2027 Kwara Guber: Impactful Actions, Good Qualities Highlighted As Yahaya Oloriegbe Launches Guber Bid, Unveils ‘Policy Platform’ In Ilorin

Ahead of the 2027 Kwara State gubernatorial election, thought leaders, members of APC and party bigwigs and those who have benefited from Dr Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe’s benevolence took turns to present his ‘value proposition’ as he officially launched his gubernatorial bid at the Diamond Arena, Hall, Ilorin on Thursday.

Dr Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe, who is a Kwara State APC gubernatorial aspirant, was the Majority Leader of Kwara State House of Assembly during the Admiral Mohammed Lawal administration, while he also represented Kwara Central in the Senate between 2019 and 2023. 

The guber hopeful, who is a medical practitioner, was the Chairman, Senate Committee on Health, and he has under his belt, a special achievement – he had four bills that got presidential assent in four years.

Giving his speech during the declaration ceremony on Thursday, Dr Ibrahim Yahaya Oloriegbe, who noted that Kwara State is at an inflection point, said decisions that will be taken on who should be the next governor of the state will not only shape the future of the State of Harmony, having a governor who will need to embark on experimentation exercise because of lack of experience will also be a great disservice to the state.

‘We have come through a phase of correction and stabilization. The next phase must be a phase of fuller delivery. A phase of stronger systems. A phase of measurable progress. A phase where government moves from effort to execution, from foundation to full delivery. That next phase cannot be governed by improvisation.  Our people cannot afford delayed leadership.

This is not the time for apprenticeship. This is not the time for trial and error. This is not the time for noise dressed as energy. This is the time for maturity. This is the time for preparedness. This is the time for tested hands.

Kwara needs a leader who is ready from day one’ he said.

Joined by his wife, Alhaja Memunat Oloriegbe, the senior boy of his set in Primary school and that of the high school, the guber aspirant said it is important that someone who is seeking to lead his people should have history and traceable roots, while noting that despite being born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he was raised in a home where character mattered more than comfort.

‘My dear people of Kwara, I stand before you today not merely as a politician seeking office, but as a man whose life has been shaped by faith, discipline, loss, service, and responsibility’ he submitted while adding that ‘although my father was a man of means, he did not raise us to feel entitled. He raised us to fear Allah, to respect people, to live with discipline, and to understand that a good name is better than gold. He taught us that life is not about what you have; it is about what you do with what Allah has given you’.

He also gave his take on the kind of leadership that the state requires while asserting that he is the best man for the job.

‘And so the question before Kwara in 2027 is not whether we want progress. We all do. The real question is: what kind of leadership does the next phase of progress require?

Does it require speeches alone, or does it require systems?

Does it require motion, or does it require direction?

Does it require popularity, or does it require preparation?

Does it require excitement alone, or does it require tested judgment?

For me, the answer is clear.

The next phase of Kwara requires a prepared hand.

That is why I am offering myself.

Not to divide our party.

Not to pull down what has been built.

Not to begin a quarrel with the past.

I am offering myself to help take Kwara forward, with greater structure, greater discipline, greater clarity, and greater results.

Mine is not a message of disruption. Mine is a message of continuity with improvement.

Mine is not a promise of drama. Mine is a promise of disciplined progress’ he said.

.The former senator also promised a safer Kwara where ‘our people can travel, trade, farm, study, and sleep with greater peace of mind’ while adding that ‘security is not a slogan’ but rather the first duty of government.

He also added that under him, agriculture will be treated as business, enterprise will be supported, small businesses will grow, and efforts will be rewarded,

Dr Oloriegbe also promised a state where healthcare is closer to the people, where primary care is stronger, where families are not abandoned in times of illness, and where human life is treated with seriousness and a state where women are not remembered only during campaigns, where young people are not praised only in speeches, and where opportunity is not reserved for the connected few.

He also promised to be fair to all Kwarans and see every ward, local government and senatorial district as his own.

‘To every part of Kwara State, I make this solemn pledge . I will lead with fairness. I will lead with balance.  I will lead with the understanding that Kwara North matters, Kwara Central matters, and Kwara South matters. Every local government matters, every Ward matters, every community matters. No part of Kwara is too far to matter, no community is too small to count’ he said.

Dr Oloriegbe urged party members and leaders to remain united and disciplined while emphasizing the need to present to Kwarans a guber candidate who will not just be a familiar face but a fit leader, not just a man with ambition but a man with capacity and not just a contender but a candidate who is ready for the job.

In his goodwill message, Professor Baba Awoye Issa, who is the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the  Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Budo-Egba, praised the role of Dr Yahaya Oloriegbe in the establishment of the health institution and the consequent transformation of the town and Asa local government as a whole.

He noted that when the hospital came into being, it had 20 staff but the health institution now has 338 employees who are from the 36 states in the country and the 16 local governments in the state.

Hon Gbenga Fadipe, who recalled how the guber aspirant came to the aid of former councilors while serving as Majority Leader of the state House of Assembly, also prayed that the party leaders will choose wisely because Dr Oloriegbe is not only a qualified candidate but his candidacy will also be easy to market to the people.

Dr Dannjuma from Kaiama, who also spoke in the same vein, thanking Dr Oloriegbe for facilitating appointment for his son and for providing needed support when he was hospitalized after getting involved in road crash.  

Father of a boy with Down syndrome, Usman Yahaya  also ignited intense emotions when he stepped out with his son and thanked the guber aspirant for facilitating appointment for him despite his condition.

One of the highlights of the event was the unveiling of the guber aspirant’s ‘policy platform’ by Dr Abdulmumeen Buoye, who described him as an articulate and well-prepared candidate who really means business.

What was hard to ignore in the 24-page book containing the ‘policy platform’ is the former senator’s 5-Point Energy Restoration Plan

‘The Kwara Electricity Law (Day 1-90): Draft and pass the Kwara State Electricity Bill.

Establish the Kwara State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC). End federal bottleneck. Kwara controls its own power destiny.

Fossil: Gas Turbine for Industry: Complete the long-delayed 30MW gas turbine (first proposed 2014)- expand to 100MW within 4 years. Dedicated power for Industrial Energy Zones in Ilorin, Shonga, and Patigi.

Solar light for Every Village: Deploy 500 solar mini-grids across all 193 wards within 4 years.

Community grids (100KW-1MW): 50 large towns.

Village grids (20KW-100KW): 150 medium settlements

Hamlet grids (5KW-20KW): 300 farming clusters.

Every PHC, school and borehole goes solar. The Lafiagi model (100KW hybrid solar mini-grids)- replicated in every LGA within 18 months.

Biogas: Waste-to-Wealth Innovation Kwara is already piloting biogas machines at Ipata and Mandate markets (animal waste –methane–power). I will expand to: 

Shonga poultry farms (100KW)

Lafiagi rice mills(200KW from rice husk)

Kaiama cattle market (30KW)

Waste problem becomes energy solution. Reduces deforestation. Creates jobs.

Small Hydro: Rivers as Power Asa River (Ilorin): 2MW. Awun River (Patigi): 5MW. Feasibility studies year one; first plant operational year three 

Key Sectors Powered 

Agriculture: Solar irrigation for 10,000 hectares; cold storage hubs; rice milling clusters.

Healthcare: 193 solar powered PHCs- 24/7 power for vaccines, deliveries, emergencies 

Education: Solar panels on all secondary schools; computer labs; evening study hours 

Mining: Dedicated power for lithium, gold and marble processing hubs.

SMEs: Industrial zones with guaranteed power; rooftop solar incentives.

My 100-Day Power Signal

Establishment of Energy Transition Committee 

Transmission of Electricity Bill to Kwara State House of Assembly 

Establishment of Kwara Energy Fund

Establishment of 5 new solar mini-grids contracted’ he said.

The event was attended by Professor Saudat Abdulbaqi, Professor Mustapha, Alhaji Ahmed Onikoko, Professor Baba Awoye Issa, Alhaji Baba Podo, Chairman, Ilorin West APC, Alhaji Sulaiman Tejidini, Chairman, Ilorin East APC, Comrade Habeeb Lawal, Alhaja Tawa Agaka, Professor Ibraheem Abdulraheem, Alhaja Mariam Yusuf, Alhaji Umar Oloriegbe, Alhaji Abdulrasheed Oloriegbe, Dr Habeebah Adam, Mr Tunde Bakare and other prominent Kwarans-Team@orientactualmags.com  Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08035023079,  08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com.  Thank you