2018: Gaidam crosses over without carryovers – Shettima

In a democratic environment, those who wish to aspire to top elective positions, do set agenda and make promises to their followers and citizens on what they intend doing. MUSA M. BUBA in a chat with Lawan Ali Shettima, Yobe State Commissioner of Works and Transport reports, how Governor Ibrahim Gaidam crossed over to 2018 without any carryover.
Background
He is a seasoned civil servant who started his career from the scratch in the then defunct Borno state and on creation of Yobe in 1991, he transferred his services to the newly created state (Yobe) and was an Accountant where he rose to become a Permanent Secretary before voluntarily retired to join politics.
Ten years ago he contested for Senator of the federal republic in which some say “he can’t even win councillorship describing him as a political novist” As God will have it, he was picked as deputy to late
governor Mamman B. Ali of blessed memory. At the moment, he remain the longest serving governor in the country who has worked seriously to unite the people of Yobe state in its traditional political party, the All Progressive Congress (APC) which some called him “Political

Pundits and Unusual Governor”
During his campaigns he promised to better the lives of the citizens though challenged by the Boko Haram insurgency, he had worked and considered as the best governor in the annals of history of the state. He gave priorities to health, education, works, housing, electrification among others. Infact every sector had felt the impact of his leadership, the citizens have realized that “grains are different from chaffs, and the truth is different from falsehood”.
Despite the challenges his administration faces particularly the insurgency experienced for over nine years coupled with meager resources at his disposal; he was able to achieve numerous successes
covering all sectors of the economy.

General Administration/Civil Service
Yobe has remain above board and keep paying salaries, overhead cost, pensions, gratuities and also drained substantial resources of the state to support the fight against insurgency.
A committee was set-up to verify gratuities of staff and cleared all backlogs of gratuities of the retired civil and deceased civil servants from 2014 – July, 2017 and for the civil servants that have put retirement notice their pensions are paid one month after retirement. In history there was no month Yobe failed to pay its workers.

Works, Housing, Transport & Energy
The administration of Ibrahim Gaidam has constructed over 1,600 houses and allocated to individuals and civil servants on owner occupier basis who pay 65% of the construction cost and to those who have died, automatic waiver is granted to their families.
Over 1000 kilometer roads were constructed and rehabilitated across the state. This includes 157km Potiskum-Jakusko-Garin Alkali, 109km Kaliari-Bayamari-Geidam and 77km Damaturu-Buniyadi-Magza federal roads. Others were reconstruction of the blown-off Katarko Bridge by the insurgents. Also the first, second, and third segments of trans-sahel road covering Kanamma to Machina is nearing completion apart from roads constructed within the major cities of Damaturu, Potiskum, Nguru, Gashua, and Geidam.
Recently he awarded contract for the construction of international cargo airport in Damaturu the state capital at the cost of N11.3billion to create job opportunities and reduce the high cost of
goods being brought to the state by trucks.
Similarly, about ten communities have benefited from electrification and also being linked to the national grid at the cost of over N400million and are ready for commissioning apart from the transformers purchased to replace the old ones.

Agriculture/Youths
To promote agricultural activities, the Yobe state government has procured fertilizer, overhaul over ten tractors, supplied pesticides, water pumps among others to farmers worth millions of naira in the state. As part of job creation, a taskforce on irrigation was established in which 40,000 youths are expected to be gainfully employed having so far approved the sum of over N1billion.
Newly developed cowpea, sorghum, groundnut and millet which can be harvested after 65 days were given to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) freely which about 6,000 farmers benefited. Also about 130 of returning IDPs were given animal tractions consist of oxen, agricultural implements and ox-driven carts. All this gestures government believes will go a long way in soothing the sores of depression caused by the insurgency.

Education
The Yobe state government had renovated and equipped Government Secondary Schools Nangere, Gwio-kura, Yunusari, Fika and Government Girls College Nguru that was abandoned 47 years ago.
The sum of N1bilion was expended over the past one year alone on payment of registration fees to over 800 Yobe state indigenes at Nigeria-Tulip International Colleges and 12,000 students benefited from the payment of NECO, WAEC, NABTEB, etc examination fees.

Health
Ibrahim Gaidam’s administration is providing free treatment for children under the ages of five, pregnant women and to accident victims up to 48 hours. The Damaturu specialists’ hospital and general
hospitals Damagum, Nangere, Jakusko, Dapchi, have undergone massive improvement and rehabilitations while expansion and rehabilitation of general hospitals Potiskum, Gashua and Geidam have been completed and furnished.
Yobe State University Teaching Hospital (YSUTH) was being established, constructed and furnished at the sum of N5.5billion while construction of the College of Medical sciences of the (YSUTH) has reached advance stages and will soon commence medical courses. The Teaching hospital has since started receiving referrals across hospitals in the northeast. Not only that but commenced dialysis and gone on e-record.
Infact the hospital has the latest state-of-the-art machines. College of Health Sciences and Technology Nguru and School of Nursing and midwifery Damaturu have received massive improvement and utility buses were procured to meet the accreditations.
It was as result of the remarkable achievements of the Gaidam’s administration that led to the decamping of high profile of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stalwarts to the ruling party All Progressive
Congress (APC) in the 2017. These includes a former minister, members of the national and state houses of assemblies, former acting PDP chairman in Kano state, honourable commissioners, retired permanent
secretaries, etc.

Conclusion
While some governors owe their workers, others making half payment of salaries, governor Gaidam during the presentation of 2018 finance and appropriation bill to Yobe state House of Assembly said his
administration has over N4billion as the opening balance for the 2018 fiscal year which proves that, the governor crosses over to 2018 without any carryovers.

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