to permeate, funds that are meant to develop our younger generation, it is too bad for such a state government, that issues need to be addressed.

Then the major achievement which Mr. President read out is the fact that N2 billion is lying down for Kwara entrepreneurs to access. This fund was made available just two weeks ago to assist the small scale industrialists in this state. The small scale industrialists can access this fund through Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Arrangement is on for CBN to devise a mechanism for a kind of security that would give the potential beneficiaries backing so that it would not be another attempt for people to just make money without returning the money back. So the N2 billion is there

for the small scale industrialists to access. We are determined to encourage our middle men that are into businesses because it is only through small scale enterprises that an economy can grow easily. We are appealing to them to come forward to access this money. What I am telling you now is on-going. You can assist us to disseminate this information to the rural people, farmers,

middle men, artisans and workers that perhaps want to major into some businesses for our economy to grow. And by the time we do this, it is an attempt again to diversify our economy rather than relying on oil as the only mainstay of our economy. Let us see how we can re-energize the private sector, the small scale industrialists, the small scale entrepreneurs so that we can propel our economy and the economy of the country would be self-sustaining.

How do you react to the allegation that since your assumption of office as a Minister, you have not contributed anything to Kwara State?

At personal level, I keep on saying this; this is something you can verify too that within two months of my stewardship as a Minister, I have helped so many Kwarans in gaining employment at the federal level. These people were there before me, what did they do? Ask them questions. They were Minister for three years, what did they do? A lot of our people, our younger ones are

now in road safety camps courtesy of my humble self and the PDP and we don’t even discriminate between PDP and APC. So, the question is: when they were there, what were they doing? So, these among others are what we have done in Kwara State and we are saying that given better opportunity, given second chance, we shall do more. If we could do that, we can do better. It is not

a matter of rhetoric. These are verifiable programmes and projects. I have been asking questions on one concrete project under this government in Kwara State. N139 billion between 2011 till date was made available to the state from the Federation Account. Ask questions what they have used that money for. Their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) within the period under review is close to N50 billion. If you add N50 billion to N139 billion, it gives you almost N190 billion. Ask them questions.

Finally, what are the chances of your party in the state in the forthcoming elections? Are you optimistic of defeating the ruling APC in the State?

What bothers Kwara today is not about PDP or any party, what bothers an average Kwaran is how to get the state liberated, how to get us out of bondage, how to ensure mass participation of government in Kwara State. We can’t for any reason betray that expectation of Kwara people. As a result of that therefore, if our party is given better opportunity, we shall do more, we shall do better. There are verifiable programmes and projects.