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Tag: Tambuwal

  • Tinubu, Akande, Fayose, others grace Akeredolu’s inauguration

    Tinubu, Akande, Fayose, others grace Akeredolu’s inauguration

    The National Leader of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was among the several dignitaries that attended the inauguration of new Ondo State governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, held at the Akure Township Stadium on Friday.

    The stadium was  filled to capacity as early as 8:00 a.m. with well-wishers, APC members, associates, friends and family members of the new governor and his deputy storming the venue to witness the event.

    Different cultural groups, including the Owo Cultural group, APC cultural group, the Kiribo and Abode cultural troupes were also at the venue to entertain the guests.

    Others dignitaries that graced the inauguration are – the National Chairman of APC, Chief John Oyegun, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Lasun Yusuf, Governors Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto),  Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti), Abiola Ajimobi (Oyo),  Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), Yaya Bello (Kogi),  Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi) and APC Southwest Chairman, Chief Pius Akinyelure.

    Former governors in attendance included Bamidele Olumilua (Ondo), Olusegun Osoba (Ogun), Adeniyi Adebayo (Ekiti), Olagunsoye Oyinlola (Osun), who represented former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Abubakar Baraje, senators, Gbenga Ashafa, ‎Olusola Adeyeye, Dino Melaye, Ajayi Boroffice, Tayo Alasoadura, Isiaka Adeleke, Yele Omogunwa, Hon. Babatunde Kolawole, Friday Olemija, Mayowa Akinforlarin, and Victor Akinjo.

    The traditional rulers were not left out of the ceremony and those in attendance included the representatives of Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Olowo of Owo, Oba Folagbade Olateru-Olagbegi, Osemawe of Ondo, Oba Victor kiladejo, Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, Olugbo of Ugbo and Oba Fredrick Akinruntan.

    Some members of the Federal Executive Council notably Minister of Solid Minerals, Kayode Fayemi, Lai Muhammed (Information), Adebayo Shittu (Communications), Audu Ogbeh (Agriculture) and Chris Ngige (Labour and Productivity) were also at the event.

     

  • How Nigeria can get out of recession, by Tambuwal

    How Nigeria can get out of recession, by Tambuwal

    Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal spoke with reporters in Sokoto, the state capital, on the economic recession and challenges of governance in the Northwest state. ADAMU SULEIMON was there.

    The last administration promised to improve the welfare of religious and traditional rulers in the state. Why haven’t you done much in that regard?

    First of all, this government respects traditional institutions and since we came on board, we have accorded them the respect they deserve. They play important roles in efforts to sustain peace and security, and in a larger sense, they promote religious and communal harmony. Because of their place in our history, we know we cannot do anything less for them. But, you will agree with me that our financial situation since we came on board has been precarious. Government has cut back on much expenditure, and has prioritised areas of needs for the whole state. I am happy that our traditional rulers have understood clearly what we are faced with and they have not pressured us to continue with the policy of fixing their palaces when there are more competing needs in our hospitals, primary healthcare centres, agriculture, education, youth, women empowerment among others. Similarly, if you look into the number and importance of projects we met on ground and the pressure to complete them, what we did is the best for the state. We have inherited about 30 large and important projects from the last administration, and we are working hard to complete all of them and put them to use for the benefit of the citizens. These are projects that we have to complete as allowing them rot away will lead to wastage of funds earlier expended to start these projects.

    Our philosophy has been to take these gradually, depending on availability of funds, and complete them before delving into new ones. That policy has served us well in the last two years and we are happy to put them to use. What you may not be aware is that many of those projects for traditional rulers were to be executed from the joint accounts with the local government councils. But at the moment, many of those councils cannot carry out any meaningful project outside payment of salaries. We have severally bailed them out from the state government to enable them meet their obligations to workers. In such situations, I don’t think they are buoyant enough to embark on building and repairs of palaces.

    There are complaints that many of the council workers don’t get their salaries on time, what is responsible?

    We have carried out verification exercise to determine the correct number of workers in each of the 23 local government councils of Sokoto state. What we met on ground was beyond reason because the strength of the workforce in our local governments is twice more than that of Kano that has 44 local government areas. We felt this is not sustainable. We are continuing with the biometric verification to ensure that only genuine workers remain in the schedule of payment, and they will be paid according to their levels. We must do this to sanitise the system and ensure ghost workers or absentee workers do not find sanctuary in the local government system.

    Few days ago, you dissolved the management team of the state Board of Internal Revenue. Why? What is the current IGR figure for Sokoto state?

    For almost two years, we gave the dissolved team the necessary incentive and support to improve internal revenue base of the state, but they haven’t done that. If you recall, I have stated publicly that we would take action to ensure better performance in revenue generation. After a review of their performance, we decided to bring in new persons to reposition the board. As for the figures, since we came on board, the monthly IGR for Sokoto ranges between N340 to N400 million. When I spoke to the ministry of finance, I was told that the previous administration received up to N500 million monthly. My argument is that this figure they are giving us is meager. What we deduct monthly as PAYE from civil servants alone, should be in the range of this figure, so what happened to other revenue sources? The new team has been mandated to put in place a new framework which will boost performance and improve revenue figures.

    With this new target, are we seeing tougher measures against members of the public who are not paying tax?

    We are fully aware of the economic situation in the country, especially survival of businesses and the harsh conditions they are operating in at the moment. We will put that in consideration in pursuing what is due for the government. I am saying this because as leaders, we need to be clear about our intentions. Whenever we ask people to make sacrifices, we must reassure them that it is for common good. So, we are telling the people that whatever they pay to government as tax, will be applied judiciously for the benefit of all the people of the state.

    How will you review the performance of the  2016 budget?

    I’ve spoken about this during the presentation of this year’s budget, and in fact when I assented to the budget law a few days ago. Taking a holistic view of the performance of the budget, I feel we can do more. That is why we started this year by making necessary changes in the personnel that drive the budget process, as can be seen from what we did at the board of internal revenue. We will continue to improve the system because time is not on our side. What I’m promising the people is that the performance of the 2017 budget will be better than that of 2016 in terms of implementation, while even distribution of resources will be ensured. We will start new projects across the state, with much emphasis placed on rural areas.

    At the meeting of the Northern Governors Forum recently, you agreed to improve the security situation in your states. how far have you gone in that regard?

    We discussed many areas of cooperation, for example agriculture, education and the likes. As for security, we agreed to share intelligence and this has been paying off. Take for instance issues of castle rustling; because of renewed onslaught by security agencies and the inter-state collaboration among all the states, this problem has reduced. We still have few scattered instances, but we are working to tackle that as well. This cooperation is extending to cases of kidnapping, armed robbery, civil unrest and the likes. So the more we collaborate the better for us as states, and the better for our citizens.

    What’s the way out of the recession for the country?

    Experts have called on the Federal Government to inject more money into the system. Personally, I believe creating job opportunities, especially through the construction industry, and injection of more money into the economy, remain a sure way out of the current recession in the country. Ask any Economist about the way out of recession, and I am sure they will inform you that massive construction efforts, backed by release of funds, will create jobs whose multiplier effects will jumpstart the economic barometer. As Speaker of the House of Representatives, I’ve had reasons to disagree with many of the policies of the last administration of President Goodluck Jonathan which we felt were inimical to the overall development and well-being of the people. Many thought we were raising the alarm because we had personal hatred for him. That is not the case. I had nothing personal against the former President. The recession we are currently facing was as a result of the way the economy was mismanaged, largely, by the Jonathan administration. What is the way out? I’ve said we need to inject money into the system and create employment opportunities for the people. And one way to do that is to engage in massive construction projects. It is part of the reason why we encouraged the Federal Government to disburse the funds from the debt relief for states to kick-start activities at regional level. Similarly, we’ve read how immediate-past President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, used this strategy of massive construction works to take America out of economic challenges. So, construction projects alone will create a lot of jobs which will benefit the economy. We all know that Nigerians are not happy and are running out of patience, but they should be more patient. It is very easy to destroy but to rebuild the economy takes time.

  • I had nothing against Jonathan but his policies – Tambuwal

    I had nothing against Jonathan but his policies – Tambuwal

    Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, on Wednesday said he has nothing personal against former President Goodluck Jonathan, insisting that he was only opposed to some of his policies that were inimical to the progress of the country.

    “It is normal to have opposing views on policies and programmes as it affects the general expectations of individuals and group. That was my realistic view on my stand against the former president’s leadership,” the governor told journalists.

    Recalling his days as Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tambuwal explained that he disagreed with the former President on certain policies adopted by his administration.

    “As the Speaker of the House of Representatives then, I was always raising the alarm on the way things were being managed in the country especially lack of prudence. But some people felt that I was against Jonathan.

    “I never hated Jonathan as a person, but only disagreed with his policies. The recession we are currently facing was as a result of the way the economy was mismanaged by the Jonathan administration,” he added.

    The governor said the only way out of this recession was for the Federal Government to inject more money into the economy especially in construction projects, stressing that” this is the only way to create jobs and boost the nation’s economy.”

    He stated: “Ask any economist around the world about the panacea to recession, he or she will tell you that it is the injection of money into the economy. That is why we are asking the federal government to give us the Paris Club money to enable us inject huge funds into the economy.

    “Former President of the United States of America, Barack Obama, used this strategy of massive construction works to take America out of recession. So construction projects alone will create a lot of jobs and get Nigeria out of recession.

    “I know that Nigerians are not happy and are running out of patience but they should be patient. It is very easy to destroy but to rebuild the economy takes time.”

  • Tambuwal signs 2017 budget; dissolves state’s revenue board

    Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal  on Friday night signed into law the state’s 2017 appropriation bill of over N204.3 billion with a commitment to ensure its implementation for the benefit of the state.

    Speaking at the event, Tambuwal expressed delight at the timely passage of the budget document by the state House of Assembly.

    Despite the financial difficulties faced in the country last year, he said his administration did not falter in payment of entitlement to workers and pensioners and added that the Auditor-General for Local Governments is working to effect the payment of outstanding pensions and gratuities of local government staff

    He also promised that the performance of the budget will be better than that of 2016 and that even distribution of resources will be ensured. He added that his administration will “start new projects across the state, with much emphasis placed on rural areas,” he said.

    Of the over N204.3billion budget, the education sector leads with 27.3 per cent.

    Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon Salihu Maidaji, extolled the existing cordial relationship between the legislative and executive arms of government in the state.

    Meanwhile Governor Tambuwal has approved the dissolution of the management committee of Sokoto State Board of Internal Revenue. He directed the former team headed by Musa Muhammad Maccido to hand over the affairs to the newly-appointed Interim Management Committee, pending when a substantive board will be appointed.

    A statement issued weekend by the Sokoto State Commissioner of Finance, Saidu Umar, said other officers directed to vacate their posts and return to their mother ministries for reassignment include Muhammed Nasir Binji, Bashar Abdullahi, Abubakar Zaki Tambuwal, Hajiya Amina Sani and Wadata Umar.

    Also affected are: Muhammed Ahmed, Malami Ibn Labbo, Umar Mairiga and Badamasi Garba Giwa.

    “In the same vein, the following persons have been appointed to serve as members of the interim management committee of the Sokoto State Board of Internal Revenue: Aminu Dalhatu (Head), Usman Sani Kasim, Usman Balarabe, Abubakar M. Labaran, Haruna Ibrahim, Habiba Abdulaziz, Bello Sodangi, Bala Ango Dogon Daji and Firdausi A. Chadi,” the statement added.

    While urging the appointees to develop a holistic road map that will lead to the strengthening of the board, the statement said government will give all necessary support to the new team for optimum results.

  • Tambuwal sacks revenue board, appoints interim committee

    Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, has approved the dissolution of the management committee of the state’s Board of Internal Revenue.

    The state Commissioner of Finance, Alhaji Saidu Umar, in a statement, said a nine-member interim management committee had been constituted, pending when a substantive board would be appointed.

    The commissioner urged the new appointees to develop a ”holistic road map” that would strengthen the board.

    “The state government will provide necessary support to the new team, headed by Aminu Dalhatu, to enable it achieve optimum results,” the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted the commissioner as saying in the statement.

     

  • Sokoto poll: Court to hear suit against Tambuwal February 28

    Sokoto poll: Court to hear suit against Tambuwal February 28

    The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Monday picked February 28 for hearing in a fresh suit seeking to remove the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, from office.

    The suit is in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling of December 9, 2016, which ordered the court to retry the case on its merit and make decisions as demanded by law, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

    Justice Gabriel Kolawole adjourned the matter at the instance of the plaintiff’s counsel, Ikoro M. Ikoro, for the determination of the plaintiff’s motion.

    The plaintiff, Umaru Dahiru, is seeking nullification of Tambuwal’s nomination as All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the 2015 governorship election in the state.

    Ikoro, who confirmed receipt of the counter motion, said he needed a short adjournment to enable him respond to the counter affidavit.

    He informed the court that he had filed a motion dated January31 to amend the reliefs being sought in the originating summon.

    The counsel said he wanted some reliefs to be deleted from the originating summon having been overtaken by events.

    However, Mr. Jibrim okutepa(SAN) and Mr. Sunday Ameh (SAN) counsel to APC and Tambuwal, respectively, said they have filed a counter affidavit  to object to attempt to amend the originating summon.

  • Tambuwal’s indelible marks on Seat of Caliphate

    Tambuwal’s indelible marks on Seat of Caliphate

    If he were to be asked his birthday wish this day in 2015, the then Sokoto State gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, would have probably prayed for success in the elections he was facing few weeks away. He wouldn’t have stopped at that; the Tambuwal I know would have definitely prayed for God’s hand in not only winning the election but discharging the responsibilities that come with the victory creditably.
    I don’t know whether somewhere in his mind, in his usual meditation to mark his birthday, Tambuwal indeed supplicate to God on these two fundamental issues. But one thing that is clear is God almighty has been gracious. Less than 90 days after his 49th birthday, Tambuwal emerged as the Sokoto governor-elect and today, at 51, he has performed so wonderfully that he is celebrated home and away.
    This is enough reason for Tambuwal to be grateful to God, and it is a good reason for all of us his lieutenants and indeed the entire people of Sokoto state to join him in appreciating the blessings of the almighty at this important juncture.
    In steering the state-ship, Tambuwal’s major account for success is his recognition, ab initio, of the weight of expectations that come with leadership, especially executive power entrusted on a governor in a state like Sokoto. But most importantly is his realisation, like all great leaders in history that leadership essentially means taking people where they should be, not necessary where they want to be.
    There is no gainsaying that the developmental challenges bugging developing countries like Nigeria is long diagnosed to be the result of poor leadership. Years of self-serving, short-sighted leadership has contributed in no mean way in stagnating development around here and making us wander in the same cycle of problems and challenges.
    With this clear vision on the expectations and where he wants to see the state under his stewardship, Tambuwal set out to prioritise and articulate this vision into areas of focus.
    Refreshingly, he set out to differ by coming up with genuine, insightful and visionary ideas to turn around, not only the day to day course of life, but initiatives that would also alter the face of the society. For Tambuwal, whatever is done is not just another project, it is part of the bold revolutionary interventions that have set his government apart from the pack.
    Sokoto, like many a northern state, is often listed among what is termed ELDS – educationally least developed states. This negative ranking is tabulated based on enrolment ratio, the out of school children, school dropouts and other parameters.
    A state that is the nucleus of the knowledge-driven Sokoto Caliphate was unfortunately lagging in the area of education, especially for the girl child. It was therefore revolutionizing for Governor Tambuwal to marshal out sweeping policies aimed at turning around the statistics. To this end, the state government announced state of emergency on the education sector. This impressive pronouncement has since been backed by action.
    The first of those bold steps was the announcement, early in the day, of enforcement of school enrolment for all eligible children. The government, in attempt to tackle the lethargic attitude of some parents to modern schooling promulgated punishment against parents who refuse to enrol their school-aged children in schools.
    The government then went a step further by introducing incentives for parents who enrol their daughters in school, through a conditional cash transfer scheme to enable the parents support their wards through school. Through this carrot and stick approach the state government targets enrolment of 1.2 million pupils that are hitherto out of school.
    As a surest path to development, the emphasis by the Tambuwal administration on education is not only commendable but exemplary especially for educationally-challenged states of northern Nigeria.
    Education, in this information age, is the key to the future. The wisest decision, for any leader in this age is to have a holistic and wide-ranging investment in human capital development through education. Here is the Tambuwal model, a model of societal upliftment through the viable investment in its human capital.
    By making education the mainstay of his administration, Governor Tambuwal has put Sokoto, once again, on the pathway to greatness. If this noble agenda is pursued diligently, beyond the rhetoric as in many government programmes, then it is safe for one to expect Sokoto to shine among peers in near the future.
    This trend will continue through the year as we have seen with the budget submitted last month to the state House of Assembly by Governor Tambuwal, where education is given the lion share of 27.3 percent of the N204 billion budget estimate. This is a first from Tambuwal as the allocation exceeds even the utopian target of 26 percent set by UNESCO.
    The huge attention being received by education in Sokoto under Tambuwal, justified as it is, does not mean that other critical and important sectors are neglected.
    Agriculture and healthcare delivery have equally benefitted from the Tambuwal’s methodical and strategic interventions. Under healthcare, for example, the state government, like in all sectors, set out with a strategy by having 33 professionals brainstorm to come up with the Sokoto State Strategic Health Plan 2016-2020. One of the fall outs of this is the identification of six general hospitals that are currently being upgraded into premier reference. Also, just as 2016 was coming to a close, Tambwal flagged off the Sokoto contributory health scheme where the government put down the seed fund of N100 million.
    Contrary to the usual practice in Nigeria, Governor Tambuwal went all out since his coming to ensure that all works he inherited have been completed by budgeting huge sums of money for that. The result today is the commissioning of the 500-units Kalambaina Housing Estate by President Muhammadu Buhari in November last year. Another big one in this regard is the coming on board of the 38MW Sokoto State Independent Power Project.
    Even by this pigeon-holed look into the stewardship of Sokoto state by Governor Tambuwal it is evident that this true leader of his people is indeed serving the people diligently towards creating a new vista for Sokoto State. The Matawallen Sokoto is poised to making his Sokoto a pride of all Sakkwatawa.
    At 51, Tambuwal is unarguably one of Nigeria’s most enterprising politicians. His ever-smiling disposition brings forward a happy mien that is intricately infectious. Like his forebears in Sokoto always say, the future tends to be brighter for he who smiles often.
    •Imam (imamdimam) is the spokesman to Governor Tambuwal

  • Why we’re building more schools in 2017 —Tambuwal

    Why we’re building more schools in 2017 —Tambuwal

    Sokoto government said it is building new schools this year in order to provide enough opportunities for the expected 1.2 million new students to be admitted through the school enrollment drive, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal has said.

    Speaking while inspecting the  progress of work at the site of the new Government Secondary School under construction in Balle, Gudu LGA, Tambuwal said government will cater for its citizens already in schools and ensure that those out of school are admitted and given quality education

    He said government’s commitment to education will not waver, and appealed to the people to support the government to enable it achieves its objectives.

    Sokoto State government had recently announced plans to build 160 new primary and secondary schools across the state.Of the number announced, 100 new primary schools will come on stream in 2017, while 45 new senior and 15 new junior secondary schools would be built for cater for the expected increase in the number of students to be admitted into schools for the first time in the state

    Giving his view on the quality of work at the site he inspected, Tambuwal commended the contractor for sticking to specifications, and hailed supervisors from the state ministries of work and education for ensuring adherence to quality

    The governor said with what he has seen on ground, he is confident that academic activities would begin in the structures in the coming months.

  • Opposition parties pass vote of confidence in Tambuwal

    Opposition parties pass vote of confidence in Tambuwal

    A coalition of opposition parties in Sokoto State, under the aegis of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC), have passed a vote of confidence in Governor Aminu Tambuwal for his people-oriented leadership.

    It described Tambuwal as a unifying, purposeful and visionary politician who is people-oriented.

    IPAC’s Secretary-General, Abba Sidi, who addressed a news conference, said the conference was to chronicle the giant strides of the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government.

    He said: “Aminu Tambuwal’s efforts in bringing utmost peace, stability and prosperity in the state are known to all. We, therefore, urge him to maintain such laudable tempo for the sustenance of peaceful coexistence among the people.

    “Without mincing words, the governor has impacted positively in various spheres that include Education, Poverty Eradication, Science and Technology, Agriculture, Healthcare, Women and Youth Affairs, among others.

    “We have seen key infrastructural projects across the state executed by the administration of Tambuwal to better the lot of people and we are convinced that the projects are tangible and people-oriented.

    “We, as patriotic Nigerians, urge the people to pray for continuous peace and stability of Sokoto and Nigeria in

  • Tambuwal presents N204b budget for 2017

    Tambuwal presents N204b budget for 2017

    Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal has presented an Appropriation Bill of N204 billion to the House of Assembly for the 2017 fiscal year.

    For the second year running, education got the highest allocation of N38,426,266,193, representing 27.3 per cent. Capital projects got 69 per cent while 31 per cent was dedicated to recurrent expenditure.

    According to Tambuwal, the policy thrust of the budget is to ensure sustainable economic development through substantial investment in critical sectors like education, agriculture, healthcare delivery, exploration of mineral resources, investment in renewable energy and infrastructure.

    “We will prioritise effective resource management and seek intervention in areas with high potentials to create job opportunities, generate income and improve revenue generation.

    “We will work to strengthen capacity building of scheduled ministries to ensure they perform better in their tasks.

    “Of great importance to us is the promotion of partnership with the private sector in areas of strategic importance to our development objective. We will promote value chain through agro-processing and diversification by way of incentivizing farmers and producers, and creating backward and forward linkages between and among institutions, partners and other stakeholders to accelerate economic growth,” he said.