The Kwara North Development Commission (KNDC) has criticised Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq over plan to deploy state resources to fund projects for the Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU), describing the move as discriminatory and unlawful.
The group, in a statement released on Thursday, raised concerns over the governor’s announcement at the IEDPU 59th Annual Conference, where he revealed plans to execute projects worth no less than N250 million under the union’s auspices.
KNDC, in the statement signed by its President, Hon. Abdullahi Mansuma and Hajia Zainabu Seko, queried the legality of such expenditure and demanded clarity on the source of the funds.
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“It needs to be clarified whether this fund is going to be personally sourced or from the state allocations belonging to all of us”, the group stated.
“The IEDPU is a sectional socio-cultural group. It belongs to only Ilorin people, to the exclusion of others. It’s at best personal to Ilorin people.
“So, why should the Kwara governor go and pledge state funds for the completion of their projects?”.
The commission expressed dissatisfaction with what it termed an imbalance in the governor’s approach to governance, accusing him of favouring his home base, Ilorin Emirate, at the expense of other regions in the state.
“How many of such projects has the Governor facilitated for the Patigi Emirate Development Union (PEDU), Offa Descendants Union (ODU), or Baruten Patriotic Agenda?”, KNDC asked rhetorically.
Describing the move as “an outright illegality”, the group hinted at plans to challenge the action in court.
“We reject this move and declare it as illegal and discriminatory. This is an outright illegality, and we will challenge it in court at the appropriate time,” the statement read.
KNDC called for a more equitable distribution of state resources, noting that the current trajectory could deepen the sense of marginalization felt by other parts of the state, particularly Kwara North.
