Vice President Kashim Shettima on Wednesday commissioned two major infrastructure projects in Ilorin, Kwara State: a garment factory expected to employ up to 4,000 workers, and an 11-storey headquarters for the Kwara State Revenue Service.
The commissioning coincided with the turbaning of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as Sardauna of Ilorin by the Emir, HRH Alhaji (Dr.) Ibrahim Kolapo Sulu-Gambari, making AbdulRazaq the first person to hold that title.
Speaking at the turbaning ceremony at the Emir’s Palace, Shettima praised what he described as a legacy of continuity, tracing the governor’s family ties to the emirate through his late father, Alhaji AbdulGaniyu Folorunsho AbdulRazaq (SAN), who was celebrated as Northern Nigeria’s first lawyer and the first Mutawalle of Ilorin.
Shettima, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, framed the new title as another chapter in that family’s long relationship with the palace, and reflected on how the responsibilities tied to a family name must be taken up anew by each generation.
The Vice President also spoke about his personal friendship with the governor, describing their shared work at the National Economic Council, where the two men discuss how federal and state governments can coordinate on economic policy, financing and implementation.
He argued that Nigeria’s federation depends on continuous dialogue between different levels of government, regardless of administrative boundaries.
Shettima further noted that AbdulRazaq, in his role as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, regularly engages with the federal government and development partners on issues ultimately affecting ordinary citizens, farmers, households and businesses.
He commended the governor’s record in Kwara across education, healthcare and road infrastructure, saying such investments needed to be sustained for future generations to build on.
The event drew a wide array of dignitaries, including the governors of Imo, Kebbi, Plateau, Ekiti, Ogun, Niger, Bayelsa and Kaduna; Hajiya Nana Shettima, representing First Lady Oluremi Tinubu; Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment Jumoke Oduwole; Attorney General and Minister of Justice Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); the Emir of Zazzau, HRH Nuhu Bamali; and the Seun of Ogbomosho, Oba Ghandi Afọlábí Ọlaoye.
