A dispute over campaign billboards has opened a new front in Kwara State’s emerging political battle ahead of the 2027 governorship election, with the state government insisting it is enforcing advertising regulations, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) alleges a calculated attempt to weaken the opposition’s visibility.
The controversy followed the removal of billboards belonging to the PDP governorship candidate, Engr. Suleiman Bolakale Kawu, from major locations in Ilorin, including Agaka and Adabata Junction.
The removals came only days after another billboard bearing Kawu’s image was taken down at the Geri Alimi Underpass, prompting the opposition to accuse the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of deploying state agencies against its political opponents.
However, the Kwara State Signage and Advertisement Agency (KWASAA) has dismissed the allegation, maintaining that the enforcement exercise is part of its statutory responsibility and is not directed at any political party or candidate.
Speaking during an enforcement operation in Ilorin on Wednesday, the General Manager of KWASAA, Toba Adeyeye, said the agency had received several complaints about the indiscriminate erection of billboards and other forms of unauthorised advertising across the state capital.
According to him, one of the complaints led enforcement officials to discover that a section of a newly constructed road around Adeta Junction had allegedly been excavated to create space for a billboard.
Adeyeye said the government would identify those responsible and ensure that they bore the cost of repairing the damaged road, in addition to possible prosecution.
“The road belongs to the people of Kwara. It is a road fixed with taxpayers’ money. How can anyone simply dig up the road and say they want to destroy it?” he said.
The KWASAA boss also disclosed that another billboard had been removed from government-owned water infrastructure because the required approval had not been obtained.
He said individuals, organisations and political actors seeking to place advertisements or campaign materials on government facilities must obtain approval from the appropriate authorities.
According to him, KWASAA works with the Ministry of Water Resources to regulate the use of such infrastructure and would not allow unauthorised access to public facilities.
Adeyeye warned that violations could attract consequences beyond the removal of campaign materials.
He rejected claims that the enforcement was selective, insisting that the agency had previously removed campaign materials belonging to members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) during the party’s primary election.
