Mallam Abdulrahaman Abdulrazaq, the Governor of Kwara State and Chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) has been criticised over his absence and that of top government officials at the recent centenary celebration of Chief Josiah Sunday Olawoyin, a revered nationalist, first Asiwaju of Offa and key figure in the creation of Kwara State.
According to a Kwara-based right group, Pan-Kwara Movement, the week-long centenary celebration in Offa was expected to be a significant moment of recognition for Chief Olawoyin’s contributions to the state and the Yoruba race. However, the governor’s failure to attend or send a representative has been described as a “blatant disregard” for the legacy of the late nationalist, raising concerns over his commitment to inclusivity and historical recognition.
Abdulkareem Sodiq Esq, the President of Pan-Kwara Movement said, “Chief J.S. Olawoyin, a former member of the Nigerian Federal Parliament, was instrumental in the motion that led to the creation of Kwara State in 1967.
His contributions to the state’s history are widely acknowledged, making the alleged snub particularly alarming.
“We also have reports that indicate government officials, including the Offa Local Government Council Chairman (whose vice is one of Cheif JS Olawoyin’s children), were instructed to boycott the event.
“It is not out of way to say the Governor Abdulrahaman Abdulrazaq-led administration has deliberately sidelined Yoruba heritage in Kwara.”
Adding to the grievances, the group noted that while the governor has named projects and institutions after other figures, Chief Olawoyin’s name has been conspicuously absent.
The Pan-Kwara Movement also highlighted other perceived injustices, such as the neglect of the Kwara State College of Education in Oro, the oldest in the state, despite appeals from traditional rulers and community leaders for its conversion into a university of education.
Additionally, the renaming of the Kwara State Government House in Ilorin to “Ahmadu Bello House” has been described as an act of “Arewa expansionism” at the expense of Kwara’s indigenous heroes.
In response to these concerns, the Pan-Kwara Movement is demanding an unreserved apology from Governor AbdulRazaq and calling for greater recognition of Yoruba leaders and their historical contributions.
“Just like a seed, the more you try to bury the Yoruba race and its heritage in Kwara, the stronger it germinates,” the group stated, warning against any attempt to erase the legacy of Yoruba icons in the state.
