Leaders of Offa, under the aegis of The Indigenous People of Offa, have raised alarm over alleged marginalization by the Kwara State government led by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq. They claimed that Offa, alongside other communities in Southern Kwara, has been deliberately neglected and excluded from major development projects.
The group expressed their grievances in an open letter addressed to President Bola Tinubu. The letter, signed by Alhaji Adisa Abdulkareem of Ogala Compound, Offa, outlined their concerns about the region’s exclusion from meaningful infrastructural projects.
“We write to bring to your kind attention, with utmost pain, the growing and persistent marginalization of our people in Southern Kwara, particularly Offa, under the leadership of the Executive Governor of Kwara State, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq,” the letter read.
Kwara State comprises 16 local governments, with the Southern region—home to Ibolo, Igbomina, and Ekiti-speaking Yorubas—renowned for its industrious and peace-loving citizens. However, the leaders claimed that the area has witnessed little to no significant development since the inception of the current administration.
In contrast, the letter highlighted major projects executed in Kwara Central, including two overhead bridges, a state-of-the-art innovation hub, a garment factory, and extensive road reconstruction. According to the leaders, despite Southern Kwara’s vital role in the historic #Otoge movement that ushered in the present administration, the region remains largely underdeveloped.
The leaders also linked the neglect to growing security concerns, stating: “Mr. President, we have been loyal. We have played our part. But this hatred, this discrimination, this deliberate abandonment has left us wounded beyond words. We are still rallying funds to secure the release of our kidnapped loved ones.”
They called on President Tinubu to intervene and address the alleged discrimination against their communities. “We beg Your Excellency, as the father of the nation and the bearer of renewed hope, to help us ask Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq one question: Why does our pain mean nothing?”
The group emphasized that their appeal is not politically motivated but driven by a need for justice, fairness, and inclusion. “We are not writing to create political rancor. We write as a people whose cries have gone unheard for too long. We want justice, fairness, and inclusion. We want to feel like citizens of Kwara, not strangers in our own land,” the letter concluded.
