Interrogating Gov Masari’s restoration agenda

Since his assumption iof office in 2015, Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina state has been working round the clock to change the narrative of the state and restore its lost glory.

This is encapsulated in the dream of a new Katsina state as marshalled out in the administration’s plans otherwise known as the Restoration Agenda.

Governor Masari, an astute politician serving his second term; before his emergence as governor, was a commissioner of water resources during the administration of Saidu Barda and later became the Speaker of the House of Representatives; he had held many other key positions in Katsina state.

The Restoration Agenda represents the government’s strategic plans for salvaging the state from irregularities that occurred in the eight years of the preceding PDP administration. The agenda of Masari led APC administration in the last four years has yielded positive impact on the lives of Katsinawa.

To ensure the success of the Restoration aygenda, Masari appointed a committee before his victory in the 2015 elections to expedite restoring Katsina to its past glory. Alhaji Muntari Lawal, Special Adviser and Permanent Secretary, Government House, now chief of staff to the governor, was appointed to assist him in achieving the objectives of the agenda.

One of the major achievements of the Masari government is the development of education in the state. Considering the fact that education is pivotal to the development of any society, the governor created an additional committee to work on educational issues. 

Masari started a real educational revolution in the state, as according to him, the educated people are the primary resource of the country.

Governor Masari said, “Education, which for centuries raised the profile of Katsina and its people throughout the Bilad Sudan, became out of reach for the poor. Agriculture which served majority of our people for ages, providing them with honest income and ensuring food security for them almost collapsed.

“On top of all that, government which is expected to be sensitive, responsive, just and fair to all and sundry transformed itself into an unresponsive and unjust behemoth that promotes impunity, condones corruption and celebrates bad governance.

“These have constituted the fundamental concerns and that is why when our administration came on board in May, 2015 after realising the enormity of the challenges and what needs to be done to resuscitate the vision of the founding leaders, we decided to nickname this administration as restorative one and the agenda to pursue as Restoration Agenda.”

Masari said his administration in its passion to keep trust with its pledges to the people, immediately settled down to passionately chase a new path and realise the vision of a new Katsina state as preserved in the administration’s blueprint, otherwise known as the Restoration Agenda.

Essentially, his administration is convinced that any effort or attempt, deliberate and conscious, to propel Katsina state to greater heights must start with an honest and painstaking attempt to restore its lost glory.

Governor Masari always emphasised that success in the future depends solely on how successful this generation of ours is in knowing where we missed the crucial steps, in retracing our steps, and in being courageous enough to reorient ourselves.

The Commissioner for Information, Abdulkarim Yahaya Sirika, while shedding light on the issue, said the Restoration Agenda of the Masari dministration has gone beyond human imagination. He said the projects have touched all the sectors, adding that “the administration is working round the clock to return the state to its glorious past”.

In the area of youth and women empowerment, the Masari administration has surpassed other governments as it has not only provided empowerment but also with startup capital to hundreds of thousands of youths and women across the state. This has enabled teeming young men and women to impact positively on the state’s economy through employment generation, wealth creation and self-reliance.

The administration, according to Sirika, created the Katsina State Economic Empowerment Directorate, an agency to disburse small business  loans to beneficiaries and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund for cooperative loans. It has expended huge funds towards providing the dividends of democracy in line with the yearning and aspirations of the electorate. 

The restoration guide on land operation since 2015 to date has touched every sector of human endeavour ranging from construction and rehabilitation of roads and schools including reviving, remodeling and rehabilitating public health, agricultural, power and energy, facilities and infrastructure, security among others.

Katsina state under Gov. Masari has been in the frontline in human development, transparency and accountability in governance and service delivery. It was the first state to create S-Power, similar to that of the federal government all in its efforts to accomplish its mission of taking the state to the next level.

The composition of Masari`s cabinet includes seasoned technocrats,  and experienced politicians. They include his deputy, Alhaji Mannir Yakubu, secretary to the state governmen, Dr. Mustapha Inuwa, permanent secretary government house, Alhaji Bawale, and cief of staff, Muntari Lawal.

Others are DG Media, SSA New Media, commissioners for information, local governments, land and regional, among several others, who are all respected politicians and men of integrity.       

How governor Masari won the heart of some heavy weight opposition politicians and even appointed some of them among as his cabinet members ndicates that he is a real politician playing politics without bitterness and this silenced critics from attacking his policy and programmes.   

There is extensive harmony and a sense of confidence that the re-election of  Masari is borne out of the pact he made with the people of Katsina which had been fulfilled and admirably delivered.

Dangida is a journalist based in Kano

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