Gov Bagudu’s voyage for human liberation By Sule Jibrin

In the Nigerian political milieu, governance and governmental activities is normally conducted on the basis and principles of mutuality and reciprocity, where after given you their votes, the voters quest for purposeful leadership and development in return as the proverbial dividend of democracy. While on the other hand and equally detestably, the dispensation of favours and patronages between the political elites and the arcane principle of godfatherism is always ruthlessly employed in appointive and elective positions. Therefore, those that have godfathers in positions of authority are usually rewarded with plum appointments or deployments while they enjoy flavored incentives and other advancement leaving those that are not favored holding the short end of the stick. Equally, whenever an office holder or visionary leader appears to put the system on the right track and eliminate the glaring distortions in the shamble system, he or she is usually checkmated, frustrated or made to throw in the towel and align with the existing system, thus once more ensuring the triumph of ‘business as usual’ mentality.
So, the Nigerian political system has been described variously as corrupt, decadent, nascent, impervious to positive change, lethargic and archaic in all its negative ramifications.
Therefore, many a political observers or social commentators has expressed pessimism about the growth and development of the Nigeria political system in line with western advanced democracies that place a high premium on efficiency, rule of law, due process, transparency and accountability in the conduct of governmental business and activates.
However, all hope is not lost if the recent developments in Kebbi state is anything to go by the Abubakar Atiku Bagudu administration, the man of the moment that has signaled an iron-willed determination to take the state to the next level in the social, political, economic, infrastructure and developmental arenas. On taking over the reins of power of Kebbi state on May 29, 2015, a kinetic Gov. Bagudu immediately set up an inter- governmental task force to assess the various challenges and issues militating against the smooth and seamless delivery of critical democratic dividends to Kebbians since the inception of civilian rule in 1999.
And after a month of extensive brainstorming, thoroughgoing deliberations and wider ranging consultations with stakeholders, the intelligentsia, the professional, civil society, the traditional institutions and Kebbians at large, it was established that, only holistic and comprehensive reform across the board could make Kebbi state be turn away from the bureaucratic lethargy and structural sclerosis that had plagued the ‘Land of Equity’ for a long time. Fortuitously, armed with methodical agility, the forward looking Atiku Bagudu, embarked on weeding out misfits, malcontents and persistent laggards from the civil and public service with the stated mantra that, only the best is good enough for Kebbi state.
Also, perennial godfathers who had held the state hostage being in the influential civil servants, serving or retired, colleagues in the retired military brass, wealthy business moguls and autopodial traditional rulers were politely asked to hands off the states affairs and desist from their persistent interference in the day to day governance of the resource rich but poorly administered state.
Having succeeded in implanting round pegs in round hole, he embarked on transforming, the health, education, road infrastructure, agriculture, power, water borehole manpower development and youth and women empowerment sectors that are critical to the overall growth and development of Kebbi state.
The novel approach adopted was hinged on multi-sectoral activity where all sectors of the state’s economy would receive equal attention and not focusing on just one or two sectors to the palpable neglect of other sectors. In this regard, Bagudu’s approach was quite revolutionary as it meant, as primary and secondary classrooms were being constructed or rehabilitated.
The same thing was happening to hospitals, health and maternity centres across the state. While road constructions and rehabilitation assumed a frenetic pace with a record shattering kilometers of roads already constructed with many more ongoing throughout the nooks and crannies of the state. Furthermore, in the agricultural sector, a formidable revolution has indeed taking place with Kebbi state partnering with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Bank of Industry under the Anchor Borrowers Programme where each farmer agreed to produce at least six tonnes of rice per hectare of land after being given a minimum of N210,000 per hectare to cover farm inputs and seedlings.
On the successful beginning of the programme, Kebbi state has successfully produced 1.4 million tonnes of rice during last year’s dry and wet season farming. In the same vein and to boost the marketing and distribution potentials of the farmers, Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu has collaborated with his Lagos state counterpart Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode to create a distribution window of the locally produced rice which is nutritionally better than the costly imported paddy rice from other counties. Lagos state being the nation’s business nucleus was chosen by Gov. Bagudu because it’s the Nigerian business hub and the rice produced in Kebbi could therefore widely and strategically distributed among the various market structures within and outside the country via Lagos state.
This has been unprecedented and it has turned the state into an agricultural tourist and further boosting its revenue base. In his all-inclusive system of governance, women and youths have not been left out as the action-oriented Bagudu recognizes that, they formed the pillar of the vibrant segment of society, so he has initiated numerous selfemployment training schemes for women and youths and equipped them with take-off grant to ensure their critical success in various fields of interest. Indeed, Atiku Bagudu’s political, economic and administrative revolution is taking the state to the promised land in no distant future and to the astonishment of his contemporaries Jibrin writes from Kebbi state

 

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