WHITHER BORNO SOUTH STAKEHOLDERS: A REJOINDER

WHITHER BORNO SOUTH STAKEHOLDERS: A REJOINDER

BY: Yamta Bulama Bata Mshelia.

Amidst the very wide acclaim, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum has been getting for his leadership style; a news item captioned ” Borno South Residents Urge Action Against Discriminatory Politics “, authored by one Ishaya Malgwi, writting on behalf of a self styled group; BORNO SOUTH STAKEHOLDERS, caught my attention in the social media.

In the said piece Ishaya Malgwi, the convener of Borno South Stakeholders: an amorphous socio-political group comprising mainly Southern Borno elites in diaspora, tried painting the people of Southern Borno as ungrateful for the present government in Borno state under Professor Babagana Umara Zulum.

I had earlier read another write-up by Alhaji Yusuf Adamu, expressing appreciation to the governor for the numerous projects executed in Southern Borno: Biu in particular.
With Alhaji Yusuf Adanu’s piece, one would have been happy that contrary to Ishaya Malgwi’s postulations, the governor has done something worthwhile in the southern part and one can afford to ignore the Borno South Stakeholders under Ishaya Malgwi, but for the fact that as a stakeholder by all ramifications, and I am from Southern Borno residing in Biu, I could not resist the urge to correct the the erroneous impression being created by the so-called Borno South Stakeholders.

As a witness to some of the projects executed across Southern Borno which run contrary to the claims by the self styled group called Southern Borno Stakeholders, I have always had my suspicion about this group, which registered as agents of unity and development, but which has metamorphosis into an opposition: that does not see anything good in the government of Borno state.

I have interacted with so many people who were unsuspecting lured to join the group, most of whom opted out after realizing that it was more of a selfish self serving assemblage much more than a collection of development strategists.

I have also keenly followed their programmes and shall expose their real motives in the fullness of time.

I hasten to state that no governor, in the recent history of Borno state, has done what governor Zulum has done or is doing in Southern Borno in terms of development.
I stand to be corrected, but I am also aware that Southern Borno has its fair share of representation in the government, and I know that so many projects have been completed and are ongoing in Southern Borno.

I have made contact with like minds, and we are compiling the list of projects executed in each local government area in Southern Borno.
I am sure that, except perhaps those working in Ishaya Malgwi’s conclave, most Southern Borno stakeholders may not agree that we are mere onlookers on the political scene either.
It is needless to clarify that in Zulums government, the chairman of the ruling party is from Southern Borno: and one will wonder what political relevance Malgwi is talking about.

To my limited knowledge, I know that the Deputy Governor is from Southern Borno, the Deputy Speaker of the state Assemnly is from Southern Borno, the Deputy Chief of Staff is from Southern Borno, there is a Commissioner from each Local Government, except Gwoza and Chibok which had problems, there is a sizeable number of Advisers, SSAs, SAs and Technical Advisers from each Local Government and untill recently the Head of Service is from Southern Borno and many others.

I know, as a matter of fact, that many Southern Borno State indigenes have gained appointments through the instrumentality of the Borno State Governor.
We may concede it to Borno South Stakeholders as a right to express their opinions and orchestrate their sentiments because we are approaching another political phase, and the polity is already heating up.
But it is completely inaccurate to state that Professor Babagana Umara Zulum is running a government of exclusion to the detriment of Southern Borno.

We should learn to appreciate that which is good even when it does not favour us, just as we are previledged to also criticize.

Mshelia is an indigenes of Hawul Local Government.

WHITHER BORNO SOUTH STAKEHOLDERS: A REJOINDER