Category: Northern Report

Life is picking up in Madalla, Niger State, after the Christmas Day bombing in 2011 left it in tatters. On that fateful Christmas morning, the ever-busy town was brought to its knees by suicide bombers, who had no regard for human life.

While other parts of the country celebrated the birth of Jesus, residents of Madalla were thrown into mourning.

Life after the bombing took a different turn. For months, the residents lived in fear. Sleeping at night became a nightmare. Businesses were ruined as a result of insecurity. Millions of properties were  lost through destruction; homes were ruined. and happiness shattered.

The social life of residents of Madalla was brought to a halt. Movement was also restricted. The ever-busy town became desolate for fear of what would happen next.

There was a general unease that greeted the town after the bombing. Some residents fled in fear. Others, who remained, lived in fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of another bomb rocking the town.

Living in Madalla was like a walk through the desert: empty, with many residents taken aback.

Two years after, life in Madalla seems to have returned. The same can be said of business. The once desolate town has found its groove again. Residents seem to have forgotten the bomb blast.

The people now experience peace, move freely to different places of their business, despite the maximum securities around the vicinity. The presence of security men on uniforms have encouraged residents to stay. But like memories held for long, others cannot still forget the shock and trauma of the incident which claimed the lives of about 40 men and women including children.

A businessman who resides in Madalla and gave his name as Uchengbu explained that for some months, he was scared to open his shop for fear of another bomb going off.

He said those few months affected his business. “My sister, my business suffered after the blast. When I eventually opened my shop, patronage was low. Thank God now, because it is gradually picking up.”

Joshua Atamson, a civil servant, disclosed that for months, he lived in fear of not knowing where the bomb would go off next.

“I lived in fear for months. I even thought about relocating to Abuja. But the accommodation problem in that place made me have a rethink. But everything is fine now. The presence of these security men has really restored some sanity to the place. I just hope what happened in 2011 does not happen again as we approach another Christmas celebration. I will urge government to increase the number of security men in the place.”

Another resident and a hair stylist, who gave her name as Joyce, explained that she was shaken by the sound of the bomb because she lived close to the church.

“My house is not far from the church. When we heard the sound of the bomb, it sounded like an earthquake. Everybody in my family has lived under fear since then. But we thank God that life has returned to Madalla.”

However, when asked if business after the blast has returned to boom, Joyce responded in the affirmative, adding that, it took a long time before things could return to normalcy.

“You know how people react to things. The blast crippled my business for months. There were days, after the blast that I did not open my shop because of lack of customers. But business has returned to the way it was before the incident.”

When our correspondent visited St. Theresa Catholic Church, the scene of the bombing, worshippers were seen coming and going. Our correspondent also observed that the number of worshippers who visit the church seem to have dropped.

In an interview with the Associate Parish Priest of St. Theresa Catholic Church Madalla, Rev. Father Godwin Anaiho said in all situations all thanks belong to God.

He noted that things are much better compared to the way it was before, even though the population are less than it was before.

However, it was learnt that since the bomb blast incident, the activities of the church has not been normal as it used to be.

According to Anaiho, the church buried some of the deceased while other families of the deceased opted to take the remains of their deceased to their home town.

“Since then life itself has not been too funny around the church but as believers, we still thank God for his mercies and love upon us.”

The clergy man praised the effort of the Federal Government and other well-meaning Nigerians who came to the aid of the church.

“They really tried during the incident. The Federal Government, the CBN governor and other NGOs came but, a lot really needs to be done because presently some of the victims are still in pains. Some are facing difficulties while others are still going to hospital.

“Presently all are not totally well but, all to the glory of God I still believe that a lot still needs to be done. Though a good number are okay but some are still in pain, they are still struggling to walk.

“The whole thing has not been funny, actually during the incident I was not here myself but, from what I was told, some at a point stop coming to church while others changed their places of worship but to the glory of God, a good number of them eventually came back.

“Ever since the incident, the church has been security conscious. Aside the police, we have other organisations securing the church 24hours.The issues of security is not peculiar to the church alone. It is actually everywhere, I think as a nation we are facing the issue of security because day- in -day- out, we hear of Boko haram striking, we hear of armed robbery. So many cases like that.

“We thank our parishioners because they are cooperating with the security agents, by restricting the parishioner from bringing in  anything that will not be useful to them in the church like hand bags and all that, because we have cases where  women are being given bags with bombs inside. So as I said,  for us to stop any future occurrence,  it is wise to educate our members to see that they cooperate with the security guards out there especially those within the church and even the police.

“Any time you come in and they call you to ask you questions, be humble enough to listen to them and give them answers appropriately. For now, everything is moving on well. We always pray for the nation; we appreciate God for the gift of our life and the gift of our nation, and then we commit the victims into the hands of God praying for His blessings,favour and eternal rest over them. God

”We also so pray God should help us as a nation, all the stakeholders the traditional rulers, the state and even religious leaders to work towards peace, to work towards securing our nation as a whole.

“I believe Bokoharam are human beings like us. As a Christians, the Bible tells us that God does not take pleasure in the death of a sinner, my sincere prayer for them is for God to help them, let them come to realise that they are being used to perpetrate evil against the society. God should open their eyes to see the evil they are doing and then come to repentance.”

 

Vice president Namadi Sambo and former minister of the Federal Capital Territory Mallam Nasri el-Rufai have clashed over the intractable water crisis in Zaria, Kaduna State.

For several years, the water scarcity situation in Zaria and its environs has defied solution. Successive governments in the state and even the Federal Government have made attempts to solve the problem without any positive results. There have been several promises that the situation would soon be remedied and the people of Zaria and the surrounding council areas would have their water burden lifted. But all to no avail .

During the President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, a multi-million contract was awarded to Nalado Nigeria Limited, a company owned by the current Vice President, Mohammed Namadi Sambo to address the water shortage in Zaria, but no appreciable work was done, leaving the people to suffer more.

It is common to see in Zaria water vendors making brisk business. In areas like Samaru and Kongo, institutions such as the Ahmadu Bello University and the Federal College of Education with a high student population, private boreholes have become the only source of water. Private homes also sink boreholes to sell water to water vendors who in turn sell to consumers.

However, the award of a N15 billion contract to Mothercat Nigeria Limited by the late Governor Patrick Yakowa’s administration to solve the problem brought succour to the people. But not many people in the state believed that the government was serious about solving the water problem and about three years after the contract was awarded, the fears of the people are becoming manifest as the completion date for the project which has been reviewed upwards, (N25 billion), has again been shifted. First, the completion date for the project was fixed for September 2011 and then, June 2012 and later December 2013. But as at the last visit, there was no sign that the project was ready for completion in spite of the fact that the contract sum has been reviewed upwards twice.

Investigations revealed that the Zaria water project was initiated long before the advent of democracy in 1999 and was inherited by the Makarfi adminitration when he assumed office in 1999. The government, in collaboration with the Federal Government, re-awarded the contract to Nalado Nigeria Limited at the cost of N4 billion. But after sinking over N6 billion into the project, it could not be completed by 2007 when the government handed over to the Namadi Sambo’s administration.

Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Acting Assistant National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, believes that Vice President Sambo should take part of the blame for the none completion of the project despite huge expenses. The former minister, who many see as an avowed critic of the Vice President, said in one of his articles that despite coming from Zaria, Sambo could not complete the project both as a contractor, governor  and now Vice President.

El-Rufai said: “One of the largest and longest ‘ongoing’ projects in Kaduna State is the Zaria Water Supply Project, which was awarded to Sambo’s company before he became governor.

“Though Zaria is his hometown, he did not complete the project as a contractor despite payments, did not conclude it as governor despite his office and is today uncompleted, despite his position.

“Up until last week, most of Zaria does not have potable water, yet Sambo lists the award of a N7 billion Government House contract among his achievements. Indications are that the final figure may reach N20 billion before it is completed. Is that an achievement or an appropriate priority?

“Which 300-bed hospital did Sambo build in Kaduna State when the Kaduna State University Teaching Hospital is far from being a centre of excellence? The former governor has a penchant for confusing awarding contracts that remain forever ongoing with delivering public services to the citizens. How sad?”

But Sambo accused the former minister of not doing his investigations before going public with his allegations. Speaking through his media aide, Mallam Umar Sani, Sambo said though it is not in the character of the Vice President to trade words or join issues with anyone, he wants to set the records straight in respect of the Zaria Water scheme for the sake of posterity.

He said: “In his (el-Rufai) haste to drag the name of the Vice President to the mud and muster some continuous relevance in the media, he failed to conduct an elementary check on the status of the Zaria water project.

“The contract for the reactivation of the two treatment plants built separately by the defunct North Central State government and later the Kaduna State government was awarded to Nalado Nigeria Limited to return it to its original capacity of 60 million litres of water per day.

“At the time of the award of the contract, both plants were operating at a minimal capacity of 10 million litres per day.

“The contract was executed successfully and handed over to the Federal Ministry of Water Resources. However, after an audit of the water situation in Zaria was conducted, it was discovered that Zaria would require about 150 million litres of water daily to stabilise in terms of water supply.

“So under the Namadi Sambo Administration, the current 150 million litres per day water supply contract was awarded to Mothercat Nigeria Limited after a competitive bidding process and we have it on good authority that it is at 90 per cent completion.

“This is in complementing the efforts of the Federal Government that is constructing the Galma Dam to supply the raw water for Zaria and its environs.”

Although the Kaduna State Water Board had expressed optimism from the onset about the early completion of the project, the killing of Mr. Padi Ibrahim, a Lebanese working with Mothercat and his driver in May 2012 and the kidnap of Amir Drek another Lebanese working with the company by unknown gunmen may have gone a long way to affect the completion of the project as the company had to abandon the project for fear of the safety of their workers.

However, The Nation learnt that after several assurances by the government of the safety of the staff, the company went back to site. In 2012, the then Commissioner for Water Resources, Sunday Marsha Katung, said the government was convinced that the project would be completed in December, 2013. He added that he had a “very rigid and strict instruction” from late Governor Yakowa to ensure that the notion of the project being jinxed was dismissed.

But construction work on the project according to the incumbent State Governor, Mukthar Ramalan Yero, would not be completed in December 2013 as scheduled as work is only at 86.5 per cent completion level. Yero pointed out that consumers in the Zaria metropolis may not enjoy treated water from the plant until 2017 when the 182.5 million transition and distribution lines would have been completed. The governor said while launching the Africa Development Bank (ADB) assisted water supply expansion and sanitation project in Zaria that the ADB has given a loan of $101 million (N15 billion) to the state for the project which include the construction and transmission mains and service reservoirs (phase two) while $81 million (N12.5 billion) was obtained from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) for the rehabilitation and extension of distribution network (phase three). He disclosed that both phases two and three projects would be completed in 2017.

Quoting some unnamed public transparency advocates in the state, the online media outfit, Sahara Reporters alleged that the Governor Yero obtained an $81 million dollar loan from the Islamic Development Bank for the project. The report alleged that the State House of Assembly approved the request of the governor without carrying out any investigation on the need for the loan. They further alleged that the money was not used for the purpose it was obtained.

Similarly, the Chairman of Kaduna Salvation Movement and former Chairman of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria in the state, Mr Mohammed Musa Soba, accused the state government of insincerity in the handling of the project. He told The Nation that “the Kaduna State Government is not sincere about the Zaria water project considering the enormous financial resources injected into the project without any visible sign of its early completion.

“By the governor’s admission, N26 billion was sourced from the Africa Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank to finance the project that as at today stands at N24 billion.

“Where then is all the money spent on the project by the Makarfi administration through the Nalado Construction Company owned by Vice President Namadi Sambo and managed by Governor Mukhtar Yero during whose tenures the project was delayed and jerked up to N24billion from the initial N15billion?

“There is no doubt that the outrageously expensive Zaria water project is a conduit pipe for the enrichment of a few while the people of Zaria and its environs will continue their search for potable water for a very long time to come.”

But the Director General, Media and Publicity to the Governor, Ahmed Maiyaki, said that the report was published without regards to the important ethical requirements of balance and fairness.

Maiyaki added that it was most unfair and a gruesome rape of media practice which should be hinged on objectivity and accuracy. He noted that the report was a mere conjecture weaved out of the skewed imaginations of its sponsors.

He averred that it is disheartening that no effort was made to verify the facts.

Maiyaki said: “First, the said loan from the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) which was the crux of the story has not even been signed. The loan is a tripartite agreement between the Federal Government of Nigeria and Kaduna State on one side and the IDB on the other, but as at this moment, the agreement between the Federal Government and the IDB is yet to be signed.

“This can be verified both from the bank and relevant agencies of the Federal Government… The Zaria Water Project is a multi-phased project that comprises of several components. Phase 1 is the construction of Zaria New 150 million litres per day water treatment plant, phase II is construction of Transmission Mains and Service Reservoir, phase III is the rehabilitation of extension and distribution network while the final phase is pipeline extension to benefitting local governments.

“On its part, the Federal Government is constructing the 186 million cubic meter multipurpose Galma Dam at Kuzuntu. The dam is to provide additional water to the Zaria water treatment plant. The $81 million loan from the IDB is for the second phase of work and it is to provide four dedicated new transmission mains from the 150mld Water Treatment Plant to service tanks.

“It is also to fund construction of 10 number service reservoirs and two new booster stations. Though the IDB loan is yet to be accessed by the state, nevertheless, government has revised the detailed engineering design and had prepared the Tender Document for the speedy take- off of the project once the conditions for project and disbursement effectiveness are achieved.”

A check at the State House of Assembly also shows that the IDB loan as requested is with the full support of the legislature. A report of an ad-hoc committee of the House that was chaired by Hon. Matoh Dary Dogara in 2012 revealed that the assembly after an extensive investigation, recommended that the state should access the IDB loan for the purpose of completing the water project.

Part of the recommendations in that report signed by Hon. Dogara and the committee’s secretary, Abubakar Musa Al-Hassan provides “that, in view of the fact that full benefit of the whole project will not be realised even if projects on Galma Dam and the Water Treatment Plant are completed without access to the IDB loan to execute the remaining two phases, this Hon. House do resolve and request His Excellency, the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Distinguished Senators and Hon. Members Representing the state at the National Assembly and Hon. Ministers from Kaduna

State to join the state government in fast-tracking the access to the foreign loan and increase budgetary provisions for Galma Dam project’.

“It is, therefore, rather sad that due to political misgivings, some of those that have worked assiduously for the realisation of the Zaria water project are today trying to throw spanner in the wheel of its progress. We are not unaware of those behind this desperate media campaigns and their wicked but failed mission of attempting to sway the massive goodwill and support that Governor Yero enjoys from the entire people of Kaduna State.

“We wonder how an $81 million IDB loan that is yet to be signed by parties involved in the agreement could be diverted by the governor. We also urge the spin doctors of the negative media reports and their paymasters to know that every penny of that loan is already tied to a specific component of the project and cannot be diverted for any other purpose. That is part of the agreement. At the moment, even though the financing is not yet effective, progress towards speedy take up of Phase II is being made.”

However, The Nation investigations revealed that a project appraisal report from the African Development Bank issued on the Zaria Water and Sanitation Project in October 2011 suggested that the project was to be financed with loans from the ADB and Islamic Development Bank as well as counterpart funding from the Kaduna State and Federal Governments. It was also gathered that the process for obtaining the loan from the Islamic Development Bank may not have been initiated by Governor Yero as it has been on the drawing board since the time of Namadi Sambo as governor of the state.

Apart from going ahead with the N8.5 billion bond initiated by the Sambo’s government in the state, it was gathered that the late Yakowa went ahead with the processing of the loan from the IDB to complete the water and other projects in the state. This much was revealed by Yakowa himself during his one year anniversary on May 29, 2012 when he said that “the Zaria waterworks project, with the revised work we are looking at the middle of next year (June 2013) for completion.

“ It is a gigantic project as we have to lay pipes across all the local government areas but work is ongoing at fast rate. When completed it would supply water to Galma Dam.”

Residents of Zaria and the surrounding local government appear to be tired of the promises by the government to complete the project and have decided to adopt the wait and see attitude. The residents are not happy that they have to patronise water vendors. One resident, Yakubu Musa, lamented that they have to pay as much as N40 for a 25 litre jerican of water. He argued that the worst predicament about the water crisis is that the water vendors are not available everywhere. Interestingly, students of the prestigious Barewa College are said to also suffer, going about in search of water.

 

BAUCHI State Governor Isa Yuguda has invested much in roads across the state, and his effort is yielding ample dividends.

Some of these road projects include the Gamawa-Algarno Road in Gamawa Local Government Area of the state which links the state to Yobe and Jigawa states. This road has since been commissioned and is being used. The other is the 112 km road from Ningi Local Government headquarters to Burra. Before the construction of the road, the Burra people, had to travel to Kano to board a vehicle to Ningi, their council headquarters.

This long detour that also took much time from the commuters had drained their pockets; some lost their lives or were maimed while others lost personal valuables to armed robbers and road accidents.

The Yuguda government also embarked on another road project, the Magama-Gumau Road, which most motorists have nick-named “Saviour Road”.

The Magama-Gumau-Rishi-Rahama Road, in Toro Local Government links Bauchi with Saminaka in Kaduna State. It was the easiest gateway to Kaduna from Northeast by motorists while the crisis that wasted humans and properties lasted. It is also a shortcut or a by-pass to Kaduna from the Bauchi axis. In addition to these advantages, the Bauchi-Kaduna Road constructed at about N1.2 billion, like the Ningi-Burra, has also introduced a stronger new wave of economic activities among the citizens of the state. Moreso, there are more marriages between them now more than ever before.

Not done with road projects, as a cardinal development element, from the inception of his regime, Yuguda also, within the same period contracted Sino-Rich-Fields, a Chinese construction firm to give the people of Futuk in Alkaleri local area a sense of belonging by linking them up through Pali village with an 83 kilometer road at the cost of N2.9 billion.

It is pertinent to mention that since the creation of Bauchi State in 1976, successive military and civilian administrations in the state have had no excuse to give to the people why the Gamawa/Algarno, Ningi/Burra, Magama-Gumau/Rishi Rahama-Saminaaka and Alkaleri/Futuk roads have never been considered, no attempt has ever been made to even grade any of these roads as feeders to major ones that criss-cross the state, despite obvious facts that, peasants in these areas supply the Bauchi urban areas cum semi urban ones with assorted food stuffs, grease their economies, and even produce some of the beautiful girls town folks marry.

However, of all these roads, the Alkaleri/Futuk road appears to be of paramount importance. This is because Futuk town itself is by far older than Bauchi town, which is the Bauchi Emirate council headquarters and the state capital, that only gained recognition after the Jihad of Othman Danfodio in 1804. Futuk was founded by immigrant Jukuns [under the Kwararafa kingdom later known as the Banza Bakwai]. Its first District Head was Majin Wase and has since produced 9 District Heads, after the Jukuns who had founded Pindinga, Kashere and towns moved to Wukari in the present Taraba State.

Futuk occupies a strategic position in the affairs of the three states as it is the meeting point for citizens of Bauchi, Gombe and Taraba states. With the current, ninth District Head and a population of over 14, 000, producing water melons, sorghum, millet, maize, sugarcane, groundnuts, gum-arabic, rice, tomatoes, carrots, cash crops and other farm produce, has no modern facilities in its over 100 years of existence. Until last week Saturday, November 16, 2013, the town was without any modern link road to Bauchi, Gombe and Taraba towns. There is no potable water, except for locally sunk wells, few electric poles, a dilapidated Government Day Secondary School whose classrooms the students share with domestic animals.

The only health facility in the ancient town is a dispensary built by the then Native Authority in the 1960s, without drugs. Ironically, the facility also accommodates goats, sheep, ducks and occasionally stray dogs in the town. Its ceiling is decorated with cobwebs even as some of the ceiling sheets have since left their hanger. The sad development has compelled the inhabitants to regularly organise fasting and prayers to ask Allah (SWT) to send a messiah who will reduce their decades of sorrow through the provision of some essential facilities that make modern life enjoyable.

Baba Adi, an 85-year-old man, was overjoyed when he was informed that he could go to Alkaleri within a very short time.

Not satisfied with the link road from Alkaleri, Yuguda at the commissioning of the road, asked Taraba State Acting Governor Alhaji Garba Umar to also flag off a one-km road in the state and promised to give them potable water soon. Mallam Audu Angyu, an octogenarian, excited at the reality of the road and prospects of getting modern facility, prayed: “There is nothing that Yuguda will not get if he asks Allah (SWT) even today or now.”

Yuguda further assured that efforts will be made to link Futuk with Plateau State as soon as funds are available.

Ja’afar Sarki, aged 47, said: “The provision of electricity will help reduce some of the social vices we occasionally witness here. I hope that the drift to townships such as Gombe, Bauchi and other places will reduce and our girls will have a good school and look pretty like the city girls too.”

This certainly explains why Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe State had, during his commissioning of the road, passionately appealed to the Federal Government to urgently take over and designate the 83 kilometers Alkaleri–Futuk Road in Bauchi state as a federal road. He also asked the federal government to re-inburse Bauchi State government, for the 83 kilometer road whose contract was awarded in April 2008 and constructed at the cost of N2.9 billion from Alkaleri to Futuk, a boundary town at the junction of Taraba, Gombe and Bauchi states.

He said: “I’m calling on the Federal Government to take over and designate this road as a federal road and by so doing all the expenses incurred by Bauchi State government are re-imbursed to the government.”

Dankwambo, at the occasion, was flanked by Taraba State Acting Governor Garba Umar and Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda while cutting the tape.

The Gombe State governor declared that the Alkaleri–Futuk Road is not exclusive to Bauchi State alone, but will be used by neighboring communities in Gombe and Taraba states. He added that “the road will also provide alternative gateway to Adamawa and Taraba states and greatly improve access to the Federal University, Kashere in Gombe state”. While stating the need for up-grading the road to asphalt, Dankwambo hailed Yuguda for executing the project which, he noted, will ensure speedy development of the area and the state, and enjoined communities along the road to support Yuguda in his efforts to transform Bauchi state.

But, Yuguda on his part explained that the delay in completing the project since it started in 2008 was due to paucity of funds at the disposal of government, and other competing demands on the state government’s lean purse. He also assured the people of Bauchi, Gombe and Taraba states that the state governments are committed to justice, equity, fairness and transparency and every kobo in the treasuries will be accounted for. Yuguda further re-assured the citizens of the three states that with improvement in revenue generation, the governors will do their best to ensure unemployed persons, especially the youths, are gainfully employed

 

Plateau is not only home of peace and tourism, it is equally home of abandoned projects. Lets count: Luka Bentu Indoor Theatre, Plateau Olympic Stadium, several tourists projects, many road projects, a five-star Jos Rocks Hotels, Mado Tourists Village, Fish ponds, among others.

It is a fact that almost all the governors of the state comprising military and civilian, left one or two projects abandoned. The chain of abandoned projects in the state was such that successive administrations found it unnecessary to complete any inherited projects due to fraudulent practices that often characterised such projects.

The most outstanding among long abandoned projects scattered around the state is the Plateau Olympic Stadium. It was initiated by a military administrator of General Lawrence Onoja as far back as 30 years ago. It is located at the city centre along Zaria-Kaduna Road. The skeleton of that abandoned project has been an eyesore and a source of embarrassment to the state. In fact, this particular project right at the city centre remains a dent on the state’s tourism map.

The initiator of the project said the Olympic stadium has the potential of changing the economic fortunes of the state considering its numerous advantages. The stadium was expected to be a training centre for youths in various sporting activities. It was meant to provide immediate employment for thousands of workers, and expected to attract huge hospitality businesses like hotels and travel agencies, it was meant to attract foreign exchange to the state from playing host to national and international sports competitions.

However, all these hopes were dashed when this promising project was abandoned. The project died with it’s potentials, every other government look the other way. The administration before the incumbent government, at a point, said the stadium project was jinxed. It was reported that the project plan could not be found, talk less of completing it. To worsen the story of the stadium, the expanse of land allocated to it was encroached upon, private individuals acquired potions of the land and developed them into private residence. Everyone seemed to have given up on the project. It was thought to be dead and buried

But when this incumbent administration of Governor Jonah Jang took over in 2007, pressure was mounted on him to turn around the state by completing some of the promising projects especially such that would generate employment for unemployed youths of the state. The governor heeded the call having saw reasons of the impact of the project on the economic fortunes of the state.

Jang took the bold step towards breaking the jinx surrounding the stadium project. How the incumbent government broke the ‘jinx’ remains a mystery. The story now is that all those who encroached on the land of the stadium have been driven away, and the property recovered. The contractors have been remobilised to site, the project expanded beyond the original design and presented for FIFA supervision. Now the project is 90 per cent complete.

The pitch has been laid with artificial turf, the seats have been laid, the roofing is being done, the office accommodations have been provided with furniture. Governor Jang, last year, on completion of the artificial turf, performed the ceremonial kick-off for the usage of the FIFA-standard pitch.

Today, Plateau youths are celebrating. They know what advantage the stadium will bring for them on completion. The contractor handling the project said he has seven months to complete the project.

 

ADAMU Yunusa, a community leader in Gulani Local Government area of Yobe State, captured the despair in rural areas, saying when it comes to infrastructure, no one remembers remote areas.

He said: “We only know that government exists during election time. We only see them when they come for campaign but after voting them nobody returns until after four years.

Yunusa continues, “During that time, they come begging. They would ask us what we want and we would tell them and they would make promises only to vanish to the cities to buy big cars to enjoy their lives”.

Worried by these trends, the Yobe State government decided to reactivate the state ministry of Integrated and Rural Development to tackle developmental challenges in the remote of places across the seventeen Local Government Areas of the state.

One of the first steps taken by Gaidam to reach out to the needs of the people through the ministry was to send his deputy Abubakar Aliyu to determine the problems and solve them.

To match his words with action,  Ministry of Integrated and Rural Development got approval and procured equipment worth over N58 million for the construction of massive feeder roads to link various communities in the state.

Governor Gaidam who took delivery of the equipment at the ministry of Integrated Rural Development was elated by the quality of the equipment. He stressed that it will help government actualise its plan to build feeder roads in rural communities across the state.

The equipment procured includes pay loaders, tippers and graders among other construction equipment worth 58 million naira.

“The era of refurbished equipment for construction works in the state is over and we will continue to ensure that money is channelled into viable ventures that will bring quality in the execution of various projects especially to the rural communities  across the state,” Gaidam said.

The state deputy governor who is overseeing the ministry told the governor that the equipment will be effectively used for opening up the grassroots, adding that the ministry has never had a better time than now.

Investigation revealed that the ministry has toured more than four communities each in all the three senatorial districts of the state to carry out a need assessments of such communities or the peculiarities of certain challenges of those areas with a view to capturing the dwellers problems.

The overseeing Commissioner Engr. Abubakar Aliyu explained the reason behind the tour thus:, “we intend to carryout demand driven projects in these communities so we go down to the people and ask them what they want before we begin a project. Our intension is not to impose projects on communities but they tell us what they want and as a government we provide it for them.

“This strategy will solve a great deal of problem because any project that you see in a community is not forced on them so there wouldn’t be situations where a borehole is drilled in a community that needs a dispensary or vis versa. We intend to carry on with this until all the remote of villages in the state feel the impact of government”, he said.

The deputy governor further explained that it is less expensive developing rural areas as most of the projects are done through direct labour added that the tour has open the eyes of the ministry officials to present a better budget for the coming fiscal year.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry Ali Gaji Grema explained that  the Community Development Directorate (CDD) of the ministry has  carried out needs assessment of various communities and with the arrival of the trucks procured, feeders’ roads, rural roads, and culvert as well as bridges and various erosion control mechanism will be carried out   for the overall development of the people.

Most of the leaders from communities visited like  Mazagum from Yunusari, Ngalda from Fika, Amshi, Karege from Jakusko, Dala from Bade local government areas expressed delight over the new initiative of the ministry to carry the rural people along in the execution of their project.

“This is a sign of good things for the rural people of Yobe state. We are very happy for this initiative and we wish it continues like this till the corners of the state are effectively touched”, one of the community leaders said.

Ali Gaji Grema also mentioned that the ministry has mobilized various communities into over 200 cooperative societies, constructed over 12 feeder roads in different communities including Maan/Lawan road, Gashaka Dogo/Dogo Abari road, Dumbul village road etc. He added that tube wells, culverts, drainages and women empowerment are the fulcrum of the ministry.