The Kwara State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is compelled to raise serious concerns over an unfolding controversy surrounding the leadership of the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (KWASUBEB), following the appearance of a non-SUBEB staff member in an official, government-sponsored foreign trip.
The party, in a statement signed by the State Publicity Secretary, Olusegun Olusola Adewara, calls on the Chairman of KWASUBEB, Professor AbdulRaheem Adaramaja, and the Commissioner for Education, Mallam Lawal Olohungbebe, to clearly explain to Kwarans when and how the wife of the KWASUBEB Chairman, Dr. Mrs. AbdulRaheem Khadijat—a staff of the University of Ilorin—suddenly became a KWASUBEB official, and by what authority she was elevated above duly appointed Directors of the Board to be enlisted for a foreign SUBEB assignment at the expense of legitimate staff of the agency.
The PDP is aware of a photograph currently in public circulation showing the KWASUBEB contingent in Singapore for the ongoing 2025 Asia Parliamentary International Debate Competition (Junior Secondary School Category). The delegation comprises Kwara students and officials of KWASUBEB, including the Chairman of the Board, Professor AbdulRaheem Adaramaja.
Our attention has, however, been drawn to the conspicuous presence of Dr. Mrs. AbdulRaheem Khadijat, the wife of the KWASUBEB Chairman, who appeared fully kitted in the official KWASUBEB uniform and positioned prominently within the contingent.
For the avoidance of doubt, Dr. Mrs. AbdulRaheem Khadijat is not a staff of KWASUBEB. She is reportedly an employee of the University of Ilorin and holds no statutory, advisory, or administrative role within the State Universal Basic Education system. Her inclusion in an official government delegation therefore raises troubling questions of propriety, ethics, and abuse of public office.
The party has also received credible insider reports from within KWASUBEB alleging that the Chairman, Professor Adaramaja, unilaterally altered the list of officials earlier approved for the trip, reportedly removing the Board Secretary, Mrs. Adebisi Gloria Omolara, who was duly listed in the official staff directory submitted for approval.
These allegations, if proven, represent a grave act of administrative manipulation and the personalisation of public institutions.
The PDP therefore finds it necessary to ask the following fundamental questions on behalf of Kwarans:
1. What official role did the wife of the KWASUBEB Chairman play in this trip that warranted her inclusion in an official government delegation?
2. Who authorised the issuance of official KWASUBEB uniforms to a non-staff individual?
3. Why were statutory officers and Directors of KWASUBEB excluded from the trip while a private individual was accommodated and fully kitted?
4. Did the Governor of Kwara State, through the Commissioner for Education, approve the inclusion of the Chairman’s wife in the Singapore delegation?
This episode is not only unethical but deeply insulting to hardworking civil servants who were denied the opportunity to represent the state despite their qualifications and official standing. It further reinforces the growing public perception that the current APC-led government in Kwara State is gradually reducing public institutions into personal estates run at the discretion of a privileged few.
At a time when Kwarans are still awaiting clarity on allegations made by Hon. Ilyasu Ibrahim over the unresolved controversy surrounding the alleged $800 million contract reportedly awarded to the Governor’s brother, Dr. Alimi AbdulRazaq, this latest development further escalates public mistrust in the Kwara State Government.
The Kwara PDP therefore calls for an immediate and detailed public explanation from the Kwara State Government, as well as full disclosure of the approval process for the Singapore trip.
Signed:
Olusegun Olusola Adewara
State Publicity Secretary,
Kwara PDP
