The long-suffering people of Baruten Local Government Area can no longer remain silent in the face of sustained marginalization, neglect, and institutional indifference. For decades, Baruten has been treated as an afterthought in Kwara State’s development agenda, despite its size, population, and strategic relevance. This neglect is no longer tolerable.
At the center of this failure is the absence of basic infrastructure that every other part of the state enjoys. Baruten has remained without public electricity for years, crippling economic activities, stifling small businesses, and denying residents the minimum standard of modern living. More disturbing is the complete lack of a Computer-Based Test (CBT) centre in the entire local government area. Since the introduction of JAMB, students from Baruten have been compelled to travel long and dangerous distances to Ilorin or to neighbouring Oyo State to write examinations.
This repeated journey has exposed young candidates to road accidents, insecurity, exhaustion, financial strain, and, in some tragic cases, the loss of examination opportunities. This is not merely an inconvenience; it is a structural injustice that continues to rob Baruten’s youth of their right to equal educational access and fair competition with their peers across the state and the country.
What makes this neglect even more painful is the presence of elected and appointed representatives who have sworn to protect the interests of their people. Hon. Issa Jibril, Baruten Local Government Chairman, Rt. Hon. Salihu Yakub Danladi, Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Senator Sadiq Suleiman Umar, Hon. Muhammed Umar Bio, and Hon. Salihu Baba Boriya cannot claim ignorance of these realities. These leaders were elected to serve, advocate, and speak for Baruten, yet the people continue to suffer in silence while development bypasses their communities.
Equally culpable are all state commissioners from this Local Government Area and special advisers who continue to design and execute policies that exclude Baruten from critical infrastructure planning. Their collective silence and inaction reinforce the perception that Baruten does not matter in the corridors of power. Representation without results is deception, and leadership without impact is failure.
The youth across the four districts of Ilesha, Okuta, Gwanara, and Yashikira have now risen with one voice to reject this culture of neglect. They are demanding accountability, equity, and immediate intervention. They are calling on their representatives at the legislative and executive levels, both state and federal, to rise to their responsibilities and correct this long-standing injustice.
Baruten is not asking for favors or sympathy. It is demanding its rightful share of development as guaranteed by the principles of democracy and good governance. Continued neglect is not only unfair but dangerous, as it breeds frustration, resentment, and hopelessness among the younger generation.
History will not be kind to leaders who watched their people suffer and chose silence. The people of Baruten have spoken clearly: the era of marginalization must end. Action must replace promises, and development must replace neglect.
Enough is enough,
Idris Imam
