The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Bauchi

  • Bauchi: ‘Our grouse against the governor’

    Bauchi: ‘Our grouse against the governor’

    Hon. Yusuf Tuggar, a former governorship aspirant under the CPC and APC in 2011 and 2015 respectively in this interview with some journalists explained why he, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, and other top politicians and APC leaders reported Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State to President Muhammadu Buhari. Excerpts

    YOU were part of Bauchi APC leaders who recently leveled allegations of impropriety against Governor Mohammed Abubakar. How did it get to that level?

    First of all, I will like to say it is really unfortunate, having all come from the same political party with Governor Abubakar; that is, myself, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Yakubu Dogara, the three senators representing the state, the 12 members of the House of Representatives, the Minister for Education, all found ourselves in this situation. We had to speak up against the policies, or lack of policies, of Governor Abubakar; the divisive politics that he has been practicing and the threat posed by his style of governance to our home state of Bauchi. This is why we felt that we cannot just look the other way. We can’t, as leaders and as stakeholders, as people and as indigenes, look the other way while our state is being destroyed by one individual and his praise singers.

    Rather than going to the President, don’t you think efforts to reach out to the governor would have solved the problems?

    That is why we decided to come together and take these steps. It is not personal, it is based on issues; it is based on several attempts that failed to make him see the light, to make him change his ways. If that fails, the next thing you need to do is take the necessary steps preclude further danger to the state, and this is what we are doing.

    We all come from the APC. Some of us, like me, have been in the ANPP, we created the CPC together with President Muhammadu Buhari before we merged with the other parties to form the APC and M.A Abubakar joined us after the merger; after we had already created the APC. Prior to that, he was a member of the PDP and before that, he was an INEC Resident Commissioner in Rivers State; a state that had a laughable record during elections because the sort of results that were returned from successive elections during his tenure as INEC Resident Commissioner. Election returns that time were the type you can only find in former communist states or may be Syria, during the regime of Hafiz Al-assad, where they will come close to returning a hundred and ten percent for a particular party or a particular candidate. It is scandalous!

    So, for somebody like that to come and take charge over a state like Bauchi and for all of us to even accept the flawed result of the primaries at the time simply because we wanted to win, we felt that it was not in the best interest of the state for PDP to continue; that is why we all decided to come together.

    Isn’t this an indictment of the primaries that produced the governor as APC candidate?

    There was over-voting in the primaries, I could have easily petitioned, but I chose not to at the time simply because I did not want to appear selfish. It wasn’t all about me; it wasn’t about my ambition or becoming governor, no. It was about bringing about constructive change in the state. And that is why I refused, in spite of all the pressures and overtures by supporters, by colleagues, by friends, to try and appeal and fight the results that declared him governorship candidate. I did not do that. We all rolled our sleeves up; we went and campaigned for him, down to the polling units; he won and the first thing he did was perceive us to be a threat, to fight and to begin to systematically alienate all sections of the society in the state. And that is why he has ended up, which governor have you seen today in Nigeria that does not get along with all his senators, all his members of the House of Representatives? Which governor and why? So, we have to look at the root cause of this.

    Specifically, what formed the basis of your grouse with the governor?

    Well, the allegations are simple and straightforward and there is a saying in Hausa to the effect that you can tell a Friday that is going to be good from Wednesday. Things started going wrong immediately, even during the campaigning; we could tell that there were issues but I am not going to go on to that for now. We will save that for another day. Immediately after the elections, there was a transition committee that was constituted. That committee itself came up with its own issues because then we started talking about how much exactly the transition committee spent. The handling of the funds for the transition committee itself was opaque; it was not transparent. There were allegations that the transition collected N565 million for instance, from the outgoing governor, Isa Yuguda, before swearing-in and it is still not clear what was exactly disbursed and for what purposes. Apart from that, you could see that there were a lot of uncertainties like what the agenda of M. A Abubakar was going to be in Bauchi because there was none. Now, shortly after he became governor, there were some contracts that were awarded for 4.5 kilometers of road from the CBN in Bauchi metropolis towards the railway. Its 4.5 kilometers but it was awarded for N2.3 billion. Note, if you do the arithmetic, it amounts to N517 million per kilometer. Do you even construct road for N517 million per kilometer in Delta State where you have perpetual rainy season? You don’t! Not even in the Niger Delta. And this contract was awarded to a company with a Kaduna registered address. Okay, you have been awarded this huge contract, we would have expected that you are going to roll out new equipment to commence the work but no, they are using manual concrete mixers for all the people of Bauchi to see. This is not just us, it is the whole of the people of Bauchi that are seeing it and are putting pressure on us to do something about it because they consider us leaders, they consider that we should be able to do something about it because it is our party, because we are the ones that came and campaigned and sold the party to them and said vote for this man.

    But looking from the outside, one gets a picture of a gang up by elites against the governor, is it not so?

    And what will be the reason for the gang up? Why would we gang up against him? Why did we not gang up before to reject him? This is the question you should be asking and he should be asking himself.

  • Soldiers kill 7 kidnappers, destroy camps in Bauchi

    Soldiers kill 7 kidnappers, destroy camps in Bauchi

    Soldiers on patrol duty in Bauchi State have killed seven suspected kidnappers and destroyed some camps belonging to hoodlums, the Army said yesterday.

    Army spokesman, Colonel Sani Usman said in a statement that troops of 33 Brigade carried out the operation, following a tip-off, which brought them in contact with the suspected kidnappers at Lame Burra forest near Dutsen Ganye, Gunduru and Kati Layin villages, Bauchi State.

    Usman said they recovered 2 AK-47 rifles and 3 Dane guns at the camp.

    “The troops are still combing the general area to further track down other fleeing members of the criminal gang,” he said.

    He also explained that following the initial successes of the army’s Operation FOREST KUNAMA, which was aimed at clearing all livestock rustlers and armed bandits’ camps in Bauchi and Gombe States general area, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) directed the troops to maintain continued presence at the Lame-Burra forest.

    “This is to prevent the criminal elements that fled from returning.

    “Subsequently, 2 Forward Operation Bases (FOBs) were established at Lame and Jimi to cover the Lame and Burra axis of the forest respectively.”

    He said, “Troops usually carry out periodic fighting patrols into the forest from the FOBs.

    Besides, soldiers have arrested a suspected Boko Haram terrorist named Adamu Damuna. He is currently being interrogated,” Usman said.

  • Lassa fever: One dead, two hospitalised in Bauchi

    Lassa fever: One dead, two hospitalised in Bauchi

    One person has died from Lassa fever and two others hospitalised in Bauchi State.

    The chairman, Bauchi State Primary Healthcare Development, Ibrahim Gamawa confirmed this yesterday in Bauchi.

    He said one person from Dul ward in Tafawa Balewa Local Government died from the fever on his way to a hospital.

    Gamawa also announced that  two other  suspected victims of the fever  from Alkaleri Local Government and Liman B ward are receiving treatments.

    He stated that the health ministry is partnering with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) to ensure the outbreak is given topmost priority.

    According to him: “The state government and Federal Ministry of Health have  being  liasing and monitoring the development  since the suspected return  of Lassa Fever  in  the state.

    “Besides health workers in the state essentially those  in  rural areas have been trained on how best to be at alert so as to detect the early symptoms of the fever.”

    He informed  a sensitisation  campaign  has been  launched through the mass media on the prevention steps against the fever.

    Bauchi is among five states to have recorded new cases of the fever in recent months.

  • An ‘entertainment troupe’ for Bauchi govt

    Government is an interesting animal, to put it blandly. And governments in Africa and the Black world can safely be described as hybrid monstrosities. You may yet dub them genetic accidents of mired ancestry. Government in this corner of the planet regardless of its size – so long as it is imbued with power – is inherently toxic.

    Power around here is a zero sum game. It almost doesn’t matter who is on the driver’s seat, the effect is the same, it always impacts with the deleterious effect of the hard local gin. Like the type so high in liquor content it is combustible.

    And there are hardly any exceptions on the horizon. Indeed, the difference between a stable leader and a loose cannon is simply power. Power corrupts our people and we do not need absolute power to corrupt us confoundedly. Such has been our jungle lives and the entire snail-shaped continent is replete with examples – north to south, east to west. Just mention any corner and Hardball will show you a dozen maladjusted men big. Sadly, this dark phenomenon has been with us since the beginning of time.

    As you may have been wondering, this running lament has been triggered in Hardball by a small piece of news tucked into the pages of a national newspaper last Sunday. It says: “Bauchi government revokes AIT/Raypower C of O. Of course C of O means Certificate of Occupancy; the authentic official land title signed by governors and issued by state governments in Nigeria.

    Now if that isn’t absolute power by any means or measure. Such powers conferred on one man to render another man homeless and in fact destitute by a single stroke of the pen is indeed awesome. Now the Bauchi State government in the Northeast corner of Nigeria decided to wield its powers thus rendering the broadcast house homeless.

    By revoking the C of O of the Daar Communications Group in Bauchi State, the government and by extension, the governor, has declared the company a persona non grata in the state – without the courtesy of proffering a reason.

    Now the company’s management thinks it may not be unconnected to the fact that it allows the opposition in the state to air their views alongside government.

    Well, let us close it with the official response of Bauchi State government: “The government as empowered by the law, reserves the right to revoke, withdraw or suspend the Certificate of Occupancy given to anyone.

    “The issue should have been whether or not the government has the right to do so and it is not true that government withdrew the Certificate of Occupancy because AIT does not ENTERTAIN, (emphasis is Hardball’s) the state government.”

    No Freudian slip there because governments in Africa would prefer that media houses were ENTERTAINMENT TROUPES. Now that Daar has been banished, let the state government give the C of O to a circus group.

  • Bauchi politics and Dogara’s indiscretions

    By now, the outpouring of disgust that has continued to trail House of Representatives’ Speaker YakubuDogara’s ill-fated attempt to divert the attention of Nigerians from the allegations of budget padding that he is enmeshed in and which has added to the misery of Nigerians, will hopefully teach him a lesson he will never be able to learn in any history class.

    It must have occurred to the most incurable Dogara loyalist that the needless, badly-scripted drama staged last week, when he led a delegation of some Abuja politicians to report the governor of Bauchi State, Barrister Mohammed Abubakar to the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has backfired because Nigerians are more politically conscious now to allow any politician take them for a ride. For the embattled Speaker, if the attempt was aimed at sweeping under the carpet the issue that directly affects the lives of all 170 million of them, using local politics as a pretext, then it has failed.

    As a lawyer, Dogara knows that anyone coming to equity must come with clean hands. Not even Robert Green, the famous American author of the 48 Laws of Power, who advocates that creating enemies to achieve selfish ends will endorse the amateurism and double-speak that have dogged Dogara’s desperate efforts to fend off attention from the budget padding matter that he sensationally claimed is not a crime.

    To Dogara and his team of spin-doctors, accusing the governor of Bauchi State of not applying the sum of N8.6billion bailout funds to the purpose (according to them) for which it was collected, or merely saying he is running a government that excludes their personal interests, will not get the nation to ignore the real issues at hand. Shifting attention to Bauchi will not be enough to get the discerning public to shudder at the mindless indiscretions of the Honourable Speaker.

    Let us even assume for its mischievous intent that the allegations against Governor Abubakar were true, there is no way an issue that affects only about three million Bauchi citizens will override the more damning matter of budget padding that affects 170 million people across Nigeria.

    Many Nigerians have expressed disgust that the timing of Dogara’s allegations against the governor, and ridiculously following it up with personally leading a delegation to protest against him is not right. Even political grandmasters often tutor their disciples to always master the art of timing.  Clearing his name against the allegation of budget padding should have been more urgent and important to Dogara.

    The truth is that, as in many other states of the federation, Governor Abubakar met an over-bloated civil service of well over a hundred thousand personnel. So over-bloated was the number of civil servants that funds accruing monthly to the state, in statutory allocation from the Federation Account, could not even address payment of salaries, not to talk of other matters of development and of urgent importance to the state.

    Even when he very well knew that it was all landmines set up to entangle him, the Bauchi Governor disappointed the perpetrators of this evil by not sacking tens of thousands of civil servants and causing deep damage to the innocent ones among them. To minimise the damage and ensure justice, the governor decided that the way to go was to institutionalise a process of sieving the grain from the chaff by identifying actual workers from the ghost, non-existent ones.

    But in a manner that leave their flanks open, and which could make people to suspect their involvement, Dogara and his gang had as a prime reason for their protest to the APC National Chairman: the need to get the governor to stop the process of verifying the truth. In the words of Senator Suleiman Nazifi, (APC Bauchi North), “all the unending verifications must end,” even though they know, more than most of us, that what they were demanding will only benefit a handful at the expense of millions of good people of Bauchi State.

    Did Governor Abubakar divert the bailout funds meant for payment of salaries to something else? First of all, it is to the credit of the governor that with all the venom coming out of Dogara and his co-travellers, none of them accused him of diverting the money for his personal use. And the answer to the question is that the bailout funds were never diverted. Anyone in doubt can crosscheck with the ICPC which investigated the matter and gave Governor Abubakar a clean bill of health. The funds were openly applied for the purpose for which it was collected. Save for mischief, Dogara knows more than all of us  that though Bauchi is situated on the lower rung of the statutory allocation ladder, with very little potential for internally-generated revenue, Governor Abubakar has strived to be as up to date as possible, with payment of salaries to civil servants. Any check will easily establish the fact that only last month’s salary is being owed the workers. Even at that, efforts are being made to ensure prompt salary payment.

    To lay a solid foundation for the development of the state and boost its sources of revenue, the governor has developed and transformed the Yankari Games Reserve to international standards, and has been paying commensurate attention to overall development and transformation of all of Bauchi, not sections thereof, even though he is inhibited by the clearly-known national tragedy of paucity of resources.

    This brings us to the question of motive. People have rightly been asking: what does Dogara aim to achieve by sabre-rattling? In Bauchi today, people openly talk about demands on the governor to purchase properties in Abuja and abroad for some federal legislators, and share out the state resources on a monthly basis to the agitators, even if far more resources are needed to develop the state and transform the lives of the people. There are also intrigues surrounding the general election year of 2019 as another reason Dogara and his cohorts are neck-deep in fighting the governor. The group is believed to have co-opted a member of the federal cabinet to contest against Governor Abubakar in 2019 in case Dogara’s rumoured candidature fails.

    To buttress the fact that the motive of the latter-day agitators is far from being noble; that it is all about personal interest, they complained to the APC National Chairman that Governor Abubakar is running an exclusive government.  This was also shot down by Comrade Sabo, the governor’s media aide when he pointed out that “after the gubernatorial primaries, the governor picked Engineer Nuhu Gidado as his deputy, though Gidado had contested against him in the primary election.

    “Again, the allegation that the governor has side-lined them is unfounded because five serving commissioners were close to these people that are now fighting the governor. Why are members of the state House of Assembly and the state chapter of the APC not complaining? It goes to show that the Abuja politicians are out for mischief.”

    Does Dogara listen to any wise counsel from his retinue of advisers and hangers-on? Only they can provide the answer, but it is either they are giving him inferior advice, or they are afraid to tell him the bitter truth because of his rumoured over-bearing, only-me-knows-it-all nature. People have rightly been asking: How many wars can the speaker fight at the same time? Throughout history, even wisest generals believe the best way to win a war is not to spread your strength thin. Of course, he can seek to fight on all fronts if his motive were pro-people.

    In the traditional Bauchi society that some of us sprouted from, trouble is regarded as an enemy that one is enjoined to always keep a safe distance from. Not just when it knocks on one’s door. Trouble is like an ill-wind, which blows no good to anyone.

     

    • Musa wrote from Bauchi.

  • Re: Bauchi: Democracy or anarchy?

    Some political agitators in Bauchi State represented by Ahmed Yerima, currently a member in the National Assembly from Misau/Dambam federal constituency, have in recent times resorted to negative publicity about the governor of the state in print and electronic media. I intended to turn a blind eye as well as deaf ears to such mischief as mere propaganda that could equally be ignored by the public, but the intensification of the campaigns, which from the looks of things are beginning to create wrong impressions about the governor, made me change my position.

    It is a common knowledge that the group in question has an overriding ambition to produce the next Bauchi State governor from within its fold. It is not wrong for any eligible aspirant to vie for that seat whether in the ruling party or any opposition party, but what is worrisome and crude is how the group is bent on damaging the reputation of the governor to have its ambition actualized. They see Barrister Mohammed AbdullahiAbubakar as the only impediment that will hamper their plans against 2019 if he goes for a second term. The initial scheme, which at last they realized could not work, was that Mohammed Abubakar would not seek reelection at the termination of his first tenure, failing to understand that this propaganda would not change the views of the electorate about the governor, in as much as the needed development would be adequately provided.

    The Yerima group insidiously hatches one evil plan after the other to make sure the good image of the governor is dented so that getting him unseated in 2019 will be easier. They spread, through their agents on social media, all sorts of malicious rumours and unfounded speculations in order to overheat the polity. The recent of such acts was an article authored by same Yerima, published in The Nation.  Though from the title of the write-up, Yerima was confused to use the word ‘anarchy’ where it didn’t fit, being that the state is well governed with all organs and instruments of power perfectly functional, it was clear that he was trying to falsely blame the government of Barrister Abubakar for not carrying all along. This is untrue. This government is all inclusive, because it involves all strata of the political class and even community, business and religious leaders in most of the decisions it takes. It is only members of the Yerima group, who I can best describe as enemies from within that turned out to be pariahs who for their selfish motives decided to break away, and even in this regard the governor did all he could to extend his hand of friendship and fraternity to individual members of this group in order to allow peace and unity to reign in his government, but it was met with rebuff, because the well-being of the state is not the primary objective of these people.

    I am yet to fathom what Yerima means by ‘‘wanton lack of adherence to norms and international best practices against democratic values’’.

    Yerima has a wrong perception of what politics is all about for dissenting to the idea of hosting Ahmed AdamuMu’azu and Bala Mohammed as citizens of Bauchi State to a dinner in Saudi Arabia. A liberal political affiliation does not prohibit interaction on personal level between members of different political parties. Politics is all about interests, which could be positive or negative. Both the former PDP national chairman and FCT minister have been good friends of the governor for as long as before the PDP and APC came to exist. What is wrong if they met with the governor in the holy land, ate and exchanged pleasantries where politics was thrown aside to unite with God? In whatever way we look at it, the two men are senior citizens of Bauchi State and must, therefore, be treated as such, regardless of what political party they belong to. What if they decide now to come over to the APC as many of their calibre did? This is never an excuse to portray Governor Mohammed AbdullahiAbubakar as being double-faced. After all, in what way did Mu’azu destroy Bauchi State when compared to the succeeding regime in which Yerima himself served and benefitted immensely? Is he part of the destruction? He should allow Mohammed Abubakar to rebuild.

    Yerima and his sponsors take advantage and capitalize on the present economic downturn, a reality that affects not only Nigeria but the world at large, to incite the polity against the government, especially the working class. Inability to pay salaries has become a national phenomenon which doesn’t exempt Bauchi State, and if we keep sentiments aside and assess the situation in the state, we would find  out that much has been done to address the situation, and I can say that 80 percent of the problem is solved.

    Let us consider other states with similar problems which are over 20 in number. Many of them with lesser workforce than Bauchi State could not pay salaries for as long as seven months and even above. Some threaten to pay half salaries if the situation doesn’t improve, and with the growing activities of Niger Delta Avengers, there is no sign of any improvement in the near future. Yet Governor Abubakar did all he could to settle the accumulated salaries to the barest minimum, but the gesture is not being appreciated. Even governors of the Niger Delta who collect higher grants than the rest of the states are paralyzed to pay salaries. We should also take into consideration that Governor Abubakar has come with clean intention and determination to lift the standard of the state higher from where he met it. I heard him mention on many occasions, before and after assuming office that Bauchi State was retarded in terms of development as compared to younger states created much later than Bauchi. He laments the deplorable state of all sectors and other social services including education which was allocated 20 percent of this year’s budget in order to save the sector from total collapse.

    All these need huge amount of money to be executed, and in this regard the governor must balance between the interests of the electorate and the civil servants for the dividends of democracy to reach where they are supposed to. Therefore while salaries are being paid, infrastructural provision is equally foremost.

    We all know that the beauty of democracy is the right it gives to all individuals to vote and be voted for. In line this, Ahmed Yerima or any other member of his clique has the right to vie for the gubernatorial seat of Bauchi State provided such a person fulfils the constitutional requirements in that regards. What is unworthy is vilifying the government with no justification, and especially the defamatory remarks about the personality of His Excellency. If they have anything to offer the state, let them express it in the right way and allow our governor to work for us. No matter their urgency and desperation, they have to wait for the incumbency to come to its stipulated end, and it is then they can assess and say whether this government lives up to expectation or not.

     

    • Nata’ala writes from Bauchi.

  • Bauchi: Democracy or anarchy?

    In our time, political speech and writing are largely the defence of the indefensible
    – George Orwell.

    The tide of turbulent waves is ebbing in Bauchi State, but how it plays out remains to be seen by serious political watchers and strategists. Since the inception of the overwhelming concept of change, vis-à-vis the momentum of President Buhari’s emergence and the beneficiaries of that “rolling stone gathers no moss” experience in the Nigerian political firmament, many political players will find out that our leader (PMB) who belongs to everybody and belongs at the same time to no one paradoxically, means business.

    In a clear departure from what obtained as a norm in times past, and the difficulties facing the people of Nigeria, I will want to intimate all well-meaning and patriotic Nigerians of the facts and possibility of some turncoats or merchants of double standards are among APC fold. If care and repositioning is not done now, we will have ourselves to blame come 2019. The experience learnt by the PDP should not be lost on all of us which will be taking collective amnesia too far.

    The crux of the matter lies in the fact that a very resourceful state, with enormous contributions in human and material capital to the Nigerian state, is at the verge of going down on its knees, due to lack of prudence, dislike for mankind and wanton lack of adherence to norms and international best practices against democratic values.

    A discerning mind may want to know to what I owe this mind-set. It is only based on the miscarriage of justice, fairness and equity in Bauchi State.

    The intrigues and political philandering displayed in Bauchi State can at best be synonymous with anarchy, where all rules of governance are relegated to the background and self-serving interests are brought to the fore. The inherited PDP Caretaker Local Government Chairmen can only work against this new administration’s policy of zero tolerance to corruption and its appurtenances. This will be an antithesis to the belief’s and tenets of President Buhari’s government.

    The most amazing thing that happened in the last few days of the fasting period is Governor Mohammed Abubakar’s extension of his goodwill to some of the PDP primary stakeholders like AhmaduMu’azu, former PDP National Chairman and Bala Mohammed, former Minister of FCT, in Saudi Arabia.

    It’s okay to have friends across political divides but not friends that destroyed the system which we are trying very hard to revamp. The APC government in Bauchi has now become a laughing stock in the Social Media and other forums. It is not only political misconduct but lack of wisdom, tact and organizational skills. If he is a man of honour, which he is trying to claim, he should resign honourably. If he refused to do so the people will vote him out in 2019, as they did his former governors PDP friends. What he has in common with his cronies is common interest and not PDP or APC ideologies. The common man in Bauchi is now aware of this common interest among cronies, exchanging the mantle of leadership among themselves and will no longer allow it to continue.

    My conviction lies in the fact that I have severally brought these issues to the front burner and waiting for it to be distilled and served to patriotic citizens of Bauchi State. In the way they can appreciate it and play their own part as the owners of the state politically. In one of my earlier discourse I highlighted the Republican nature of the average Bauchi man, and I dropped the blame for outsourcing leadership at the doorsteps of the political elites.

    Imagine a state where there is no interaction between the key stakeholders in the state leadership of the party, the governor, the National Assembly members and the grassroots. Imagine this scenario and add the untold hardship permeating all sectors of the state. Mix it with the fact that you will get persecuted through queries and outright dismissal, for stating the obvious misconduct of governance in the state and proffering solutions to make a way forward.

    Every man is guilty of all the good that he did not do – Voltaire. Silence in this case would be misconstrued by the folks in the state to mean complicity in this ubiquitous rape of democracy. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”, added Edmund Burke. As things stand now,Governor Abubakaris caught in a state of doublethink, according to George Orwell; Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them. The high sentiments always win in the end; the leaders who offer blood, toil, tears and sweat always get more out of their followers than those who offer safety and a good time. When it comes to the pinch, human beings are heroic. He also posited that; War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength.

    One of the pomposities and lack of vision of Governor Abubakarwas exposed through his release of 146 prisoners in the state. The irony remains in the fact that he is sending them back to the same place they left, with no support for their parents who are salary and pension earners. They will surely miss the meals provided by the federal government in the prisons. What happens after that? Will he give them employment to remove the possibility of returning to crime? His use of thugs as his personal security is an offshoot of the existence of such elements that are ready to do anything to get out of poverty and unemployment.

    The Statutory allocation for Local Governments is about N2.5 billion, an average of N120 million per LG and about N3 billion for the state every month, over 5 billion in total. Bauchi Local Government, with the highest allocation, got N170 million in January and shared in February; Bogoro and Dass Local Governments got N76 million each, in the same period which was the lowest, but what is on ground is not commensurate to these statutory provisions.

    The dysfunction of hospitals, water supply and the non-payment of salaries and pensions is certainly breeding discontentment among the people. Hon. Ibrahim Baba from Katagum Federal Constituency, singlehandedly spent over N10 million cleaning waste in his constituency and its immediate environs to improve sanitation and good health. All these are despite the bailout funds of N10 billion and another N4 billion borrowed without approval by the state House of Assembly (N14 billion in total), ostensibly to pay salaries and pensions.

    This is the time for the anti-graft agencies to come all out and do something about the fiscal irresponsibility in Bauchi State.

    My best wishes still goes to the good people of my constituency, Bauchi State and the country at large, who have sacrificed a lot for democracy.

     

    • Hon. Yerima is a member of the House of Representatives.

  • Bickering in Bauchi

    SIR: Over the last few weeks, the camps of the Bauchi State governor and that of the Speaker, House of Representatives have had or created reasons to exchange words in the newspapers as to each other’s misgivings about their party, the APC, and governance in the state.

    So far, the camps have allowed the exchange to deteriorate into smear and name-calling campaigns rather than one to be confronted with humility and available facts like the matured groups they ought to be. Furthermore, the local media and polity have been so heated as to call for concern by anyone who wishes Bauchi any good.

    The camp of the Speaker, which was later to be championed by Hon. Ahmed Yerima, has reeled out its grievances as to certain conditions in Bauchi and its state of affairs, which they claim are an indication of poor leadership in the affairs of the state. The governor’s camp has however responded by denying the claims and going further to insinuate any lack of credibility by the claimants.

    In all this, so far, no elder statesman, stakeholder or prominent politician has deemed it fit to lend their voice in the exchange. They should have necessarily waded into the conflict and called both parties to order, at least for the sake of the unity of the party and by extension the interest of the generality of the people of Bauchi State. The party which ordinarily should have come in as a disinterested arbitrator to arrest the drift has already taken sides with the executive. Thus it has lost the   moral authority to intervene and mediate to the satisfaction of both sides.

    In either of these the people of Bauchi State are and will continue to be at the receiving end. They deserve better after the Yuguda phenomenon. Bauchi State and its people should begin to enjoy or at least begin to see some promises of a better future. They have sacrificed and have been patient for the lack of development over the last eight years, and now this.

    Bauchi politicians should know that the people can be tolerant. They have so far been. They can equally sacrifice where they must and also envisage a good ending. Taking them for a ride is what any politician worth his onions cannot afford to do. The state badly needs development in all aspects of the indices. We have been living on the glory of the past. The glory is fast fading unless concrete steps are taken to arrest the decay.

    Politicians should get their acts together. Bauchi State governor, legislators- federal and state, stakeholders at both federal and state levels, must, as a matter of urgency, jettison all forms of bickering and put heads together for the short, medium and long term development of the state.

    As things stand it may not be too late. The people of Bauchi and indeed the nation are watching.

     

    • Abdu AdamuMisau,

    misauabduadamu@gmail.com.

  • We’re robbed in Bauchi – Pillars

    We’re robbed in Bauchi – Pillars

    Kano Pillars have alleged they were robbed of victory at league leaders, Wikki Tourists after the referee “manufactured three red cards and a penalty” against them.

    Wikki came from a goal down in the first half to beat Kano Pillars 3-1 at home yesterday to stay top of the Nigeria league table.

    However, Pillars spokesman Idris Malikawa told AfricanFootball.com his team deserved to win this match but the referee from Niger State and his assistants combined to ensure they did not.

    “They simply manufactured three red cards against us – to start with the foul that was penalised in the 48th minute was not committed by Jamiu Alimi, but Joel Djondang,” said Malikawa.

    “Even the penalty against us for their second goal was not a penalty. The referee manufactured it.

    “We deserved to win this game because up to the 77th minute, there was no pressure on us, we had full control of the game.

    “But some other people simply said Wikki must win this game by any means possible.

    “We are highly disappointed and demand the LMC investigate what happened in this match.”

  • With Abubakar, a new Bauchi beckons

    For the people of Bauchi State, voting for the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial candidate in the April 2015 election was predicated on a conscious decision by the electorate to open a new lease of life for the state. For many, the decision to vote for the APC was not misplaced as the Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar-led administration has continued to fulfil the promises he made during electioneering campaign across the state.

    For Abubakar, the wind of change that is blowing across every facets of the state is to enable the people see the difference between the 16 years of lack-lustre governance of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the proactive mien of the present administration. He believes that his ascension to the state’s number one position was made possible by the masses of the state who thought that it was time to move Bauchi forward through desirable change that trickles down to the people.

    The governor’s vision is aimed at political and social re-engineering of the state back to its pride of place in Nigeria. Since assumption of office, Governor Abubakar has swung into action by first defining the roadmap to achieving the new Bauchi. The agenda includes a reformed and reinvigorated civil service that delivers service to the people. The current multi-pronged approach in reforming the civil service is expected to culminate into a robust civil service that meet people’s expectations. It is intended to strengthen the capacity, skills and capabilities of workers.

    The administration’s resolve to embark on a massive restructuring of political apparatus in the state is to ensure that all political office holders in the states see their positions as public trust, an opportunity to render service to the people of the state.  This new awareness will create the needed mind-set to chart a new course in elevating public service that works for the people.

    Expectedly this new orientation has brought about the much-needed team spirit that will galvanise service delivery in the state. The top to bottom demonstrable leadership model of Governor Abubakar is beginning to impact on all cadres of leadership including commissioners, permanent secretaries, directors, and across the state civil service and local government service commission. In Bauchi, it is a new dawn aimed at achieving world class service delivery, managing for results and a better Bauchi for all.

    The Governor’s leadership principle which essentially is “managing for results” created an enabling environment which has made government more responsive to the aspiration of the people. It is a leadership that frowns at flamboyant lifestyles and wasteful spending of public funds. In the last 12 months of being on saddle, the governor has remained focused on his administration’s set objectives. In line with his agenda of managing for results, the governor decided to cut down cost of governance by reducing number of political appointees to essentially those needed to deliver efficient service to the people. This has helped to save funds for investments in public infrastructure, education, health, water and sanitation, agriculture and other social sectors

    Among the milestone so far achieved by the governor is the payment of workers salary, which other states across the country still find difficult to manage. Bauchi has set template for ensuring prompt payment of workers salary. Governor Abubakar believes that prompt payment of salaries to workers is crucial to performance and remains consistent in delivering this promise. It is no longer news that under Governor Abubakar’s watch, three months arrears of salaries inherited from the immediate past administration was settled in what many public administration experts described as unprecedented. For the governor, the decision to ensure regular payment of workers’ salaries is predicated on the principle that a well-motivated work force will put in their best in delivering efficient service to the people.

    In furtherance of his campaign promise to uphold public trust at all times, in his inaugural address at Tafawa Balewa Stadium Bauchi, on May 29, 2015, the governor unveiled the administration strategy for nurturing a corruption free public service in Bauchi. The intention is to set a benchmark for assessing public officers and their fidelity to public trust. For the governor, public office is a trust which is given by the people and must be guarded with high level of integrity and transparency.   Following up to the strategy, he set up a Commission of Inquiry to review the activities of the immediate past administration of Governor Isa Yuguda.

    The committee which was headed by Alhaji Salihu Lukman undertook a forensic audit of all contracts, expenditure and appointments by the Isa Yuguda’s administration from May 2007 to May 2015. Governor Abubakar disclosed that his administration noticed that corruption had eaten deep into the fabric of state’s socio-economic and political life, hence his resolve to sanitise the state. He also appointed a committee for the recovery of all government properties illegally taken carted away by former state public officials.

    Through the work of the committee chaired by Air Commodore Ahmed Tijjani (retd), assets worth millions of naira has been recovered, while its work is still on-going. Other items recovered include monies worth millions of naira, lands and other properties. At the last count, the committee recovered over 70 vehicles, generating sets valued at N600 million, and  several air conditioners. For Governor Abubakar, the exercise is to instil discipline, transparency and accountability in the handling of public trust and government property.

    Another area of focus by the governor is the security sector, in view of its importance as an enabler in promoting political, economic and social development. The state government working in collaboration with the federal government and the security agencies have continued to keep insurgency at bay in the state.

    The administration identified with President Muhammadu Buhari’s undying commitment to defeat Boko Haram in the north east region. In partnering with the federal government, the governor has been engaging the people of the state on the need to stamp out insurgency, uphold peace across the communities, while urging traditional leaders and public officers across the country to promote national unity.

    For Bauchi state, a new era which began on May 29, 2015 will lead to emergence of a new Bauchi that delivers the goods for the people. The citizenry as the centre of governance will no doubt be better served given the framework being put in place by Governor Abubakar administration.

    Wholly taken, it is not difficult to see that the current administration is on a mission to restore the state to its pride of place in the north-east region and the nation in general. The governor is focused and has kept faith with the people through the numerous innovations he has brought to bear in the governance of the state. With his eyes on the ball, and the support of all Bauchi stakeholders, making of a new Bauchi is a done deal.

     

    • Bello writes from Bauchi