Governor AbdulRazaq Under Fire As Kwara PDP Denounces Scrapping OF Saraki’s Key Projects

In a scathing statement released on Tuesday, the PDP criticized the governor for removing KWASCDA from the forthcoming NG-CARES program, a federal and World Bank-backed initiative designed to tackle infrastructure deficits in rural areas. According to the party’s Publicity Secretary, Olusegun Adewara, this decision was made without any public justification, despite KWASCDA’s success in other states.

The PDP expressed its disappointment, stating, “While rural communities in 35 other Nigerian states will continue benefiting from this crucial project, Kwara State remains an unfortunate exception, owing to the governor’s politically motivated actions.”

The party accused the governor of performing a “grave disservice” to rural communities, which had relied on KWASCDA for vital infrastructure, including boreholes, classrooms, transformers, and sanitation projects—efforts that had significantly improved living conditions across Kwara.

The PDP also recalled that KWASCDA, founded in 2009 under former Governor Bukola Saraki’s administration and continued by his successor Abdulfatah Ahmed, had been instrumental in enhancing rural development. It alleged that the decision to terminate the agency was politically driven, particularly impacting communities that had already submitted infrastructure proposals for 2024.

“These communities, which were expecting the construction of schools, health centers, water systems, and electricity transformers, have now been left in the lurch by a government more focused on political revenge than on the welfare of the people,” the statement read.

The party further accused state officials, along with some elements within KWASCDA, of orchestrating its termination due to its historical ties to the Saraki-led administration. They claimed the AbdulRazaq administration prioritized political interests over the people’s needs, particularly as KWASCDA had secured significant World Bank funding, limiting some officials’ ability to control project costs and contractor selection.

The PDP slammed the administration’s ineffectiveness, insensitivity, and misguided priorities, which, it claimed, were worsening the socio-economic divide in Kwara, further condemning residents to hardship.

In response, the PDP demanded the immediate reversal of the decision, calling it an “ill-conceived policy” and “anti-people.” The party also urged the World Bank, the Federal Government, and civil society organizations to intervene to ensure that rural communities in Kwara are not deprived of crucial development projects.

“Kwara belongs to everyone, and as a political party, we cannot stand by while a few individuals in government undermine the collective progress of our people. The rural population deserves better than a government that abandons them to neglect, insecurity, and deprivation,” the statement concluded.