Less than three years to the 2015 Governorship election in Kwara State, the battle line for the control of the state appears drawn.

Business Hallmark findings revealed that the hitherto cordial relationship between the state governor, Alhaji Abdulfatai Ahmed and his godfather, Senator Bukola Saraki seems to have hit the rocks.

Reliable sources within the state government told Bizhallmark that the former governor is plotting to stop Governor Ahmed's return to the state house over what the Saraki's camp termed betrayal of trust on the part of the governor.

Abdulfatah, it would be recalled, literarily rode on the crest of the personality of Senator Bukola Saraki to power. This is not surprising given the leading role that Ahmed played in the eight years of Governor Saraki administration, where he served as the finance commissioner.

It was reliably gathered that though, there had been a bit of niggle between the governor and his predecessor before now, fallouts from the N21 billion Intercontinental Bank loan scandal brought against the junior Saraki by the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) of the Nigerian Police had further drawn the wedge between the two former confidants.

Governor Ahmed, who has been having sleepless nights over fears of a possible backlash from allegations of fraud bedeviling his political godfather, has suddenly gone cold in the defense of his benefactor, a source close to the Saraki family disclosed.

A source within the Saraki camp, disclosed that Ahmed sudden bolt-face could be traced to a security report shown to him linking funds for his elections to financial impropriety against Senator Saraki, and the need to play games. A lot of the money transfer, it was also disclosed, was done under Ahmed's watch as finance commissioner in the last administration.

“Some hawks within President Jonathan's cabinet, we learnt, intends to make Saraki one of the hallmark of it's fight against corruption, and Ahmed is been propped up as the Judas.

“We have credible intel from our people at Aso Rock that Ahmed has been trying to free himself from the whole loan mess by entering into a deal with the president to produce the evidences needed to convict his former boss”, the source informed.

President Jonathan, it was alleged, had not forgiven him (Saraki) over the role he played in the many humiliations meted out to him during the administration of former President Umaru Yaradua, as well as him championing the Senate probe of the oils subsidy scheme that rocked the Jonathan's administration to its foundation.

Another factor that could work against the political interest of the incumbent governor in the next election, is the resolve of the fractured Saraki political clan to close ranks ahead of future elections.

It would be recalled that Senator Saraki and his father, Senator Olusola Saraki had gone their various ways owing to disagreements on whose candidate should be the PDP candidate for the 2011 governorship election in Kwara State.

While the junior Saraki opted for the incumbent governor, his father threw his weight behind his daughter, Senator Gbemisola saraki. When it apparently became obvious to the older Olusola Saraki that he would find it difficult to have his way over governorship ambition of is daughter within Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara state, he left the party for the fledgling Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), shortly before the April 2011 general elections. With this development, the Saraki political family was divided into two factions with one led by the patriarch of the family, Olusola and the other by his son, Bukola.

However, Bukola, in his bid to reconcile with his father, sought intervention of people both within and outside the country who could influence the reconciliation, it was learnt. Saraki, after pressures from many quarters reportedly backed down from his opposition to the reconciliation and welcomed it.

But three main issues that have continued to cause disaffection between the governor and his former boss was the gentleman agreement that Dr. Olusola Saraki will play a leading role in the emergence of the next governor of the state, which Business Hallmark gathered, could be Senator Gbemisola Saraki, leaving the incumbent governor as the casualty of the parley, the demand by the senior Saraki that he should be kept abreast of how the affairs of the state is being run by the state government, and the preference given to returnee ACPN members over the governor's candidates in the area of appointments into political offices.

Governor Ahmed, according to a source, is not comfortable with these arrangements, and this could have necessitated his alleged plans to pay back his godfather in his own coin by providing the necessary evidence needed by the SFU to nail him, it was alleged.

Also, there are some people in the in former governor's camp who are of the view that being aware that his father enjoys the structure he lacks, Bukola might have seen the return of his father as a source of strength for him to withstand and checkmate possible internal opposition against his interests within the party.

However, the governor seems not deterred by the plots against him, as he had rather, forged ahead in his quest to leave befitting legacies behind for people to remember him for.

Even, some residents of Ilorin who spoke to Business Hallmark maintained that owing to Ahmed's achievements in the last sixteen months, it would be very hard for him not to get another term if he so wishes. Checks around Ilorin, the state capital revealed that the governor had largely consolidated on the achievements of his predecessor.

In the education sector, there is now the Ministry of Education and Human Development, distinct from the former Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. From the “Every Child Count” philosophy of the last administration, the present administration has advanced into developing not only infrastructure, but children's skills by providing vocational centres across the three senatorial districts in Erinle, Patigi and Ilorin to complement academic activities.

The administration also carried out the rehabilitation of 240 blocks of secondary school classrooms, rehabilitation of school for special needs, construction of Pakata-sooto road, Omuaran to Landmark University road, among others. Also in health, to ensure access to quality health care delivery within a radius of 500 km, the three state hospitals in Offa, Ilorin, Kaima and Share have been upgraded.

As part of its programme of strategic infrastructure development, the Kwara State Government has constructed over six hundred kilometers of roads across the three senatorial districts of the state as a deliberate effort to open up the State for agricultural and economic development.

The Kwara State Traffic Management Agency has been provided with equipment and other facilities for effective monitoring of traffic while six fire service trucks of the State Fire Service were renovated for effective service delivery.

Two major projects, the Aviation International College and the Cargo Terminal, at the Ilorin international airport which could not take off during the lifetime of the last administration are now fully operational.

The administration also created jobs for 2000 youths who were posted to various private organizations in the state and some ministries but being paid by the state government.

In order to ensure economic prosperity among the residents particularly, the artisans and those involved in various businesses, N250m was released as soft loans to enhance their businesses. It is expected that the loans issued under various cooperative societies by selected micro finance banks would be repaid with 5 per cent interest to ensure that others benefit.

Other sectors such as sports, agriculture are being sustained based on the existing system, while the present administration has also signed various MOUs with local and foreign partners towards increasing agriculture productions in the state particularly in the area of rice productions and packaging.

According to the Senior Special to the Governor on Media and Communications Dr Muyideen Akorede, the rational behind the 'legacy continues' slogan in Kwara is to ensure that there is no more abandoned project anymore in Kwara before new ones are created, while fresh policies are fashioned out to complement the existing ones.

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