The Shame of Governance in Kwara: When Excuses Replace Security Under Gov. AbdulRazaq
By: Like Minds Support Group for Prof Ali Ahmad
The recent exchange between the Kwara State Government and Dr. Bukola Saraki, over the state of security in Kwara, has once again exposed the emptiness of this administration’s rhetoric. Instead of addressing the weight of the issues raised, the government issued an official statement filled with the usual defense lines—insults, distractions, and propaganda.
Saraki’s point was simple: Kwara people are unsafe. Kidnappings are on the rise, bandits are having a field day, and fear is now part of daily life. But the response from Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s administration was not to show results or outline a credible plan—it was to dig up old accusations and recycle excuses. This is not governance; it is avoidance.
Who is truly playing politics with security? When Kwarans demand answers, the government begins to talk about investments in schools, roads, and water. These things are important, yes, but how do they shield families from kidnappers? How do they protect travelers on our highways? Security deserves direct answers, not diversionary tales.
The governor’s officials say they are doing their best, and that best is equipping vigilantes, forest guards, and local hunters. We are not talking of salutary efforts—Kwarans want to see results. Is this the best a government sworn to protect lives can do? Is Kwara’s security to be left in the hands of untrained men with dane guns, while bandits wield sophisticated weapons? This is not strategy—it is negligence masquerading as effort.
Even more shameful is the excuse that bandits fleeing bombardments in the Northwest have now found their way into Kwara. Banditry in the Northwest began around 2013. Why did the so-called spillover wait until AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s tenure to become a nightmare for Kwarans? The truth is clear: Kwarans never knew banditry until during AA’s administration.
To make matters worse, government spin-doctors have continued to twist Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje’s earlier remarks to score cheap political points. For the record, Baraje’s statement and clarification when he was invited by the DSS in 2021 is on public record: he revealed that former President Muhammadu Buhari, in his desperation to be president, had attracted foreign fighters to back his ambition if he was rigged out. When Buhari eventually won, he neglected to properly address the return or repatriation of those fighters. That was the context—not an indictment of Kwara.
We must thank them for at least responding for once, but even their response betrays a lack of ideas. They admit the problem yet offer no roadmap for lasting solutions. It is all about managing perception, not reality. A government that cares more about image than the safety of its citizens has lost its moral compass.
The resurfacing of Baraje’s comments makes this matter even more serious. His words have consistently been twisted by political actors. Instead of drawing lessons from his caution, AbdulRazaq’s handlers continue to cling to distortions, preferring to deploy “data boys” online rather than face reality.
But propaganda does not protect lives. Diversions do not calm the fears of families who can not sleep because kidnappers terrorize their communities. Roads remain death traps, villages live in fear, and markets close earlier than before—all while the government pretends that spinning stories is a substitute for leadership.
Even outside Kwara, the governor’s failures are obvious. At the Northern Nigeria Investment & Industrialisation Summit in Abuja, organised by the Northern Elders Forum on September 29, 2025, Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa openly lectured his colleague AbdulRazaq on insecurity. His words were clear:
> “All of us governors cannot blame anybody again on the issue of fighting insecurity. We must tackle it, and how we do it depends on us. In 2019, when I was first sworn in as governor, we were sharing just about N500 billion at the Federal Allocation Committee (FAC). Now, we are sharing over N2.5 trillion. What this means is that we now get more than 400 percent of the money we used to get before. So, there is money for development and to fight insecurity. I have had to face the issue of insecurity squarely in Nasarawa State, and we are happy today with what we have achieved.”
That is real leadership—acknowledging responsibility and confronting problems head-on. It is a direct contrast to AbdulRazaq’s blame game and endless excuses despite receiving humongous allocations never seen before in Kwara’s history.
The shameful mistake here is not Saraki raising concerns. The shameful mistake is the governor’s media handlers thinking that excuses will substitute for results. They do not realize that Kwarans can see the truth with their own eyes. Fear in communities can not be hidden by press statements.
The families who have lost loved ones to kidnappers know the truth. The traders who pay ransom to bandits know the truth. The villagers who sleep in the bushes avoid being attacked know the truth. They can not be deceived by speeches about “commitment” and “investments.”
Furthermore, it is a cheap and baseless lie to claim that cultism thrived under Saraki’s tenure. On the contrary, Saraki inherited cultism but decisively stamped it out, installing security cameras in strategic parts of Ilorin and restoring public confidence. These are facts AbdulRazaq’s handlers don’t want people to remember.
A government that can not protect lives can not claim victory in any sector. Schools and roads will mean nothing if citizens are too afraid to use them. Development without security is hollow—it is like decorating a house while leaving the door wide open to armed robbers.
Kwara needs sincerity and facts, not insults and distractions. Citizens want to see clear strategies—intelligence gathering, collaboration with federal security forces, investment in modern surveillance, and practical community defense systems that actually work.
Enough of excuses. Enough of propaganda. Enough of blaming others for your failure. The lives of Kwarans matter more than your political ego. The time for hiding behind old stories is over; the time for real leadership is now.
The truth is bitter, but it must be told. The people are tired of excuses. They are tired of being told that insecurity is normal. They are tired of propaganda. They want peace. They want safety. They want leadership.
Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq owes Kwarans protection, not lectures. He owes them solutions, not excuses. And until he delivers on that sacred duty, his words will continue to ring hollow.
The priority must be saving lives, not saving face. That is what real leadership demands, and that is what Kwara deserves.
Signed
Comrade Hassan Sparrow
Secretary
Likeminds Support Group for Prof Ali Ahmad