Date: 2018-08-05

Comrade Issa Aremu, Member, National Institute, Kuru, Jos (MNI) and Vice President, IndustriALL Global Union, recently declared his intention to be the governor of Kwara State through the 2019 general election.

Find below extracts from his declaration speech. Comrade Isa Aremu With God guidance and your support, I hereby offer to lead the electoral process to liberate our hitherto promising Kwara State from underdevelopment, mass hunger and poverty as the 4th democratically elected governor in the present democratic dispensation.

I am honoured and humbled by your sacrifices to make today a reality. I am indeed delighted and grateful that we all turned out because of the legitimate concern we have for the development of our dear state. We share the same hope and optimism.

Today seems uncertain but tomorrow will be better in God's name. Despite lack of money and pervasive income poverty, you have taken various means of transport (notably Okada, Keke and unworthy taxis) on the notorious Ilorin roads (read, pot holes) to be here. Despite deep worry about our children who graduated from schools without jobs you have created the time to be here. Our children have degrees but lack the real thing: Jobs! Some of my working comrades, sisters and brothers here are unacceptably not paid salaries, yet you borrowed money to be counted here.

Many workers are callously paid as low as 50 or 60 per cent of their wages.

Kwara government seems to legitimize wage theft especially of some local government' employees, contrary to the decent work agenda of the International Labour Organization (ILO) of which Nigeria is a member since 1961. And that is despite the bailout offered by President Muhammed Buhari. In spite of the legitimate worries about sick relatives unable to pay out of pocket, you still have time to come. I salute your patriotism and remarkable commitment towards a better Kwara. All our worries about poor governance in Kwara call for action. Let's get out of our slumber and murmurs. Let's organize and stop agonizing. Huge development deficit Kwara State was created on 27 May 1967 by the Gowon government. We are proud to be part of the first generation states that include Rivers, Kano and Lagos states. Last year, the first generation states celebrated their 50th anniversary. Lagos celebrated the occasion with signature projects, year-long fanfare. Ditto for Rivers and Kano. But Kwara at 50 was 'marked' almost unnoticed by leaders who paradoxically celebrate their personal birthdays and weddings of their children like days and months long! The Ahmed administration listed unity, peace and development as the achievements of Kwara at 50. Other listed achievements include federal, state and private universities, industries, emerging aviation hub, advanced health facilities, modern recreational facilities and comparatively good infrastructure. Why then the 'low-key' celebration? From the various contributions of discussants on the STATE OF (KWARA) STATE, which preceded the occasion, it is clear that, contrary to propaganda, Kwara suffers a huge development deficit.

Our state urgently begs for development and salvation from bad governance. 2019 government election offers a unique historic opportunity to rescue our dear state.

I offer to lead our dear state through selflessness, statesmanship, entrepreneurship, compassion, managing diversity, equality, inclusiveness, sense of justice and fairness. Indeed my stewardship will be a continuation of my selfless and tested struggle within the national, African and global labour movement spanning four decades.

The 1999 Constitution espouses eloquently in Chapter II the fundamental objectives and directive principles of state dealing with equity and fairness. Section 14b of the Constitution says the primary purpose of government is security and welfare of citizens. These constitutional provisions are observed in the breach in Kwara.

My first task is to secure the territorial integrity of the state against external predators who, through endless states' creation, balkanized our state. Our first task is to rescue Kwara from extinction through proactive statesmanship. Poor resistance In the 1980s, Kwara had an average of 4.8 million people with an area of about 73,000 square kilometres (making it the 5th largest state in the Federation).

The state has since been reduced considerably in size as a result of serial states' creation in Nigeria, no thanks to poor resistance of successive leaders in Kwara. We offer to give Kwara a bold and accountable leadership that will promote national integration and oppose endless agitation for states' creation as an avenue to loot by some leaders. Despite the spirited efforts of Professor Ibrahim Agboola Gambari, Under Secretary-General and special adviser to the UN Secretary-General and co-chair of the 2014 Confab and myself as a labour delegate, Governor Ahmed could not produce a single document on the position of Kwara in the Federation. Under our stewardship, Kwara would reclaim its identity as the gateway to the North from the South of our great nation. We will offer leadership to revive the old network of friendship Kwara gave within the context of building a united Nigeria.

Secondly, Kwara, under our stewardship, will tackle arrested development which started at creation. Three other states created alongside Kwara, Rivers, Kano and Lagos, are among the top 10 high GDP states while our state miserably is number 28 on the ranking of states by GDP and even beaten by newer states like Imo, Edo and Oyo. Under our government, Kwara will return to the path of productivity through re-industrialization and provision of mass, decent jobs. At creation, Kwara was the fastest growing state with bold Development Plan through Kwara State First Development Plan (1970 - 74/75) (within the context of the country's second National Development Plan (1970 - 1975) and Second Kwara State Development Plan (1975 – 1980). The plans laid solid foundations for accelerated economic growth, increased productivity in agriculture, providing favourable climate for industrial development and improving the quality of life through the provision of necessary infrastructure. Kwara must return to development planning and impress on the Federal Government the need to improve on national planning and national vision within the context of Africa Union (AU). Kwara must, once again, become investment/job destination. In the 70s, Kwara, with productivity and enterprise of farmers, was food secured. We used to produce rice and exported to other states. Kwara, under our leadership, will support thousands of farmers, not few absentee foreign farmers whose products are not on daily menu of most Kwarans. My vision Kwara, just like Nigeria, has no business with poverty.

We have identified as many as 22 viable projects in our state, ranging from marble processing to fruit juice, from sugar-cane refinery to cashew nuts processing. There will be state-led industrialization.

Our vision is to have industry in each of the 16 LGAs. We will reinvent the obsolete infrastructure, encourage ease of doing business as well as ease of working and living. We will get the increasing army of unemployed to work. Private sector is the 'engine' of growth.

But government must retool the private sector engine knocked down by bad governance. Our investment charity would start with our people. Kwara used to be the cesspool of human capital with skills and integrity which built the old Northern Region and Nigeria in general. With notable sons and daughters of Kwara with earned names, it is unacceptable that Kwara is personalized. Inclusive development must replace the present elitist tokenism.

A state that lacks basic mass transit for millions of Kwara to go to work cannot pride itself as 'an emerging aviation hub'. Public spending must reflect the priorities of the critical mass of our people. There will be full disclosures of state assets under our leadership. In recent times, serial robbery cases have been recorded in peaceful communities like Offa and Omuaran. Our government will be on duty to prevent crimes for the state economy to thrive. We will reward prevention and sanction security system failures. Most importantly, youths would return to work to add value. We will keep our youths off the streets.

They will no longer be cannon folders in the deadly game of those in power. Never again will our mothers and sisters be made voting cows in return for poverty and cheap hand-outs. Under our stewardship, Kwara will be known for good virtues of the founding fathers and mothers that included productivity and integrity. Under our leadership, communal conflicts will give way to communal cooperation. Every child will be encouraged to learn another language other than his mother tongue. Voluntarism and holiday jobs will be encouraged to instil dignity of labour as envisaged by the 1999 Constitution.

Kwara, under our dynamic leadership, will be ambitious in state-building as the legendary Nelson Mandela said, "It always seems impossible until it's done".