Saliu Mustapha: The Echo Ilorin Cannot Ignore By Haroon Aremu Abiodun
There are mornings in Ilorin when silence feels heavier than sound. The call from the mosques echoes through the still air, the streets breathe quietly, and the city wears its memories like scars. Old voices recall leaders who once came with grand promises of tomorrow, only for those promises to collapse into dust. The people, over time, have learned to wait with folded arms—half-expecting betrayal, half-resigned to it. In such silence, names either fade away or return as stubborn echoes. For Ilorin, one such echo is Saliu Mustapha.
Ironically, his story does not begin with privilege or inherited power. Born on September 25, 1972, he followed ordinary paths: Bartholomew Primary School in Zaria, Command Secondary School in Kaduna, then Kaduna Polytechnic, where he studied Mineral Resources Engineering. His foundation was not gilded, but shaped by discipline and a technical education that sharpened his instinct for problem-solving — a skill he would later carry into politics.
Politics did not come to him as inheritance. He carved his own space, first as the National Publicity Secretary of the Progressive Action Congress, and later as the National Deputy Chairman of the Congress for Progressive Change. These were not glamorous titles but tough, foundational roles in party-building, long before the APC became the political behemoth it is today. His fingerprints are etched into the DNA of Nigeria’s political evolution, even before his name became widely recognized on the Senate floor.
In 2021, Ilorin’s political and traditional calculus shifted when Mustapha was turbaned as Turaki of Ilorin. What many saw as mere ceremony was, in fact, a rupture of entrenched political alignments. For the first time, a politician already known for grassroots philanthropy was formally woven into the traditional fabric of Ilorin. That title would become part of his political identity, following him into every campaign, every negotiation, every conversation.
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Today, he serves as the Senator representing Kwara Central and chairs the Senate Committee on Agriculture Production, Services, and Rural Development. This portfolio is not symbolic; it is central to Nigeria’s survival. In a country where food crises threaten households and livelihoods, the committee he leads touches what matters most — food on tables and jobs in villages.
But Abuja titles mean little without ground truth. On the streets of Ilorin and across Kwara Central, his presence is felt through the quiet but steady work of the Saliu Mustapha Foundation. From funding scholarships and refurbishing classrooms to constructing the Al-Hikmah–Onimalu road, his interventions blend education, infrastructure, and empowerment. His scholarship program for Arabic and Islamic Studies students under the NBAIS framework reflects cultural sensitivity often missing in mainstream politics.
Even his empowerment programs carry an unusual personal stamp. With ₦100 million branded as Turaki Cash, artisans and traders were lifted into small but meaningful stability. Unlike many politicians who shy away from direct ownership of initiatives, Mustapha attached his name to his, underscoring responsibility and intent.
There is also philanthropy done quietly, beyond the glare of headlines — clearing hospital bills for indigent patients, including children whose stories might otherwise never be heard. These gestures rarely make it into campaign flyers, but they build a loyalty deeper than billboards ever could.
Perhaps most striking is his approach to accountability. Unlike most of his peers, Mustapha documented his first year in the Senate with a public scorecard, published on his official website. Every project, every intervention, laid out for public scrutiny. This transparency may not make him the loudest voice in the chamber, but it makes him one of the most accountable to the people he represents.
Recognition has followed. In 2025, the University of Ilorin hosted him as a Distinguished Personality — a rare academic acknowledgment that showed his relevance had extended beyond politics into civic and intellectual spaces.
So what does all this mean on his birthday? It means that, unlike many whose legacies are written in lofty speeches, Saliu Mustapha’s is being written in roads, scholarships, markets, and farms. It means that, in a society addicted to noise, he has chosen the language of implementation. And it means his name has become that stubborn echo Ilorin cannot ignore.
Happy birthday to Senator Saliu Mustapha, Turaki of Ilorin. History has not given you a free pass; it has given you a challenge: to turn your uncommon record into an indelible legacy.
Haroon Aremu Abiodun is an Associate Member of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).
