Buoyed by the endorsement cheque recently handed over to him by the stakeholders in the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kwara State governor, Alh AbdulFatah Ahmed, last week formally declared his intention to seek re-election in next year’s general elections. Governor Ahmed had, before the APC stakeholders endorsed him as the sole candidate of the party in next governorship election, got the same approval from his mentor and political leader of the state, Dr Bukola Saraki.

Ahmed made the declaration at an event greeted by unprecedented mammoth crowd of party supporters, friends and well-wishers. The event, which took place at Ilorin metropolitan square, was witnessed by three presidential aspirants of the party, Gen Mohammed Buhari, former vice president, Atiku Abubakar and Kano State governor, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwanso.

Other personalities at the event included Edo State governor, Adams Oshiomole; Imo State governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha; Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi; Sokoto State governor, Alhaji Aliu Wamakko and former Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi while the governors of Ogun and Nasarawa states were represented at the event. The list also included former Kwara State governor, Senator Bukola Saraki and former acting national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Alhaji Kawu Baraje.

In his declaration speech, Ahmed restated his plan to continue putting smiles on the faces of the people through the implementation of people-centered programmes and policies.

He said aside from ensuring the completion of the new projects, which his administration initiated after completing those he inherited from the administration of Dr Bukola Saraki, his government will focus attention on ways to boost local economy through the establishment of an Independent Power Projects (IPP) that will power industrial clusters across the state, stimulate jobs and improve power supply to communities.

He added, "By the grace of God, we will upscale our education reforms with the complete overhaul and modernization of 120 secondary schools across the state as we start the process of benchmarking our schools against global best practices.

"In terms of physical infrastructure, we will connect more of our communities with urban and rural roads, including roads designated as federal, thus opening up our state for greater development.

"By the first quarter of next year, we will take another bold step towards providing our youths with functional skills when the City and Guilds-affiliated International Vocational Center, Ajasse Ipo, admits its first set of students. This school will connect with our Quickwin initiative, under which a new crop of youth entrepreneurs are currently receiving vocational and entrepreneurship trainings to fill middle level manpower gaps.

"In sports, we intend to completely overhaul and modernise the indoor sports hall of the Ilorin township stadium in line with high standards of maintenance and in order to promote sports development, especially among our youths.

"In 2015, we intend to connect pipe borne water to all homes in Ilorin metropolis through primary reticulation of the on-going Ilorin reticulation project. Outside the capital, new water projects will bring pipeborne water to a greater number of our people.

"Distinguished guests, let there be no doubt about it. My belief in a greater Kwara State is matched only by my determination with your support and by the grace of the Almighty", he declared.

But most importantly, the APC governor, adjudged by all to be a performer, before last week's declaration, has, indeed, laid a solid foundation for the victory of his party in the coming general elections.

It is not an exaggeration to say that Governor Ahmed's administration has achieved a lot in the last three and half years, but two major programmes recently implemented by the administration may turn out to be all the governor needed to return to Ahmadu Bello way government house, Ilorin, on May 29, 2015.

The all-important projects were the grading and upgrading of traditional institutions in the state and the planned creation of development areas from the existing 16 local government areas in the state.

Ahmed's administration recently graded and upgraded 70 traditional stools in the state in response to the yearnings of various communities, especially in Kwara South and North Senatorial districts. By so doing, Governor Ahmed has earned the support of the two senatorial districts and most likely, he would receive bulk votes from the two zones.

The proposed creation of development areas would be a handsome compensation for the people of Kwara Central, who, for long, have been yearning for the splitting of their existing five local government areas. The umbrella body of all the socio-cultural groups in Ilorin emirate - Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressives Union (IEDPU) is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to ensure that Ilorin emirate gets enough local councils that could give it a status of a state.

And like the advantage accruing to the Ahmed's administration through the grading of traditional rulers in Kwara North and Kwara South, the governor will surely get a block vote from Kwara Central if he made good his promise to create more local government councils.

The governor had recently put necessary machineries in motion to create local council development areas, LCDAs, from the existing 16 local government councils in the state. To achieve this, the government has inaugurated a 14-member committee headed by the former acting national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and now a chieftain of APC, Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje, to work out the modalities for the creation of the LCDAs.

The terms of reference of the committee, which has eight weeks from the time of the inauguration on Thursday October 2 within which to submit its report, include the identification of all basic parameters contingent to the creation of local government development areas using variables peculiar to the environment of the state while borrowing relevant experiences from other states with similar structures. The consideration of various factors is related to viability in suggesting an area for LCDA status and identification of suitable communities as headquarters taking due cognizance precedence in administrative responsibility in arriving at the choice.

Others are the consideration of other relevant factors that would ensure uniformity, equity, fairness, and greater sense of belonging.