Senator Saliu Mustapha: The Ace of Selfless Service at 53

By Taiwo Akanji

Senator Saliu Mustapha is a man with a helmsman’s steady hand, steering Kwara Central through the tides of challenge toward prosperity. As the Turaki of Ilorin Emirate and Aare Atunluse of Oro-Ago Kingdom, he charts a course with care, guiding his people with roads that connect communities, boreholes that bring clean water, and scholarships that open doors to education. On his 53rd birthday, September 26, 2025, his constituents celebrate a leader whose vision navigates their dreams to reality, setting a path for a brighter future.

In the Senate chambers, where Nigeria’s course is plotted, Mustapha doesn’t chase applause; he charts solutions. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agricultural Production, Services and Rural Development, his bills are like navigational markers, guiding the nation forward.

One proposes a Federal College of Agriculture in Oke-Oyi, Kwara State, where farmers can learn to turn fields into abundance. Another, the Nigerian Women and Youth Enterprise Equity Fund, offers a lifeline to women and young entrepreneurs dreaming of businesses but held back by lack of funds. He’s pushed to place the National Agricultural Land Development Authority under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, ensuring support flows directly to farmers.

And with a bill for electronic transactions, he’s steering Nigeria into the digital age, where market traders can thrive online. Each law is a beacon, lighting the way to opportunity.

Out in Kwara Central, Mustapha’s steady hand builds pathways. In Ilorin West, he constructed a one-kilometer asphaltic road from Al-Hikmah University to Onimalu in just four months, from January to April 2024. Soon after, another kilometer stretched to Oke-Foma, a route that carries students to lectures and traders to markets. These roads are more than pavement—they’re channels, guiding communities to connect and prosper.

When night falls, Kwara Central stays on course. Mustapha installed over 3,500 smart solar-powered streetlights across 52 wards, their glow turning quiet evenings into vibrant nights.

Traders keep their stalls open late, their chatter filling the air with life. Children study under steady light, no longer relying on dim kerosene lamps. These lights are stars on the horizon, guiding people toward opportunity.

Water, the lifeblood of any community, was once a distant hope for many in Kwara Central. Mustapha navigated a new path, installing solar-powered motorized boreholes across four local government areas, each with lights so families can fetch water safely at night.

These boreholes are more than wells; they’re anchors of health, reducing waterborne diseases and keeping families rooted in their villages. The relief of a child drinking clean water is a quiet victory, guided by Mustapha’s care.

Farming is Kwara Central’s heartbeat, and Mustapha has steered it with purpose. He distributed 3,500 bags of high-quality fertilizer, worth over ₦200 million, to farmers across the district.

Another 3,500 tons of fertilizer and 1,000 pumping machines followed, easing irrigation and boosting harvests. Tractors rolled out to cooperatives, turning backbreaking labor into mechanized promise. For farmers, these gifts are a compass, pointing toward a season of abundance.

Education is the wind that fills the sails of progress, and Mustapha has harnessed it generously. He paid NECO and WAEC fees for over 141,000 students, a ₦3 billion gift that lifted burdens from families.

He cleared ₦748 million in inherited exam debts, ensuring no child was left behind. In 2024, he sponsored 2,000 UTME applicants and 250 NECO and WAEC candidates, while 200 students received full university scholarships.

Hundreds more indigent students saw their university fees covered, a gesture that brought tears to parents’ eyes. A two-day training workshop armed young people with entrepreneurial skills, guiding them to start businesses and chart their own paths.

In villages where healthcare was out of reach, Mustapha brought care closer. Free eye surgeries restored sight to hundreds, letting grandparents see their families clearly again.

Medical outreaches reached remote communities, delivering medicine to those who’d given up on it. These acts are guideposts, steering lives toward healing.

In Oko-Olowo, a neglected 15MVA Stepdown Transformer project stood as a lost marker. Mustapha revived it, pouring millions into its completion.

Now, homes glow with steady electricity, businesses hum, and children study under reliable light. This transformer is a waypoint, directing communities toward progress.

To keep his people on course, Mustapha built fully furnished constituency offices in each of Kwara Central’s four local government areas. These are more than buildings—they’re ports where communities gather, share concerns, and feel heard.

They’re spaces where the journey of democracy stays open, connecting people to their government.As Kwara Central celebrates Senator Saliu Mustapha’s 53rd birthday on September 26, 2025, the air hums with gratitude.

From farmers to students, from mothers to traders, his work has guided thousands of lives. His colleagues call him a visionary; his people call him family.

This birthday is a moment to honor a man who’s turned service into a voyage of renewal, steering the way with every road, light, and scholarship. As Kwara Central raises its voice in celebration, they wish him strength, wisdom, and many more years to keep navigating this extraordinary path, one life, one dream, one community at a time.

Akanji Phd wrote this piece from Unilorin.

NNPP Chieftain, Ajadi Congratulates 44th Olubadan, Ladoja …Says His Reign Will Bring Unprecedented Developments To Ibadan, Yorubaland

Johnson Akinpelu

South West Chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, (NNPP) and a business tycoon, Ambassador Olufemi Ajadi Oguntoyinbo has congratulated Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja as he was crowned the 44th Olubadan of Ibadanland on Friday.

Ajadi who was present at the historic Mapo Hall during Ladoja’s coronation said the reign of Ladoja would bring an unprecedented developments not only to Ibadanland but the entire Yorubaland and Nigeria as whole.

Speaking with Journalists at the venue of the coronation, Ajadi said: “I congratulated His Imperial Majesty, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, the 44th Olubadan on his coronation.

“The attendance of who is who in Nigeria at the coronation led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a testament to the greatness of the new Olubadan who was a former Senator and former Governor of Oyo State.

“As a former Senator, Governor and a renowned business man, Oba Ladoja’s tenure as the Olubadan will bring an unprecedented developments to Ibadanland, Oyo State and the entire Yorubaland.

“As a former public administrator both in the private and governmental sector, Oba Ladoja will attract developmental projects to Ibadanland.

“I am also optimistic that Oba Ladoja’s reign will bring peace and tranquility to Ibadanland. I equally called on all Ibadan indigenes and residents to cooperate with the new Olubadan for our city to continue witnessing peace and harmony

“To Oba Ladoja once again, you have made history for being the first governor of the state to ascend the throne of Olubadan”.

Aare Adetola EmmanuelKing Celebrates Olubadan Ladoja at 81

The Aare Apesinola of Ibadanland, Sir Aare Adetola EmmanuelKing KOF, has joined the sons and daughters of Ibadanland, Yorubaland, and well-wishers across Nigeria in celebrating His Imperial Majesty, the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, FNSE, on the auspicious occasion of his 81st Birthday Anniversary.

In his glowing tribute, Aare EmmanuelKing described the monarch’s life as “a rare blend of divine grace, uncommon wisdom, and unflinching devotion to humanity.” He extolled the Olubadan as a leader whose humility, integrity, and fatherly compassion have defined his personal journey and endeared him to generations.

“Your 81st year is a crown of honor upon a life richly invested in service, truth, and compassion. It is the celebration of decades spent building bridges of peace, fostering unity, and safeguarding the heritage of Ibadanland. Truly, you stand as a towering symbol of Yoruba culture and an enduring inspiration to all who cherish noble values,” he said.

He further noted the divine significance of this milestone, stressing that celebrating the monarch’s 81st birthday within the period of his coronation is a historic convergence of grace and glory. “This rare alignment speaks to God’s favor upon your reign, a powerful confirmation that your life, age, and throne are woven together in destiny for the peace, unity, and prosperity of Ibadanland,” he said.

Aare Adetola Emmanuelking also emphasized that the monarch’s attainment of this octogenarian milestone is both a personal triumph and a collective blessing, reaffirming God’s abiding favor upon the throne and upon the land.

“As you mark this glorious 81st birthday, I pray that the Almighty continues to renew Your Imperial Majesty’s strength like the eagle, fill your reign with joy in abundance, and grant you the grace of long, peaceful years. May Ibadanland and the entire Yorubaland continue to flourish under your wise counsel and royal guidance,” he prayed.

He extended warm felicitations to the monarch, reaffirming his loyalty and prayers for greater glory in the years ahead.

“Happy 81st Birthday, Kabiyesi! May your days be long, peaceful, and eternally blessed. Long live the Olubadan of Ibadanland!”