Armed with his accountancy degree and a wide range experience in public offices, both in the state and federal levels, Senator BayeroUsman Nafada, former Gombe State Speaker, Deputy Speaker in the House of Representatives, and now Senator of the Federal Republic, is a sure bet for the people of Gombe in the 2019 governorship elections billed for March.
This is because no state can survive without men who have sound and adequate understanding of wealth generation and safeguarding same for the good of the people.
Therefore, fellow citizens, we should embrace Senator Nafada who is coming to Gombe to bring good life to us.
Unlike his opponents in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and other parties, Senator Nafada has a rich political career spanning more than two decades, with a bias for the masses who form the majority in the state as in the entire Nigeria.
Therefore, Gombe youth should rise to mobilise voters for Nafada and other candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by going from door-to-door to canvass for votes for him for the D-day in March.
We must not make the mistake of letting Gombe slip out of the hands of PDP to APC or any other political party whose candidates the people cannot vouch for their characters, unlike Nafada who had been tested and trusted.
The dividends of democracy provided by the outgoing governor of Gombe state, Ibrahim Hassan Dankwanbo, is a testimony that Gombe visions and aspirations are better served by governors elected on the PDP platform. This is because this is the party that has lofty manifestos and unmatchable reach across Nigeria.
Indeed
Indeed, Nafada is a peace loving man with great concern for peaceful coexistence in the state and Nigeria in general, hence his call to the political class to ensure peace and level playing field as well as fairness ahead of the 2019 general elections.
Nafada is one statesman who understands that peace is a prerequisite for growth and development in any society. As a lover of peaceful coexistence and believer of inclusive
government, Nafada promised to reach out to other aspirants, who contested the primary election against him and lost, so as to have a
united party towards the forthcoming general elections, a word he kept.
No wonder he had described his emergence as PDP governorship candidate as a family victory for all party members in Gombe state.
“I have decided to set up a committee to reach out to everyone, including the aspirants to get their support to make sure everyone is carried along. This is to guarantee a united party as we approach the general elections in 2019.
“I said it during my acceptance speech and I am still saying it now that nobody lost as far as the PDP governorship primary is concerned.”
The PDP is not like the APC or other parties who turn governance to a business of a small circle of friends and families. This is the reason he called on all stakeholders of the PDP to see the 2019 election as a collective duty; to ensure that PDP returns to power.
There is the general belief among watchers of our economy that Nigeria fared better under PDP than the APC in all aspects of life. One testimony is that APC is applauded for pursuing policies initiated by the past government of PDP.
The treasury single account, the revitalization of the railways and agricultural revolution had all been there before APC-led federal government administration under President Muhammadu Buhari.
Nafada is an altruisic statesman who has a clear vision for his people; to lift Gombe higher, building on the foundation already laid by Dankwanbo, a PDP governor.
Nafada, during the PDP governorship primaries on October 2, defeated 12 opponents to emerge the PDP candidate with 1,104 votes out of the total votes 1, 320 cast with only seven invalid votes.
With the backing of Gombe youths and well meaning people of Gombe state the feat is easier for him to reenact in the governorship elections in March.
The distinguished senator has assured Gombe people of continuity in infrastructural development in the state as governor of Gombe state.
This is a plus for the people. Nafada’s desire to contest the governorship seat of Gombe state is not driven by personal or selfish motive but to take the state to higher level of development, leaving a lasting legacy for generations of our people.
“When I was Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, I contributed immensely in transforming Federal College of Education,
Gombe, to a first class institution in the country,” he said. And this is just a minimal percentage of his works in the National Assembly.
There are a lot of projects which were executed by Senator Nafada in Gombe which include, among others, the construction of a dam at Kaltungo in Gombe southern senatorial district.
This is the man who promised to ensure continuity by building on the projects designed by his would be predecessor, Gov Dankwambo if given the mandate, the mandate in March, going by the people’s support.
Nafada is far ahead of other Gombe governorship candidates in terms of experience in governance and shrewdness in state accounts. He said rightly that he is vying for the governorship position in order to continue to contribute to the development of the state.
Nafada, whose candidature agrees with Dankwambo’s vision for Gombe, has saluted Governor Dankwambo for fulfilling his campaign promises to the people,
which he said had stood him out among governors in the country who are not owing salaries to workers.
Nafada who is genuinely committed to the welfare and progress of his people was worried by the actions of some politicians in the state who do not want to see the progress of the state, and are out to insult the state governor in the media, but failed to understand the good things he had done for the state.
Nafada’s love for the masses showed at the Gombe governorship debate involving him and other candidates organised by the British
Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Hausa Service.
He made himself more endeared to the people when he assured workers that they deserve more than N30,000 as minimum wage which the APC-led federal government has been dragging to approve for months.
His statement was not a mere political gamble because as an astute accountant with sound knowledge of state economy, he had analysed all economic variables before arriving at the conclusion.
Another issue that endeared the PDP candidate to the crowd was his promise to take local government chairmen to task on ensuring that they are domiciled in their domain to take charge of all issues in their areas, especially security.
Senator Nafada once said he was not afraid of the opposition APC in the state. By March in the Gombe governorship election, the
statement will come to pass. This is because Nafada’s stay in the NASS and the dividends of democracy he had provided to his constituents have made indelible marks in the people’s hearts, making it a herculean task for any opponent from the opposition APC to challenge him in the Gombe governorship election in March.
“As a deputy speaker of the National Assembly I was the number six citizen of the country, among all the aspirants, I am the only individual with a number and I have the richest political credentials and experience. Why then should I be afraid of any candidate? I am not thinking of failing but winning.”
What more does Gombe want from a governor who has a rich experience and unqualified political clout, who has been tested and trusted? A man of his words who promised to consolidate on the issue of workers’ salaries, pursue a sound agricultural programmes with a bias for irrigation farming to help provide opportunities for the people for self-reliance.
Gombe beware of shenanigans. Beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing. Nafada as governor with his wide range of political experiences both in the state and federal levels, is sure to take Gombe state to greater heights and secure the future of Gombe youths.
Kera is the Chairman Media and Publicity Committee of the Gombe PDP Campaign Council.
