Sometimes in the late 90s, elder states­man, Malam Yahaya Gusau, said at a recep­tion organized in honour of some promi­nent natives of Zazzau Emirate in Zaria that positions of authority or leadership are meant to yield some dividends to the peo­ple and not to serve as opportunities for the leaders to merely satisfy their needs. He, therefore, frowned at the despicable attitudes of self-enrichment and nonchalance towards public interests as be­ing exhibited by some people saddled with the responsibility of providing governance.

Evidently, Malam Gusau’s remarks on the occasion compelled most people to reflect on the quality of service delivery by public officers at different levels in the country. The result of the people’s reflection seemed to indicate a heightened dissatisfaction with the performance of most public servants and leaders.

The restoration of democracy in 1999 has now made such a reflection and, in fact, assessment of the performance of especially elected leaders a most compelling neces­sity. It is even the realization of the need to keep surveillance over our leaders with a view to identifying their contributions to the development of the society that made some governance specialists to invent the cliche-dividends of democracy.

In other words, the genuine demands of the people for a development-oriented ap­proadi to governance are now being more effectively put across through the wide­spread advocacy for the delivery of divi­dends of democracy by the elected leaders at different levels. As a result of the advo­cacy, tremendous consciousness on the desirability of effective commitment to the enhancement of people’s welfare by the leaders has now been created in the same way that the recognition of the efforts of the governments in this direction has now been part of the overall assessment proc­ess.

Happily, the elected leaders are not una­ware of the rising curiosity among Nigeri­ans to know every detail about their per­formance. This, therefore, makes some of them to always try to satisfy the yearnings of the people.

It now clearly appears that the Gombe State Governor, Alhaji Mohammed Danjurna Goje, is fully conversant with the existing fashion which is quite indicative of the tre­mendous public desire for selfless service and the penchant for assessment. The gov­ernor, who is just one year into his second term in office having been elected in 2003, has so far executed numerous projects whose relevance to the socio-economic well being of the people is uncontestable.

Consequently, the governor has gained for himself substantial rec­ognition within and be­yond the state as evident in the high number of awards he has received from institutions and organizations. The manner in which institutions, in­cluding universities fall over themselves to extend recognition to the governor, shows that even the most critical segments of the Nigeria’s population are aware and appreciative of the efforts of the governor towards both physi­cal and human development in the state.

The last of the awards he received came from the famous Africa Independent Tel­evision (A IT) in collaboration with a non­governmental organization, Project For Ex­cellence (PFE) at the Annual Gold Medal Awards for Excellence and Good Governance in the north they organized in Kaduna on Sunday June 15. The organizers of the even identified Goje as the best performing among all the second term governors in the north.

It was the verdict of the organizers of the award-giving ceremony that the achievements of the gover­nor in the ar­eas of water supply, road construction and educa­tion remain quite unsur­passed. By this decision, it is very clear that the AIT and PFE are making refer­ence to the execution of multi-billion water supply scheme, con­struction of roads within Gombe town and in major towns in the state as well as the estab­lishment of state univer­sity among other projects and programmes carried out or still being carried out in the various sectors.

This particular verdict clearly concurs with the opinion of most people of the state. Back home, the people in the state are commending the governor for the ex­ecution of water supply scheme which has substantially met the water requirement of the people in the same way they are appreciative of his efforts at providing effective road network within the state capital and construction of other roads in each of the state capital and construction of other roads to each of the eleven local government areas in the state.

It is on record that the Goje administration has been able to provide about 47 ring roads within Gombe town and also dualized Tumfure – Liji road. The execution of these projects has not only beautified the state capital and other towns, but has also eased up transportation in the state thereby bringing about speedy economic development.

Another effort of the governor in the vital area of education is not only the establishment of state university, but also the effective staffing of the institution especially with the appointment of the former vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and seasoned university administrator, Professor Abdullahi Mahdi, as its vice chancellor. As a result of all these giant strides, the university is now rated as one of the best and fastest-growing among state universities in the north.

Certainly, most Nigerians would vividly recall that shortly earlier than the time the governor received AIT/PFE award, he was a recipient of honourary doctorate degree from the prestigious Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi for his contribution to the development of education.

The university authorities appeared very much convinced that the governor has recorded unparalleled achievements in the area of education for which he deserves such a huge recognition.

Even the ATBU honorary degree is only an addition to a similar one given to the governor dur­ing his first term by the Federal University of Technology, Yola. It can, therefore, be said that the governor has been an achiever and therefore a recipient of various awards since he became the governor of Gombe State five years ago.

All these award givers are, by their re­spective actions, only confirming the be­lief of the people in the state and be­yond. Any keen observer of developments in the state will testify to the fact that the governor has already unfolded a five-year education development plan under which he has, in addition to the projects already mentioned above, established and fully equipped thirteen voca­tional colleges and provided well-furnished six class­rooms in each of the twenty selected schools across the state. This means that the approach of the current ad­ministration in the state to the issue of educational de­velopment is both compre­hensive and result-yielding.

Goje’s other laudable ini­tiatives include the con­struction of Gombe Interna­tional Airport which is cur­rently at about 95 per cent completion stage and the elevation of General Hospi­tal in the state capital to a specialist status. He also reconstructed some lower hospitals and renovated the others in different parts of the state.

As mainly agrarian state and in its bid to ensure that Gombe State retains its en­viable position as one of the major producers of food in the north in particular and the country in general, the administration has pro­cured abundant fertilizer at the cost of 5,000 Naira per bag and subsidized the cost to 1,600 Naira for the ordinary farmers. In order to ensure that the commodity is widely distributed, the governor warned strongly against the diversion of the commodity and even vowed to deal with any government official(s) who may attempt to indulge in any dirty deals in the distribution of the fertilizer.

What has been mentioned so far, as far as the activities of the present state governor are concerned, is only a tip of the iceberg. The achievements of Governor Goje will always become even much clearer when analyzed in the context of the terrible state of under-development in which the state found itself prior to 2003.

The last five years have not only been truly golden to the people of Gombe State, but have also provided the governor with the opportunity to prove to the world that he possesses the wherewithal to always be million miles ahead’ of his peers. It is this distinguishing feature of the man that all these institutions and organizations figured out early in the day on the basis of which they have now crowned him as the first among equals.

Kumo is Senior Special Assistant (Media and Publicity) to Gombe State Governor.

During the first year anniversary celebrations, Governor David Jang reeled off a catalogue of his achievements but critics said that the projects on ground are not commensurate with the huge revenue that the state had received from the federation account. This criticism seems to have gingered the governor into action as a lot of projects are now taking off in Plateau State.

When the Jonah Jang administration celebrated  one year in office last May, there were efforts by key functionaries of the administration to not only showcase its achievements, but to present the achievements as feats that were novel and unattained by previous administrations in the state. In a statement, the Director of Press James Mannok said Plateau state, with the advent of Jang, is "on the rise again," as the state has never had it so good as the past one year. Specifically, Mr Mannok mentioned the donation of 14 Hilux vans to the security agencies in the state, the face lift given to Jos town due to the introduction of the monthly sanitation exercise as the town is constantly being swept. In addition, refuse bins have been provided

The Director of press was not alone in this self-praise. The chairmen of the 17 local governments also corroborated Mannok’s claims. The chairmen, led by Mr Sylvanus Gongkum, the state’s ALGON chairman said that the Jang administraion has tranformed the lives of the people within one year and that as representatives of the people at the grassroots, they can testify to that. According to them, the government has renewed it commitment to rural areas by embarking on many laudable programmes. The coumcil bosses also said that the Jang administration has saved N6 billion in six months, paid counterpart funding for relevant projects, and supplemented students feeding as well as paid bursary allowances. In addition, the government has bought 23 tractors and distributed to farmers.

However, in spite of what the government and local government chairmen want people to believe, some people are still unimpressed. According to them, the so-called achievements belittle, rather than boost the image of the present administration. These groups, comprising mainly of the opposition, said that the government should have something more concrete on ground to justify the whopping sums it had collected in the last one year.

Alhaji Yusuf Kanam, the chairman of the Conference of National Political Parties (CNPP) said that the state has earned more than N30 billion in the last one year, while there is little to show for it. According to him, "while government officials are beating their chests, some of the basic problems have remained unsolved." We are still talking about lack of water in Jos, civil servants are still demanding for 15 percent, no elected representatives at the local government level and no value had been added to the lives of the state, yet somebody is talking about achievements."

However, there are some people who think that the government’s achievements should be predicated on Jang’s promise during his inagural speech. The governor promised to better the lives of the people of the state and build a new Government  House in the state capital. The present structure, he said, is "too small" to House both the office and residence of the state’s chief executive. In addition, he promised to build a new presidential lodge as the present one, known is as "Green House," is too close to the road and not secured enough to put the nation’s president in it.

Other projects that he promised to undertake include the building of a new office for the deputy governor, renovation the official residence of the House speaker, rebuilding the burnt down Jos ultra modern market, building a new market along  Mararaban Jema’a as well as dualization and reconstruction of a number of roads. Although some of the projects have commenced, a lot more are yet to take off. For instance, the dualisation of the Gada Biyu-Zaria road is about to start because compensations have since been paid to people whose properties will be affected by the work. The contractors has since been mobilized to site. The same thing applies to the proposed Government House.

The state commissioner for works, Mr Solomon Zang also confirmed that the speaker’s house has recently been renovated while work on the  deputy governor’s office has commenced.

But the Plateau state chapter of Action Congress (AC), say the Jang administration has been largely disappointing as it has not been able to carry the people of the state along. According to the party, while the present administration has received more revenue allocations than other administrations in the past, it has not done anything with the funds to better the lot of the people other than its claim of having saved N6 billion. Mr. Maichibi Vwarji, AC’s state chairman said that the current administration has reversed some laudable policies and programmes. He listed the retirement of 22 permanent secretaries, non implementation of workers demands, closure of the Plateau state University, relocation of the headquarters of Jos North local government as well as dissolution of chiefdioms, districts, and development areas created by the past administration.

Despite the mix reactions regarding the achievements of the Jang administration , there have been renewed efforts, especially after the first year anniversary, to deliver service to the people. Less than six months after presenting the 2008 budget, the Plateau state government for instance forwarded a supplementary budget of N3.8 billion to the state House of Assembly. The budget, according to Mr Joel Gwatau, the state’s commissioner for youth and sports, is to cover  critical areas for the development  and to make up for short falls recorded in some of the items in the 2008 budget.

The commissioner explained that the supplementary budget is meant to address needs in the agricultural sector, expenditure for the approved pension scheme and emoluments for former governors and their deputies. Vehicles would also be purchased for all tiers of government in the state from the budget. He added that costs for Government House administration and the payment of more hands to clean the streets, would also be covered by the supplementary budget. In addition, the government has approved the award of contracts for the construction of the 38-kilometres Zamko-Mabudi road spanning Mban and linking Langtang North and South local governments at the cost of N1.4 billion.

The payment of 30% mobilization fees to all contractors for the immediate take off of the over 20 road projects recently awarded by the state government at the cost of  over 11 billion has been approved. Not quite two weeks after the commissioner made the plegde, the state governor, presented the N3.5Billion worth of cheques as mobilization fees to foreign and indigenous contractors in the state.

Many have wondered why it took the state government this long to embark on infrastructural development . It looks like the Jang administration has just woken up from its slumber.

n the metropolis and salary arrears and leave grants have been paid to civil servants.

coruption must go in Nigeria

Danjuma Goje: the 36th most loved Nigerians

In a pictorial story on page 4 of the Sunday April 27 edition of the Leadership entitled The 10 Most Hated Nigerians, Gombe State Governor Danjuma Goje’s name was featured among those the paper said are the 10 most unloved Nigerians living.

I write to express my surprise at the inclusion of Goje in that list. While some of the other personalities mentioned in the story do deserve to be so listed because of the infamous role some of them have played in our national life, I do not agree at all that Goje is an unloved or unlovable person.

Goje may not be without any fault but his sins are not such that he should be counted among the bad guys in Nigeria. If anything, Goje should be numbered among the 36 most loved Nigerians. I say Goje should be among the 36 most loved Nigerians because we have 36 states in the federation and if we are to select one person from each state to make a list of the best persons in the country, Goje should be able to emerged from Gombe because he has used his vantage position as governor to impact positively on the lives of millions of people in Gombe state and even beyond.

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I am saying this partly because I am an indigene of Gombe and have been privileged to see and to benefit from the developmental dividends that Goje’s administration has brought to the people of Gombe. Many outsiders who have lived in Gombe before the coming of Goje to power as governor and how he has transformed Gombe in the past five years of his stay can also testify to the great difference he has made in the lives of the people.

Since coming to power, Goje has embarked on a radical approach to the provision of water to the people of Gombe. Perhaps Leadership has not heard of the eight billion Naira Gombe water project. Water was channeled from the Dadin Kowa Dam some 40 kilometres away from Gombe town in order to give the people clean water. Today, the Gombe water works is acknowledged as the most modern in the country.

It will be recalled that the former President Olusegun Obasanjo was so impressed with Goje’s achievement in the water sector especially with the Dadin Kowa Dam water project that he sent the governor of his home state of Ogun, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, to come to Gombe to understudy what Goje had done for possible replication in Ogun.

We all know that the former President is not a man who is given to flattery or one who suffers fools gladly. For him to have ordered the governor of his state to come look at the feat that Goje has achieved and copy it is an indication that something extraordinary and something worthy of emulation has been done. A man who provides water, a substance that is most essential for domestic and industrial uses; can he be a candidate for hatred? I do not think so.

We should also recall that at one of the meetings of the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the ruling People Democratic Party (PDP), former President Obasanjo again asked the meeting to give Goje a standing ovation for being a pride to the party for the great things he has done in Gombe.

When Obasanjo paid a state visit to Gombe he commissioned over 40 projects and at a point confessed that he was simply overwhelmed by the monumental things Goje had done in so short a time. When Obasanjo returned to Abuja, one Sunday, he asked worshippers at the Aso Villa Chapel to pray for Goje. Governor Goje did not bribe the former President to receive these encomiums. It was based purely on the solid achievements he has scored.

Apart from the water works, the President no doubt had in mind, some of Goje’s other achievements like the building of the Gombe Airport, the establishment of the Gombe State University, the construction of numerous township roads in Gombe metropolis and the opening up of many of the rural areas of Gombe with tarred roads.

Goje has also built five general hospitals and two others are under construction. He has built several health centres to serve the people of Gombe. The hospitals that Goje inherited have either been rehabilitated or upgraded. Goje has also built from scratch, a school of nursing for the training of nurses to man the health institutions his administration has established across the state.

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Goje has done theses and many more things to endear him to the people of Gombe. Indigenes of other states, especially those from the North East geo-political zone, who dwell in Gombe and are witnesses to the achievements of Goje in Gombe, are not a little envious of Gombites.

If any one is best placed to determine whether or not Goje should be on any love or hate list, it should be the people of Gombe and not some newspaper based in far away Abuja. We are the ones who live under the governorship of Goje. If he is good or bad, we are the ones who will feel it. If an opinion poll is held today inGombe to determine the popularity rating of Governor Danjuma Goje, I can say very confidently that Goje will score over 90 per cent.

The people of Gombe have no cause to score him any less. He has done everything to deserve a high rating. If other governors that had ruled Gombe before Goje’s arrival in 2003 had done as well as he has so far done in the past five years, Gombe would be among the first five most developed states in the federation.

The Leadership should have the sense of honour to admit that it made an error in listing Goje among an infamous list consisting of the likes of Adedibu and Anenih.

 

By SAbo Sani Labaran
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Mr. Sabo is An indigene of Gombe State born some 28 years ago to a prominent politician, one of the Great Members of the Arewa Consultative Forum Elders Alhaji Sani Labaran.