Connect with us

News

SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

Published

on

SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

By: A.G.Abubakar

As your Excellency may have been aware, the drums of state creation are being beaten left, right and centre. Expectedly, the perennial agitators once more are in the arena. The current number is about 31 enclaves, with the major ones being Katagum (Bauchi), Ghari (Kano), New Kaduna (Kaduna), Ogoja (Cross Rivers), Oke-Ogun (Oyo), Kainji (Niger), Adada ((Enugu), Amana, (Adamawa), Okura, Okun (Kogi), Orlu (Imo), Warri (Delta), Apa (Benue) and many more have been dusting their memorandum for resubmission.

One hopes the Movements are not overlooking the provisions of Section 8 of the Constitution that deals with the creation of new state (s) in Nigeria. In any case, it is the people’s right to live out their idiosyncrasies as deem fit so long as they are within the Constitutional bounds. For the people of Southern Borno, the current initiative towards having a Savannah State would be the sixth in the series. The first serious requests were made in 1989, 1991, 2014, 2021 and now in the year 2025. Others like Ogoja and Katagum have longer history.

The yearning for a new state ordinarily should be a welcome development for both mother and baby – the new and the old entities. Given the primordial considerations that govern politics and the winner-takes- all syndrome, people tend to feel that their interests can be better catered for through a polity in which they have a voice. This may be misplaced or even an anathema to democratic tenets, but it is the reality of Nigeria politics, all the same.

In Nigeria, it would seem that, only through state creation would development be devolved to the grassroots. Imagine, Your Excellency, if such towns like Damaturu, Gombe, Jimeta-Yola, Jalingo, and Bauchi were still local government headquarters under either the North East state that was created in 1967. Or their plights and pace of development under defunct Borno, Gongola, and Bauchi. Consider the universities, the polytechnics, the specialist hospitals, the airports, and the urban transformations that come with being a state in Nigeria. These seems to be the attraction. So when people agitate for Savannah State, it doesn’t mean they love current Borno less, but they appreciate development more. Not many might appreciate this subtle nuances, but that’s the bottom line.

Some state governments understood the raison d’tre of the demand for the curving out of additional states from the existing ones. Bauchi government accorded the Katagum State movement the necessary support. Ogun State did the same thing and more, by “allowing” the Awujale of Ijebu land to take his request for Ijebu State to Aso Rock in Abuja. Even Kano State never stood in the way of Tiga or Gari state movements .This brotherly support seems to be lacking on the part of Borno power brokers. The last outing by the Savannah State Movement was almost marred by the subterranean influence of the government. For, it will beat imagination for a deputy speaker of Borno State Assembly, an expected beneficiary of the new state ,to rise up and voice the fact that Borno State was not interested in having a new state. People who know the working of government and politics understand the gentleman was acting on a script, based on misplaced fears.

A new state in Borno is going to be a win-win development. The stock shall be left with 19 LGAs. A number far higher than Abia 17, Bayelsa 8, Cross Rivers 18, Ebonyi 13, Edo 18, Ekiti 16, Enugu 17, Gombe 11, Kwara 16, Nasarawa 13, Ondo 18, Plateau 17, Taraba 16, Yobe 17, and Zamfara 14. In terms of economic dispositions, the border economies with Niger, Chad, and Cameroon present huge opportunities for trade and commerce. The economic potential of the Lack Chad and its basin are equally enormous. Furthermore, should the Southern part of Borno state move away, the residual manpower left behind would be more than that of Zamfara, Kebbi, and even Bayelsa at the point of creation in 1991, including population size which is estimated to 3.5 million. Maiduguri, the state capital, has an unsuitable stock of physical infrastructure that can drive development in the foreseeable future.

The Savannah counterpart shall be a state comprised of 9 LGAs with a population that is above two (2) million. It’s going to be a state in the league of Bayelsa with 8 LGAs and slightly less than Gombe and Ebonyi with 11 and 13 Councils respectively. It would be statesmanly for His Excellency to lend support to the people’s legitimate aspiration, for whatever its worth. In the same vein, an unambivalent posture by the state would free the traditional rulers in Southern Borno from the tight corner they normally found themselves anytime there is a state creation exercises on the horizon. They are usually caught between their subjects, who were largely pro state crreation and the state government’s tacit disapproval. A disposition that is unnecessary given the fact that such exercises are guided by Constitutional provisions.

As for the Savannah state, if it all happens, you would have gotten rid of a “restive” segment of your polity for good. Before too long, the teething problems of the Savannah state shall come to the fore unless the pioneer leadership happens to be a visionary one. And also a just one, in the light of the region’s diversity. But that’s going to be their cup of tea, Your Excellency, not yours.

In the light of the foregoing, let the Borno state government lend its support to the Savannah State Movement (SSM). After all, the euphoria so generated could just turn out to be diversionary move by the National Assembly away from the crushing economic hardships Nigerians are currently facing.

The state Deputy Governor, His Excellency Umar U. Kadafur, Senator representing Borno South, House of Representatives members Hons. Mukhtari Betara, Midala Balami Usman, and Jaha, along with their counterparts in the State Assembly, are kindly called upon to heed the yearnings of the people to have their memorandum on state creation pushed. They should forge a bi-partisan front to engage with the government to allow the region’s aspiration to play out. Besides, there is a popular adage that says that “the only bad request is the one that is never made.” Or rather “the only bad desire is the one that is never expressed” Let the request be and be supported too.

SAVANNAH STATE SHALL BE A WIN-WIN DEVELOPMENT: GOV. ZULUM SHOULD ALLOW THE PROCESS TO RUN ITS COURSE

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

News

Man kills father during domestic dispute in Bauchi community

Published

on

Man kills father during domestic dispute in Bauchi community

By: Zagazola Makama

A man, identified as Limam Muhammad Baba, has allegedly killed his biological father, Malam Baba Siti, during a domestic altercation.

The tragic incident occurred on Thursday, July 3, at about 10:15 p.m., in Uzum village, Giade Local Government Area of Bauchi State, when an argument between the two escalated, leading Limam to strike his father on the head with a stick.

Sources told Zagazola Makama that the victim collapsed immediately and lost consciousness.

Police sources say “The report was received at the Giade Divisional Police Headquarters at about 10:30 p.m. that the suspect used force on his biological father by striking him on the head with a stick, leading to the victim falling unconscious.

He added that a team of police operatives was immediately mobilised to the scene. The suspect was arrested, and the victim was taken to the General Hospital in Giade, where a medical doctor confirmed him dead on arrival.

The police sources said the body of the deceased was deposited at the hospital morgue while an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident has commenced.

He assured that the suspect would be charged to court upon completion of investigation.

Man kills father during domestic dispute in Bauchi community

Continue Reading

News

Deputy chairman of Katsina-Ala LGA attacked, four suspects arrested

Published

on

Deputy chairman of Katsina-Ala LGA attacked, four suspects arrested

By: Zagazola Makama

Security forces have apprehended four suspects in connection with an attack on the Deputy Chairman of Katsina-Ala Local Government Area, Mr Christopher Chia.

Sources told Zagazola Makama, that the incident occurred in the early hours of Thursday, July 3, when Chia was reportedly attacked by a group of young men suspected to be cultists.

The sources said the police received a distress call from the victim at about 6:00 a.m.

“Police patrol and tactical teams were immediately deployed to the scene. The victim was rescued and taken to Toro Hospital in Katsina-Ala, where he was treated and later discharged,” said the sources.

According to the sources, preliminary investigation led to the arrest of four suspects, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend the prime suspect identified simply as Richard, a member of the Black Axe confraternity, who is currently at large.

The sources added that the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has commenced a full investigation into the matter to unravel the motive behind the attack and bring all those involved to justice.

Deputy chairman of Katsina-Ala LGA attacked, four suspects arrested

Continue Reading

News

Joint task force rescues kidnap victim in Abuja after 40km forest operation

Published

on

Joint task force rescues kidnap victim in Abuja after 40km forest operation

By: Zagazola Makama

A joint task force comprising operatives of the
Department of State Services (DSS), Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, local hunters, and vigilantes has successfully rescued a kidnap victim, Rasheed Soyinka, after a 40-kilometre forest operation across parts of Abuja.

Zagazola Makama learnt that the victim was abducted at gunpoint from his residence in Sabon Lugbe in the early hours of July 3, prompting a swift multi-agency response.

Shortly after the abduction, which occurred around 1:00 a.m., a joint task force involving the Anti-Kidnapping Unit, DSS operatives, local hunters, and vigilante groups, swung into action.

The coordinated operation, extended through Dafara via Gau Forest in Kuje Area Council and continued into Kabin Mongoro and Kwaita forests in Kwali Area Council, covering an estimated distance of 40 kilometres.

“Following sustained pressure and professional coordination, the victim was rescued at about 12:05 a.m. on July 4 without any casualties,”said the sources.

Soyinka was subsequently reunited with his family through his elder brother, while efforts are ongoing to track down the fleeing abductors.

Joint task force rescues kidnap victim in Abuja after 40km forest operation

Continue Reading

Trending

Verified by MonsterInsights