The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Abubakar Sani Bello

  • Niger Assembly sends back list of commissioner nominees to governor

    Niger Assembly sends back list of commissioner nominees to governor

    Niger State House of Assembly on Thursday opted to send back the list of 18 commissioner nominees to the state Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello.

    According to the lawmakers, the list was returned to the governor due to pending issues before the House.

    The House members claimed there are too many legislative activities for them to carry out.

    The governor was told to resend the list on a later day.

    Governor Bello had sent the list to the Assembly two weeks ago for screening and confirmation after dissolving his cabinet in September.

     

  • Babangida is Nigeria’s political lexicon – Bello

    Babangida is Nigeria’s political lexicon – Bello

    Niger State Governor,  Abubakar Sani Bello, said on Thursday that former military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd) has become Nigeria’s political lexicon due to his impactful contributions to political and economic development of the country.

    Congratulating the former military president on his 76th birthday, Bello said Babangida was directly responsible for the political re-engineering of the country.

    In a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Malam Jibrin Ndace, the governor described Babangida as apostle of progressive ideology, presidentialism and federalism, adding that the ex- Nigerian leader is a father with an accommodating and philanthropic heart.

    Bello said: “Years after he left office, his socio-political wizardry and intelligence as well as the numerous, visibly useful people-oriented developmental projects remain monumental.

    “It is on record that as a military officer, Gen. Babangida exhibited high sense of professionalism that singled him out as a unique officer whose quality decisions and advice at critical moments of our national life had made his Minna country home a ‘Political Mecca’ for the country’s political class. The enigma has built bridges across the six geo-political zones of the country and these had made him the nation’s most sort for living leader.

    “We are proudly celebrating a strategic and unrepentantly nationalistic leader and human manager with an uncommon passion in the service of fatherland and humanity in general. Indeed, he holds his country very dear in his heart.

    “On behalf of myself, the government and people of Niger State, I wish to felicitate with our father and leader; mentor and role model as you celebrate your 76th birthday today. You are indeed a precious gift to mankind and this great country.

    “It is my fervent prayer that Allah will continue to preserve you for many more years, so that the younger generation and indeed the country can continue to draw from your wealth of experience and guidance even at this critical moment in the political history of this country.”

     

    END

  • Osinbajo, Saraki, governors meet in Aso Rock

    Osinbajo, Saraki, governors meet in Aso Rock

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday met with the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and some state governors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara was also part of the meeting.

    The governors at the closed-door meeting included Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari, Niger State Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello and Adamawa State Governor, Jubrilla Bindow.

    President Muhammadu Buhari left Abuja on Monday for Morocco to attend the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), also known as COP-22, in Marrakech.

    Before Buhari’s trip out of the country, Saraki had met with him three different times within one week over his request for approval to get $29.9 billion loan.

    The Senate had recently rejected Buhari’s approval request for the loan.

    It also described the 2017 to 2019 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) forwarded by President Buhari for approval as “empty.”

    The MTEF is yet to be approved by the Senate.

    At the end of the meeting with Osinbajo on Monday, Saraki simply told State House correspondents: “Am sure the VP will issue a statement. But nothing of great alarm. It’s all for good governance, inclusion and collaboration with all arms. The states are here, national assembly executives just came up with ideas on how to make things work even better, that’s all.”

    No official statement on the meeting has been issued at the time of filing this report.

  • Recession: Why Buhari deserves our support – Niger Governor

    Niger state Governor, Abubakar Sani Bello, has called on Nigerians at home and abroad to rally round President Muhammadu Buhari on the reforms and steps taken by the administration to build a new Nigeria.

    He made the call at the Nigerian Young Professionals Summit at Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York, United States.

    A statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Jibrin Baba Ndace, said Bello spoke on the theme:  ‘‘X-raying our Current Economic Challenges as a nation and Foreign Policy, Prospects and Solutions.”

    The governor said President Buhari was committed to building a new Nigeria, but insisted that he cannot do it alone.

    He said: “My knowledge of President Muhammadu Buhari is that he is a committed leader who has passion for development of Nigeria. I know that his love and passion for Nigeria is unequalled. But it is also clear that he cannot do it alone, he needs us to stand by him.”

    Governor Bello, who revealed that many countries, including the U.S, go through recession, said with the current effort by President Buhari-led administration, Nigeria and Nigerians would come out “stronger and better.”

    The governor expressed optimism on the future of Nigeria, saying it was time for youth to stake their claim in the future of the country through support for government policies and programme.

    He added: “Let me reiterate that the best opportunity we have as a nation to regain our past glory and to put the nation back on the path of honour, is to support the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. Let the change we yearn for be seen in our lives.  “Let the change begin with us.

    “ As people interested in the future of this country, we must rally round and support the efforts of the Federal Government in crushing corruption in all  facets and entrenching good governance, building strong institutions for sustainable development and progress of our nation.”

    Governor Bello said his belief in the innovative ability of the youth spurred him to include youth empowerment as one of the cardinal priorities of his administration.

     

     

  • 7-day ultimatum for Illegal firearms owners in Niger

    Niger state Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello has lamented the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the rural communities in the state.

    Consequently, the Governor has given a seven-day ultimatum to individuals or group of people in possession of illegal firearms in the state to surrender them to the appropriate authority.

    According to Bello, unlike in the past when gun running was only limited to the metropolitan cities, villages in the state now have cases of gun running.

    In a state broadcast on the recent security challenges in some communities of Bosso local government area of the state, the Governor warned of grave consequences for failure to surrender such illegal firearms stressing that the state will not be safe haven for criminals.

    He bemoaned the invasion of some villages in the state by cattle rustlers, kidnappers, banditry, armed robbers and other nefarious activities being committed by criminally minded persons.

    “We must rise now to fight this menace. To achieve this task successfully, we must pay attention to what happens in our homes, villages and communities. We must make security of our environment our business by reporting any suspicious movement or activities around us to security agencies”, he said.

    On the military/communal clash, he said that the government have set up a Judicial Panel of Inquiry to look into the cause of the clash and how to prevent a reoccurance.

    He maintained that the sad incident of the clash was not a true reflection of what the people and the state were known for.

    The Governor further stated that the restriction of motorcycle movement from 7pm to 6am in the state capital and major cities in the state is still enforce until further notice adding that he has directed for stop and search operation as a result of the prevailing security challenges in state of recent.

    He urged the people to bear with the attendant discomfort they will be subjected to as the decision to introduce these measures were taken in the interest of all.

    “The sad and emerging violent culture in our various communities is not a true reflection of who we are or what we stand for, and belief in as a people. We cannot at this crucial point in our development as a state allow minor differences that can be mutually discussed and resolved to bring us to daggers drawn at one another”, he said.

    He commended the role played by the Emir of Minna, Alh. Umar Faruk Bahago for ensuring that peace returned back to the communities and has also directed Niger State Emergency Maintenance Agency (NSEMA) to provide relief materials to the affected families of the injured and displaced persons.

  • Pandogari crisis instigators won’t go unpunished – Bello

    Pandogari crisis instigators won’t go unpunished – Bello

    Niger state governor, Abubakar Sani Bello on Wednesday said that those involved in the religious crisis that engulfed Pandogari in Rafi Local Government area of the state won’t go unpunished.

    According to him, an investigative panel has been instituted to unravel the root causes of the crisis.

    He spoke with State House correspondents after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The crisis, he said, has been brought under control.

    He said: “The situation was unfortunate in Pandogari. I think someone posted some blasphemous stories about the Prophet and of course you know the sensitive nature when it comes to religion and one person was killed‎ later on we heard that either police or the army shot a civilian and three or four people lost their lives.

    “We have instituted an investigative panel to investigate what happened so that we can address the situation. The deputy governor and my team are there at the moment, the situation is calm now.

    “We will await the outcome of the investigative panel so that we militate against this happening next time.

    “This is unacceptable and whoever is involved will be severely punished,” he added.

    On whether his administration will probe the previous administration in the state, he said that an ongoing investigation have already recovered some pension funds that were misappropriated.

    Noting that the recovered fund is not much, he said that the investigation is still on.

    “I believe the team has met with the former governor, I don’t want to interfere with their investigations.”

    He said that things have been slow in the state in the last 12 months as the administration met a lot of problems and challenges when it came on board.

    He said: “Things have been slow at the initial stage but with time things are beginning to pick up so by God’s grace I believe that President Muhammadu Buhari is driving Nigeria in the right direction.

    “We just need to be patient a bit and I believe we will start seeing positive results.

    On the media report that his government has resolved to be paying half salaries in the state, he said: “No no no! We have not resolved to pay half salaries but what we are saying is that from January this year we have been borrowing from bank to augment whatever we have been getting from FAAC.

    “As at this month we are owing almost N3 billion‎, if we continue like this by December we will be owing N10 billion. So I think we should go back to the table, of course we can’t give what we don’t have but we are facing difficult times now let’s sit down and see what we can do.

    “I really think it is unhealthy to keep on borrowing just to pay salaries, apart from that we are not just there to pay salaries, there are a lot of issues. I got call this morning that one Girls Secondary School that their roof is off in six out of seven dormitories. Where will they sleep? Now if I take the whole revenues and pay salaries, how am I going to fix schools, hospitals.

    He added: “Niger State has a population of over four million, civil service strength of about 40,000, we get N1.5 billion from federation account and even with that we still have to borrow to pay 40,000 people against over 3 million people that we need to cater for‎.

    “So I strongly believe and honestly we should look at it. It’s nobody’s fault that the price of oil has gone down, it’s nobody’s fault that the revenue has gone down, ‎we are facing difficult times but hopefully things will improve.

    “But we should all make sacrifices, I’m willing to make sacrifices, all my appointees are willing to make sacrifices. We have shown example by cutting down our expenditure, we have cut down the operation of the expenses of the government house from N150 million a week to N20, 25 million a week. So we have cut down government house expenditure by over 70 per cent and I mean these are all sacrifices.

    He said that the state has saved some money, which it is spending on some projects including the federal road. The Suleja-Minna Road is motorable now and very soon we will start working on Bida. I was asked at a function yesterday where I got money from but the truth is we just have to improvise, we have to save to move in.

    He said that the report that the state was going to reduce salaries is not true as the state is still engaging the labour.

    “We have laid the cards on the table, we are not hiding anything we are very transparent as much as we can but the truth of the matter is that I cannot give what we don’t have. I wish I had, personally if I had I would have paid from my pocket but I can’t.” He stated

    When asked to speak on the purpose of his visit to the Villa, he said: “I came to see what he is doing and to wishing him well one year in office.”

  • Niger APC flags off campaign for LG polls

    Niger APC flags off campaign for LG polls

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State Monday received some decampees from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during its flag-off campaigns for local government council elections which is slated for January 16, 2016.

    Among the decampees was former Niger State Commissioner of Finance, Alhaji Mu’azu Bawa and about 10 others.

    Though they were not formally given APC flags, The Nation observed that the decampees were moving freely along with some top APC Chieftains during the flag-off campaign.

    Speaking at the flag-off campaign, the Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello solicited for the support of the people urging them to massively vote APC during the local government elections the same way they voted for the party during the general elections.

    According to him, having APC in the 25 local government councils will ease administration at both state and local government levels.

    The State APC Chairman, Engineer Jibril Imam who expressed optimism over the victory of the party during the January 16th local government polls urged people to come out en masse to give the party the desired victory.

  • Eid-el-Kabir : Be tolerant with others – Governor Bello

    Niger State governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello has urged Muslims in the country to renew their commitment to the pursuit of peace and progress of the country.

    He also enjoined them to imbibe the virtuous of obedience, tolerance, faith, perseverance and sacrifice as exemplified by Prophet Ibrahim (AS).

    The Governor, in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Dr. Ibraheem Dooba to commemorate the celebration of Eid-el-Kabir said the Muslim faithful must use the period and pray for an end to the incessant security challenges particularly in the northern region of the country.

    Bello called on the followers of all religions in the country to tolerate one another and assist the less privileged in the society as the surest way of reducing poverty and the attendant insecurity that comes with it.

    The governor then appealed to those accusing him of being slow in governance to be patient stressing that things must be done carefully in order not to derail and lose the opportunity provided to fix the state.

    He assured the people of the state that his administration would work assiduously to ensure the people derive maximum benefit from the positive change they had effected in governance.

  • Niger: PDP, APC in two-horse race

    Niger: PDP, APC in two-horse race

    POPULAR and well-loved politician, Abubakar Sani Bello emerged in Niger State as the governorship candidate of the opposition All Progressives Party (APC) after a protrafted political contest with other chieftians of the party angling for the ticket.Pundits say the affable polititician’s choice is the best for the APC.

    However, he has to contend with another young but fast rising politician, Umar Nasko, who is flying the banner of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February governorship election. Umar, who shook off fierce contest from a number of PDP bigwigs in the state to pick the ticket, acording to observers, enjoys the backing of two-term state Governor, Dr. Aliyu Babangida.

    The implication of this is that Bello will have to battle Babangida’s power of incumbent amongst other things, to defeat Umar, the governor’s annointed candidate and sucessor.

    “The governorship election here is too close to call. It is too early to say which party will win. I listen to some people saying Niger is a PDP state and I laugh. As we speak, the APC has one of the three senate sats in the state. Many frontline politicians are in the APC and the people are more sympathetic to the APC especially because of General Muhammadu Buhari’s presidential candidature on the same party.

    If you consider this and also consider the fact that many people here love the Governor, Babangida Aliyu, you will agree with me that it is too early to decide who wins. The people will decide eventually but I pray they give it to the APC candidate because he is more matured and prepared to govern a state like Niger.

    Although the people love Nasko too, many are of the opinion that he is too young to be Governor. There is the fear that Governor Aliyu may have annointed him so as to be able to influcence him. These are the issues that will determine the next governroship election in our state,” Alhaji Ahmed Barde, former Vice chairman of the All Peoples Party (APP) in the state said.

    But Nasko, has said he is not too young to be the governor of Niger State. He recently told the large crowd of supporters from all over the state and party chieftains that at 40, he could not be said to be young to run the affairs of the state as suggested by his adversaries.

    He reasoned that with the life expectancy of 50 years in Nigeria, he was not young to understand the peculiar demands and needs of people of the state as he had adequately prepared himself for the challenge ahead.

    “In a country where life expectancy is put at less than fifty years, a forty-year old couldn’t be ‘too young’ to serve in the exalted office of state governor”, Nasko said, adding that he had received enough mentoring by Governor Aliyu to advance the course of development of the state.

    He expressed his feelings at being given the ticket, saying it is a confirmation of “your belief in the capacity of the youth and the young at heart to provide purposeful leadership.

    But a chieftain of the party in the state, Abdullai Marafa, said the PDP may lose because theGovernor has allowed his selfish agenda and interest to becloud his sense of justice and fairness, which will in turn affect the internal democracy within the party.

    “Our Chief Servant always pay lip service to supremacy of the party, and go behind the door to undermine the organs of the party and the members of the party who have being contributing to the growth of the party that he has reap from in the past seven years.

    Since he came to office the Party always find it difficult to win elections even in places that the party has strong hold, it is on record that the state House of assembly used to be 100 percent PDP, the House of Representatives PDP, Senate 100 percent PDP but today the story is different.

    He is not worried that in his ward and polling unit PDP has always being loosing; Niger North had PDP Senator but today the Niger north Senator is an All Progressive Congress APC member because of the selfish politics of the Chief servant that has exposed the party to the opposition,” Marafa said.

    Expressing further fear over the chances of the PDP, Marafa said, “the experiences during the last Niger East Bye-election has shown us in PDP that the party may not win the state in 2015.”

    Reaching out to the electorate recently, Bello, the APC gubernatorial candidate, said he would focus attention on rural development if elected governor in 2015.

    “Local government areas have no commercial activities; they need to be funded so as to reduce the level of poverty. We went round the 25 local government areas of the state; I must say that I wept due to the kind of hardship and poverty the people are confronted with.

    A lot of them are exposed to different kinds of diseases from the contaminated water they drink as a result of open defecation. If elected into office, there will be training and re-training of local government officials, it would include practical and theoretical training. Proper education must be given to these people, what we saw was pathetic, I am sad with what I saw.”

    Bello said more public schools with adequate facilities would be provided in the rural areas, adding that education was key to development. He also pledged to address the problem of corruption at both Local and state levels.

    “As a leader, you lead by example, and to truly have a democratic country, we must have a corruption-free country.” He called on the people of the state not to relent “because the race is not over yet. We seek your support during the elections”, he said.