2019 And Bagudu’s Better Fortunes

By Hasheem Balarabe

It’ an undisputable fact that, in any democratic setting, opposition, criticism and alternative viewpoints are common and variegated as the constituents meaning that it is to be expected given the diversity and heterogeneous nature of the polity and the political society. However, it is desirable that criticism and alternative viewpoints pass the test of being constructive and result-oriented and not being merely distractive, vindictive and obstructive in all its negative ramifications.

There have been compelling reasons and the need to explicitly account for the political chemistry in Kebbi State due to some imprecise and unfactual perspectives and reportage written probably by some paid agents or by agents of some defeated Peoples Democratic Party stalwarts presumably to perpetuate self-promotional agenda.

Apparently, on the 18th July, 2017 there was a political analysis in the Daily Sun Newspaper captioned; “Kebbi: Gov. Bagudu and 2019 Challenge” where a self-styled veteran journalist, public relations consultant and indigene of Kebbi State, Yakubu Ahmed BK ventilated his opinion and raised some issues with the leadership style of His Excellency, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, alluding that the state helmsman has achieved very little in terms of infrastructural development of the state especially in Birnin Kebbi, even though, he Governor Atiku Bagudu is from the area unlike other past governors of Kebbi who had prioritized the infrastructural development of their areas of origin than other parts of the state. Also the said Yakubu Ahmed also scored the Kebbi state administration low in terms of infrastructure to enhance the development of farming activity in the state, an allegation that cannot be substantiated by the facts on ground which shows that the state government has done more than any other state in the federation in terms of creating the enabling environment for a smooth and seamless takeoff of the famed agricultural revolution in the land of equity.

In fact, Yakubu Ahmed is a lone voice wailing in the wilderness of baseless and directionless opposition given that the majority of citizens, stakeholders, opinion leaders and political activists in Kebbi State have continued to sing the praises of the action-oriented Governor Bagudu to high heavens given his array of achievements in the educational, health, roads, power, water, human capital development, and what have you.

In another show of brazen deceits, misrepresentation of facts and orchestrated political agitprop by the former minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki who said that, Peoples Democratic Party in the state is ready to reclaim the seat of power in view of the ongoing reconciliation and the setting up of the interim committee to manage the affairs of the party by the national headquarters of the PDP. But the laughable and derisory of the Turaki’s assertion is that, he easily forget that after 14 years of his party’s administration in the state, what they only left as the legacy to the gullible citizens of the state was the gory and shamble structures, empty treasury and explicit underdevelopment with 90 percent of the state’s population living in absolute despondency and despair.

In fact, PDP in Kebbi State is overwrought with an internal crisis that led to the balkanization of the party into two warring factions and the setting-up of another committee simply means further dividing the already bisected party into three groups, each one being engraved with overriding interest and motives. Therefore, the statement which emanated from Kabiru Turaki is simply the wish of a daydreamer because all three of the state assembly members that secured their seats on the platform of the PDP, and thousands of their supporters have since decamped to the APC citing Bagudu’s unprecedented achievements as the reason for their decision to defect.

Though people are entitled to their own opinions the listeners and consumers of such assertions equally have a right to calibrate what is coming to them in order to separate facts from lies and deceits. Today in Kebbi State, Governor Bagudu have within two years of his stewardship achieved what previous administration has failed to achieve in 14 years and has demonstrated to the people of the state what good governance is all about.

For instance, in the educational sector, Governor Atiku Bagudu has faced with vigour the issue of backlog of debts owed WAEC and NECO head-on by ensuring that the over 280 million naira outstanding balance owed those examination institutions is cleared thus enabling Kebbi State students to access their examination results that were previously withheld in 2015. Further, various schools have been built and old ones have been renovated with state of art educational facilities.

More also, about 900 million was extended into the water expansion project in Birnin Kebbi as it’s apparent that, rapid economic development is an impossibility without a stable water supply. Even in the area of power, the purposeful administration of Governor Atiku Bagudu has been quite proactive ensuring the connection of major towns and cities with the national grid as well as the provision of hundreds of transformers to transform power in residential areas, commercial centers, schools, universities, hospitals and the rest.

In fact, cross sections of the Kebbi populace have vigorously commended the governor for ensuring stable power supply which was previously a scarce commodity in the state. In the road infrastructure sector, Governor Atiku Bagudu has similarly displayed ingenuity and creativity by applying scarce resources prudently thus ensuring that thousands of kilometers of urban and rural roads have been either constructed or rehabilitated using the direct labour system so as to avoid contract cost overruns.

While for those whose faculty is reasoning well and are equally aware of the happenings within the nation, they must know that, Kebbi State is the only state in the north that is synonymous with agricultural development as an alternative source of revenue generation and job creation not only to the state but the nation as a whole.

Today, all the bigwigs of the PDP including the former governor has decamped to the ruling APC in the state, applauding Bagudu’s unprecedented strides in the state and promised to be part of his transformational regime.

Balarabe Writes From Kebbi