I HAVE A MISSION TO BRING PROSPERITY TO KWARA.
Jani Ibrahim Governorship Declaration Speech, 
River Basin Grounds, Ilorin, 26th October, 2014.

Courtesies
In the name of the Almighty God, the Most Merciful, the Most Benevolent, the Master of all destinies, the one who gives power to whom He wills, to whom honour and glory is due always; let me begin by saying a big thank you to all of you who have left the comfort of your homes and busy business schedules to travel from far and near, to attend this historic event.

You have all come here for a reason, you have not come here just for me, you came here because you believe in what this State can be, you believe that there can be a better tomorrow for you and your children. In the face of the despair and despondency you see all around, you believe there can be hope and God can raise a leadership that will bring smiles to your faces.

That is the journey we are about to embark upon today. I am emboldened seeing you Party Stalwarts, Stakeholders, distinguished Party Leaders, Party Elders, our teeming Party members and supporters; the various Professional Support Groups, my friends, colleagues, well-wishers and patriotic Kwarans from all the 16 LGA’s of the State. You came from far and near in solidarity with us on this historic occasion. We shall be part of the success story together by the grace of God.

I stand before you today, excited about the great hopes and possibilities that the future holds for our State if we make the right choices.

This public declaration of intent to be your Governor with the first step of being elected as the flag bearer of our great Party – the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), that we all built together from inception, is the prompting of God supported by men and women of vision and goodwill who meant well for our State.

Wherever you hail from, either from North, Central or South, Christian or Muslim, high or low in society, we are all united by a common goal of prosperity for all Kwarans. I stand here today to affirm and solemnly declare that granted your maximum support for the Party Ticket and victory in the February 2015 General Elections; your mandate shall solely be used to make Kwara better.

Today’s declaration is a declaration of freedom, a declaration for prosperity, and the economic emancipation of the generality of Kwarans. So help us God.

Let me pay glowing tribute to the founding fathers of Kwara State and all our leaders for their tireless contributions and sacrifices towards the realization of the high expectations, and the brilliant hope which greeted the creation of Kwara State in 1967. With a deep sense of humility, I pay tribute to all the people of Kwara State for their fortitude and for their undying belief in the Kwara project despite all that they have passed through in the last few years.

We recall the Kwara State of the old when industrialization was the vogue, when production and employment were secured in TATE & LYLE COMPANY, PHILIP MORRIS COMPANY, BACITA SUGAR COMPANY, NIGERIAN PAPER MILLS, MATCH CO; KWARA TEXTILES, KWARA FURNITURE etc. Remember the good old days of Kwara Academicals, the exemplary Journalistic excellence that Nigeria Herald is reputed for and our unbeatable national records in WAEC/WASCE.

The roles of our past heroes in building this State must be acknowledged. I doff my hat for our early leaders like: Lawyer AGF Abdulrazaq, Alhaji Saadu Alanamu, Chief J. S. Olawoyin, Alhaji Haliru Dan Toro, Chief S. B. Awoniyi, Chief Tunji Oyinloye, Chief Aderibigbe, Chief David Bamgboye, Alhaji Amuda Gobiri, Alhaji Abdulrahaman Okene, Alhaji Abdulaziz Atta, Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki and Alh. Akanbi Oniyangi who built the State. Most of them are late, but they deserve that their names be written in gold, along with our exemplary civil service that contributed to building Northern Nigeria.

When I survey Kwara State, I see a State with abundant potentials that have not been fully utilized. People say the State is poor, but i see untapped potentials. In LUBCON we have been able to accomplish extra-ordinary things with ordinary people; our products have accomplished international certification without a single expatriate staff. I believe that the same feat can be accomplished in Kwara State by Kwarans.

The task of taking the State from “good” to “great” is achievable. I look at the hoards of unemployed youth, I can see potentials lying waste; I look at poor rural dwellers surrounded by uncultivated land as far as the eyes can see, and I see untapped potentials for turning their lives and economy of the State around. I have worked hard to build a successful business and I intend to deploy the wealth of experience that I have garnered in business to help shape the lives and fortunes of our youth, women and children. I have been trying my modest efforts through grants, scholarships, youth empowerment initiatives and direct support to young entrepreneurs as well as employment opportunities but that is not enough. I know I can do more because you can never be comfortable in the midst of poverty as it is today in Kwara.

I am motivated; I am driven by a passion to see this State and every individual person in it attain the fullness of their potentials.

As they say, history has no place for REGRETS. What belongs to the past cannot be undone. Without the least intention of denigrating the past, what this declaration is about is that it symbolizes an expression of the burning desire of a man with a humble beginning, a man who lost his father at the tender age of five, a man whom it has pleased the Almighty God to raise from grass to grace and who is today immensely imbued with the genuine love of his fatherland; one who is determined to apply all his wealth of experience, his knowledge, his energy and faculties to the socio-economic transformation of Kwara State and the emancipation of the people of Kwara State from the shackles of poverty, ignorance, disease and oppression, to freedom and prosperity.

There is an injunction propounded by Dionysius which runs thus: “Let your speech be better than silence or be silent”. In other words, if we pretend that “It is Good Here” in the face of all – pervading poverty ravaging Kwara State and we remain silent, then our silence will only be taken for consent or satisfaction. Should we therefore fold our arms and look the other way when we can offer our services to help ameliorate the situation?

This is why I have decided to step out to offer myself, trusting God and believing in your support, to serve the good people of Kwara State in providing the desired exemplary leadership and strategic direction for charting a new course of accelerated socio-economic development of our State.

As I have stated earlier, my decision to leave the comfort zone of my flourishing business to serve at this time is driven by my huge sense of indebtedness to Kwara State. From my humble beginning, I have received tremendous support and assistance from Kwara. Kwara gave birth to me. Kwara nurtured me. Kwara educated me. As a seasoned technocrat, administrator, entrepreneur, I have had my credentials well tested and validated over a period of 35 years. Having settled in Ilorin, built my business in Ilorin and lived in this State for so long, I am sufficiently equipped and knowledgeable to provide the right quality of leadership that is required to change the fortunes of our State for the better.

If given the opportunity to serve, I promise to lead a Government that will serve as an agent of change, agent of stability and sustainable economic prosperity, while upholding the universal principles of good governance, transparency, accountability, efficiency, rule of law, social equity with zero tolerance for corruption. I can only do this with your mandate because sovereignty lies with the people. My promise and your agreement to do your part is the covenant I have with you to make my word my bond. It is called the Social Contract.

Already, I have worked out a blueprint of socio-economic agenda for Kwara State which presents a picture of where we are coming from, where we want to be and how we want to get there. The blueprint has identified the core strategic sectors, all built into our Kwara Prosperity Agenda Model. The JANI Manifesto is a four point agenda of:
JOB CREATION: for our teeming youthful population that will ensure gainful employment anchored on Entrepreneurship.
AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION: that will cross the length and breadth of the State by making agriculture exciting and rewarding to all.
NATURAL RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT: that will ensure that the potentials of our State are exploited to the benefit of all.
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT: that cut across all facets of the socio-economic capacities of our State.

CONCLUSION
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, this declaration is not about me. It must be about us, it must be about what we can do together. This campaign provides us with the occasion, the vehicle of our hopes, and our dreams. This campaign will take your time, your energy, your advice to push us forward when we are doing right, and to let us know when we are not. This campaign has to be about reclaiming the meaning of citizenship, restoring our sense of common purpose, and realizing that few obstacles cannot withstand the power of millions of voices calling for change. This is our purpose here today, and that is why I am in this race.

I am not just in the race to hold an office, but together with you to transform the State. If you will join me in this quest, if you feel destiny calling, and see as I see, a future of endless possibilities stretching before us; if you sense, as I sense, that the time is now to shake off our slumber, and cast off our fear, and make good on the debt we owe the past and future generations, then I am ready to take up the cause, and march with you, and work with you. Today, we are beginning a journey together to usher in a new birth of freedom in this State. I have decided to vie for the position of Governor of Kwara State in order to ensure that Kwara State is restored to its destined course of steady progress and prosperity.

After 47 years of blighted opportunities, our people are entitled to a government that feels, plans and acts for the people. I am irrevocably committed to the emergence of such a government.

I stand on the threshold of history, my people, our people of Kwara State. We have the opportunity now to elect a selfless leadership and indeed I shall offer selfless service by the grace of God. Do your part first, stand up to be counted, impress it upon your delegates to vote JANI IBRAHIM and mobilize thereafter for our success in the general election, you will be glad you did.

Thank you all.

May God bless Kwara State.

Kwara yi tigbogbowani, komagbodobaje, tori kosibomirantialelo, ajo ole dabiile, ejekasowopokafimosokangbekemigbe.

PDP, (Power), PDP (Power), PDP (Power to the People)

Engr. Jani Ibrahim, OON, mni
Sunday 26th October, 2014