Constituency Projects As Birthday Gift : The example of Senate President Dr. Bukola Saraki. National Pilot December 19,2016. Pg 18. The Herald December 19,2016. Pg. 18. By Hon. Kayode Omotose

Isiaka: “I’m likely to relocate to Otte Etile and look after my aged parents, supervise my farm and come to work in Ilorin on daily basis and go back. Please thank the Turaki of Ilorin and President of the Senate Dr Bukola Saraki. We are very happy to that our road from Ballah to Otte Etile and Express Road is under construction “.

Omotose: ” Ehen Alhamdulilai. We shall deliver your message to him as well as that of the Daudu Ballah.

Isiaka: ”Honestly, it is only at this moment that I can begin to understand and appreciate your write to justify the issue of constituency projects for legislators”

This was the telephone conversation between me and Alhaji Isiaka , my very close friend of over thirty years

Omotose: “Courtesy of the SP, several road, water and electricity have kicked off in Kwara state The bang started with the ground breaking of the 1.5km Alfa Yahaya -Idigba-Gaa Aremu road. It is a concrete drainage for erosion control , earth work with full asphalt . Head of the community Ologbin of Adewole, Alhaji Oseni Hanafi defied the rains to attend.

Next was the Ballah – Otte Etile- express road in Asa Local Government. The Daudu Ballah, Alhaji Olarongbe Abdulkadir was full of gratitude to the SP; then Igbaja street, off Erin Ile road , Gaa Akanbi in Akanbi ward 1V in Ilorin South Local Government; Adewumi Abake road , off Agbabiaka road, Gaa Akanbi, also in Ilorin South ; then the Ubandawaki road that begins at Pakata roundabout and terminates at Government Girls Day Secondary school, near Jengbe market, Ilorin.

Then Balode road along Adio lodge, Oloje ; erosion control at Oke Oyi and in Okelele, both in Ilorin East.

In paying due diligence to the status of Government Secondary School,Ilorin, as a premier school in the North and the 13th oldest secondary school in Nigeria the 1. 2km road network is being constructed.

Beyond roads, President of the Senate also attracted a N300m contract for expansion and rehabilitation of Agba dam waterworks which was built by the colonial government in the early 1950s and upgraded by the Premier of the defunct Northern region the Sarduna of Sokoto Alhaji Sir Ahmadu Bello in 1959. The low lift and high lift pumps will be replaced in a brand new building

To further boost portable water N400m is set aside in this year’s budget to provide solar powered boreholes with standby generator while N250m is to repair all boreholes that have broken down.

These width of opportunities is a fallout of having the headship of the legislature in the person of Dr Bukola Saraki.

In truth constituency projects are meant to mitigate immediate problems that confront the electorates within a sphere. And it takes a genuine representative of the people who knows his onions to attend to it.

Drafters of the federal budget cannot have no absolute knowledge of the entire topography of everywhere. It takes the elected official who knows and is well placed to get the right project for his people. The bottom line is to make hay while the sun shine. As we often say in the parliament, there are no federal or state persons per se, everybody belongs to a local place

As the President of the Senate celebrates his 54th birthday what is important is for our people to support him in the task of piloting the affairs of the 1st arm of government.

Happy birthday our leader.”

Observing...

A great man