If politics were to be built up into flesh and bone, one that is fashioned into an individual who could speak, legislate, joke around, and empathise— it would be difficult not to imagine Rt. Hon. (Dr.) James Abiodun Faleke as the first thought of such personification. Different from the usual politics of personal enrichment, Faleke’s narrative reads instead as: managerial expertise brought to bear on the messy business of public life, a temperament that privileges service over spectacle, and a tangible imprint on both his immediate constituency and the broader national tableau.

Faleke’s career did not begin in the give-and-take of partisan politicking; it was forged in the precise world of logistics, procurement and management. His professional apprenticeship—from material management to senior commercial roles—translated into a technocratic poise that later marked his public service.

Faleke is a man who has served his people in multiple capacities: from the foundational level of local government in Lagos (where he was pioneer Executive Secretary and later chairman of Ojodu LCDA), to a sustained presence in the House of Representatives representing Ikeja Federal Constituency since 2011. Those biographical certainties matter because they frame Faleke’s politics as cumulative, in the sense of being a career of small, compounding interventions rather than headline-hungry theatrics.

As regards constituency projects in relation to the margins of governance, Faleke’s record, however, suggests his performances are more than just transactional favours to the people he swore to serve; for him they are instruments of empowerment and social calibration. The “Mega Empowerment” Constituency Outreaches of 2025 saw 240 young men and women from across Ikeja, Ojodu, and Onigbongbo local council areas each receive a ₦100,000 cash grant to support their small businesses and entrepreneurial ventures.

In addition to the cash support, over 400 constituents benefited from a wide range of empowerment tools including tricycles, dispatch motorcycles, freezers, generators, popcorn machines, clippers, grinding machines, and juice extractors. Also, 170 participants were selected to undergo business training sessions designed to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary to sustain their ventures.

Upon completion, each trainee will also receive cash grants to launch or expand their businesses. This is undoubtedly a relentless poverty-alleviation and empowerment scheme reaching the grassroots. For Faleke, this isn’t just empowerment—it’s about economic freedom and dignity.

Beyond ephemeral gestures, Faleke has sponsored and championed legislative measures that carry direct benefits to citizens’ welfare. His sponsorship of amendments to the NYSC Act (advocating life-insurance protection for corps members) and motions to tackle security vulnerabilities via the closure of illegal border routes are examples of how constituency sensibilities (safety for families, dignity for young Nigerians) translate into national legislation. These are not merely symbolic acts; they are legislative inflections aimed at securing lives and livelihoods.

Faleke’s influence is not confined to photo-ops, which many of his colleagues are known for.

Within the legislative architecture he has occupied consequential roles, including chairmanships and committee memberships on finance, anti-corruption and public procurement, where technical competence matters. That Faleke has been entrusted with responsibilities like scrutinising budgets, policing procurement, and framing accountability frameworks therefore reflects both peer recognition and a rare confluence of subject-matter familiarity with public policy.

When a representative who understands supply chains and procurement leads oversight of public spending, the risk of waste diminishes and the prospect of more efficient, people-centred expenditure rises. Constituents in Ikeja who see roads repaired, markets supported and youths trained can therefore trace some of those gains to the steadier, often unseen, governance work Faleke performs in committee rooms. Truly, he is replicating the Renewed Hope agenda of President Tinubu well at the constituency level.

What makes Faleke especially compelling, and what has earned him plaudits even from unexpected quarters, is a demonstrated willingness to place principle above opportunism. Accounts of his political journey reveal moments where standing for institutional integrity cost political capital. The 2015 Kogi governorship episode—in which Faleke was Abubakar Audu’s running mate on a ticket that won the majority of votes before Audu’s untimely death and the subsequent legal wrangling—remains illustrative of a politician who is prepared to contest questionable internal party reassignments through judicial means rather than private compromise. That episode was more than a personal dispute; it was a public lesson about the sanctity of the popular mandate.

It is no surprise that the press and civic organisations alike have, in recent years, painted Faleke as a model of “selfless political doctrine”—not because he is immune to ambition, but because his ambition is often tethered to service.

Observers note a politician who cultivates friendships across aisles, who refuses to let parochialism overpower national interest, and who seeks to translate proximity to executive power into tangible benefits for ordinary citizens.

For the record, awards, honours and the soft currency of recognition have also accompanied Faleke’s career. They are not ends in themselves, but they matter in two ways: first, because they reward long-term investment in public service; second, because they amplify the moral narrative that a politician can be both effective and ethically consistent. Communities in Kogi (his state of origin) and Lagos (his political bedrock) have acknowledged his interventions—from infrastructural pledges to educational initiatives—which have cumulatively projected an image of representation that is distributed rather than hoarded for selfish exploits.

However, the exemplary life of Rt. Hon. Faleke has proven that the impact of a single conscientious legislator does not end at local boundaries; it radiates outward.

To be candid, Faleke is not the sort of politician to promise miraculous solutions. He does not traffic in utopian hyperbole; his is a methodical, iterative politics. Such pragmatic disposition is a virtue in a country that needs steady institutional repair rather than rhetorical bravado.

Evaluating his performance dispassionately yields a simple conclusion: Faleke has been effective within the scope of his mandate. He has delivered constituency projects that ease everyday burdens, sponsored laws that protect citizens, and occupied oversight roles that matter for national fiscal health. That combination of local relevance enjoined with national responsibility is the metric by which representative success ought to be judged.

After all, it is believed that politics is not only about statutes and budgets; it is equally an economy of hope. The emotional currency that Faleke pays converts into a form of legitimacy that technical accomplishments alone cannot buy. How does one downplay the effort of a man who is readily available to his constituents in town halls; a man who pushes so hard for the benefits of those even outside his constituency; a man who shows up in markets to connect with his constituency at the grassroots, listening to their needs, consistently drafting and executing plans to make his people’s lives better?

The loyalty from the tongues that shout Faleke’s name in his constituency isn’t one that was bought, but earned on merit, because constituents who feel seen and supported are likelier to trust institutions; when trust rises, social cooperation follows. In this sense, Faleke’s human face of politics is not mere optics; it is an authentic mechanism rebuilt from decades of misgovernance.

Rt. Hon. James Abiodun Faleke should not be mythologised. He is neither infallible nor omnipotent. But he does offer a valuable template: the professionalised politician who grounds legislative activism in managerial competence, who balances constituent intimacy with national duty, and who places principle above ephemeral convenience. In a nation starved for dependable public servants, his presence—the human face of politics—is a restorative sight.

If Nigerian politics is to evolve beyond bigotry, partisanship, and cyclical disappointment, it will require more practitioners like Faleke: men and women for whom patriotism is not a headline but a daily practice, for whom constituency projects are not charity but capacity-building, and for whom committees are laboratories of accountability rather than chambers of complacency. That is the promise, and the provocation, Abiodun Faleke holds up to a nation in search of steadier custodians of the public trust.

Hwande is writing from Ilorin, Kwara State.

There is heightened tension in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State, resulting from the feeling of foreboding failure, frustrations and despair. 

While, many other States of the federation that are at the centre of governance are busy counting their gains and beating their chest believing that they will have a landslide victory in the forthcoming 2027 general elections, and indeed any other election, party men and women of the APC family in Kwara State are hiding their faces in shame and despondency because the state governor, Gov AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has performed abysmally poor, and seems unredeemable, because he has earned for himself the unenviable reputation of a serial failure in Kwara state, even after spending seven solid years with nothing to show for it.

Lean years of total governance failure, characterized by ineptitude and inability of his government to perform its basic functions, leading to a collapse of the rule of law, economy, and social services.

Little wonder then at the level of insecurity and the widespread criminal activities, and general avoidable violence witnessed in the state.

For those seven years, the governor has failed to provide essential services such as healthcare, education, sanitation, and infrastructure, resulting in dire living conditions for citizen, choosing rather to mismanage the economy, leading to localized hyperinflation, unemployment, poverty, and a significant decline in the standard of living, occasioned basically by widespread corruption, cronyism, and nepotism, eroding public trust in government institutions.

Unfortunately, inspite all entreaties from well-meanining individuals and party men, Governor AbdulRazaq has consistently remained adamant, unfazed, and unwilling to hold public officials accountable for their actions, as he himself is culpable, leading to impunity and further governance decay.

A system of state sponsored repression pervades, limiting citizen’s right, occasioning outrage, and loss of public trust and confidence in his government.

Obviously, Governor AbdulRahman, has woefully failed to deliver on campaign promises, but has instead replaced them with excuses, poor performance in office, and perceived corruption thereby eroding the trust of the electorates.

His lack of clear or convincing policy direction has led to voter disillusionment, while the lack of people based leadership is generating internal conflicts, and disconnect between party leaders and the electorate, undermining the party’s appeal, leading to inadequate messaging, ineffective use of media, and poor voter engagement affecting grassroots mobilization and support.

It is becoming clearer by the day, that a strong, well-organized, and effective opposition can capitalize on the incumbent governor’s weaknesses and sway voters.

Unfortunately, Governor AbdulRazaq is unlike most of the other Governors, much money has been coming into the cofers of the state government, both from the federation account and the state internally generated revenue.

For instance, in the past two years, Kwara State disbursement from the federation account has been consistently above 110 Billion Naira, which has grown from N42.87 billion in 2022 coupled with a huge about 5.7 Billion monthly IGR, giving no room for his excuses and terrible failures.

Governor AbdulRahman has been in office since 2019 and has failed to implement various initiatives aimed at improving the state’s economy, infrastructure, and social services.

His failure to invest in revenue-generating infrastructure, promote efficient tourism and agriculture, and provide job opportunities for the youths has greatly undermined the security of the state, dwarfing its growth and sustainable development, making Kwara State perpetually a state historically heavily reliant on federal allocations.

An ineptitude Incarnate and corruption Connoisseur, Governor AbdulRazaq’s visionless leadership of over seven has done kwara state much damage and fostered evil, erasing all past gains and driving it back to the coldroom of regression.

A resolute accountability avoider, and master of evasion, Governor AbdulRahman’s inability to inspire development has become a significant threat to the survival of the APC in Kwara state, especially when the state’s current situation is compared with the past or with neighboring states who are not collecting such huge amount from the federation disbursement.

His inability to inspire development in the last seven years has indeed become a clear threat to the survival of the APC.

It is certain that the state may reject the APC if AbdulRahman is seen to be backing any candidate.

Here lies the urgent and crucial imperative and a patriotic call for an independent and neutral progressive minded person to step forward to lead, and as well rescue the APC and align it with the performing strides of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the centre.

A stitch in time, saves nine!

Musbau wrote this piece from Tanke, Ilorin.

Leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, has commended Air Peace for its historic inaugural direct flight from Abuja to London Heathrow, describing the milestone as a bold testament to Nigerian excellence in global aviation.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe,OON in a statement issued following the launch, praised Air Peace for its resilience and vision. The MD noted that the airline’s expansion into the prestigious Heathrow route reflects the strength of indigenous enterprise and the growing confidence in Nigeria’s aviation sector.

“We warmly congratulate Air Peace on the launch of its direct flights between Abuja and London Heathrow. This remarkable achievement marks another significant milestone in Air Peace’s journey and reflects its unwavering commitment to advancing the Nigerian aviation industry.

“Fidelity Bank is honoured to have been a trusted partner to Air Peace since it began operations 11 years ago. Our relationship has been built on shared values, strategic collaboration and a deep commitment to national progress. Today’s success is not only a triumph for Air Peace, it is a proud moment for Nigeria.

“We celebrate the Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Dr Allen Onyema, his dedicated team and all Nigerians who share in this achievement”, said Onyeali-Ikpe.

The bank’s chief executive further highlighted Fidelity Bank’s longstanding role as a financial partner to key players in the aviation industry, reaffirming its position as a market leader in aviation financing and support services.

“Our partnership with Air Peace reflects our belief in the potential of Nigerian businesses to compete and thrive on the global stage. We have consistently backed the airline’s growth ambitions and will continue to do so as it opens new routes,” the MD added.

The MD also extended congratulations to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, for his proactive support of local operators. “The Honourable Minister’s efforts to create an enabling environment for indigenous airlines are yielding tangible results. This Heathrow route launch is a clear example of what is possible when government and private sector work together,” the MD stated.

Air Peace’s new Abuja–London Heathrow route marks its second direct flight service to the United Kingdom, following the successful launch of the Lagos–London route earlier in the year. The development is expected to boost connectivity, reduce travel costs and enhance Nigeria’s presence in international aviation.

Ranked among the best banks in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged Commercial Deposit Money Bank serving over 9.1 million customers through digital banking channels, its 255 business offices in Nigeria and United Kingdom subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited.

The Bank is the recipient of multiple local and international Awards, including the 2024 Excellence in Digital Transformation & MSME Banking Award by BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards; the 2024 Most Innovative Mobile Banking Application award for its Fidelity Mobile App by Global Business Outlook, and the 2024 Most Innovative Investment Banking Service Provider award by Global Brands Magazine. Additionally, the Bank was recognized as the Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence and as the Export Financing Bank of the Year by the BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.