Competence without sentiment By Saidu Ahmed Enagi


Research from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa asserts that, achieving good governance requires the existence of a strong, effective and efficient parliament. This is so because parliament plays a crucial role in gauging, collating and presenting the views and needs of the people, articulating their expectations and aspirations in determining the national development agenda.

As oversight body, parliament helps to identify problems and policy challenges that require attention and assists in overcoming bureaucratic inertia.

Responding to these needs and aspirations would obviously involve all the domains and levels of governance: executive, legislature, judiciary, village, district and city councils as well as the other agencies in the civil society and private sectors. 

It will also be bound to be collective efforts, requiring the participation of the people, institutions and agencies of governance, civil society and the private sector. People, with their ever changing needs and wants, fears and aspirations are thus at the centre of the development and democratization processes. 

After a thorough research on the experience, integrity, creative capacity and competence of Senator Kabir Gaya, we found out that, the 9th Assembly would be highly effective having Senator Gaya as Deputy Senate President. When a leader possesses all the requisite criteria to lead, there is always no point to be sycophantic about the qualification of the leader to either champion a course or make a positive impact. 

Senator Gaya, a fourth term Senator from Kano South has carved a niche for himself in the parliamentary governance and Politics of the Fourth republic with numerous outstanding achievements. Kano South is the largest Senatorial District in Nigeria with 16 Local Governments, yet Senator Gaya was able to keep a profile of responsible political development and democratic dispensation serving as a Senator for the region since 2007.

For development to be meaningful and sustainable, it must be initiated and undertaken by the people themselves. Only when the people effectively participate in the development processes can development truly be of their choice. But the people must be sufficiently empowered, provided with the relevant information and knowledge, education and training so that they can effectively and meaningfully participate in the development processes. In fact, people now demand empowerment and participation in the development and democratization processes.

As a Distinguish parliamentarian, Senator Gaya was the first Africa to be elected as Vice President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). He was appointed chairman Senate ad-hoc committees on Local and Foreign Debts, and later chairman senate committee on works and made a standing committee in charge of federal roads in Nigeria till date, he promised Nigerians that the 34 thousand kilometres of federal roads across the nation will be motor able before the expiration the 8th Senate and followed judiciously to fulfilled the promise.

 Senator Gaya is the first Senate Committee chairman in history to have followed oversight function to 33 states of the federation ensuring that the electorates are served according to the dictates of democracy. The Kano South senator sponsored many bills amongst are for the creation of the North East Development Commission (NEDC) for the reconstruction of the zone devastated by many years of attacks of insurgents. 

As a pan-Nigerian democrat that he is, it is no surprise that a senator from a different senatorial zone  is sponsoring a bill for the betterment of another zone, also attests that he sees entire Nigeria as his senatorial zone. This single act put Nigeria among committee of nations that are willing to rehabilitate citizens ravaged by carnage of insurgents; also a bill for creation of Federal Roads Authority (FRA) SIB 2017 was sponsored by him. 

To make anti-corruption fight of the APC administration meaningful and expedite action on trial, of corrupt cases, he sponsored a bill for the creation of special court for trial to speed up corrupt cases in the country . He also sponsored the Finance Management and Accountability Bill 2009, as well as Millennium Development Agency Bill, 2009. He co-sponsored five motions and contributed immensely to debates in the plenary.

Since the early 1990s, there has been a growing interest in issues related to democracy and good governance around the world. This phenomenal growth of interest reflects, in part, the increasing acceptance of the fact that democracy and good governance are not a luxury, but a sine qua non requirement to promote sustainable social and economic development.

Supporting Senator Kabir Gaya for Deputy Senate President of the 9th Assembly is a victory for democracy and a bold step towards the actualization of the new Nigeria we want.Saidu is the Deputy Coordinator Africa Affairs, CNRJ International-France

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