The Niger State Commissioner for Information, Communication and Rural Integration, Professor Mohammed Kuta Yahaya, speaks with ADELOWO OLADIPO on some national issues, including the reason the state is hosting President Goodluck Jonathan and North Central leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Minna today.
How does it feel hosting President Goodluck Jonathan today?
We feel excited to have the privilege of hosting the president for the North Central. Just on Monday, the president was in Kwara State to receive defectors and returnees into the PDP. We saw the mammoth crowd that welcomed him. That shows that the PDP is still in full reckoning despite recent developments in the state.
We feel excited to have the privilege of hosting the president for the North Central. Just on Monday, the president was in Kwara State to receive defectors and returnees into the PDP. We saw the mammoth crowd that welcomed him. That shows that the PDP is still in full reckoning despite recent developments in the state.
What informed the choice of Niger among the states in the North Central zone to host the president and other leaders of the party?
If your party has accepted to go to a particular place, beautiful. And you know that Niger has remained a PDP state since return to democratic experience in 1999. Niger State also gave the president 99 per cent of the votes that brought him to power in 2011. It is on record. So, we have all along had strong PDP presence in the state.
If your party has accepted to go to a particular place, beautiful. And you know that Niger has remained a PDP state since return to democratic experience in 1999. Niger State also gave the president 99 per cent of the votes that brought him to power in 2011. It is on record. So, we have all along had strong PDP presence in the state.
Some members of the opposition political parties are of the view that the president ought to come by road from Abuja for the visit because of the proximity of the Federal Capital Territory to Minna so that he can see what the citizens experience on Suleja-Minna Road.
But the construction of Suleja-Minna Road has started and you know that this is one of the projects that are not one-off because they are not executed within one budget year or within 12 months. Rather, they are executed over a long period of time.
But the construction of Suleja-Minna Road has started and you know that this is one of the projects that are not one-off because they are not executed within one budget year or within 12 months. Rather, they are executed over a long period of time.
But don’t you think that this road project may not be achieved in the life of this administration because of the slow pace at which the construction work is going on?
No, that is not true because the president is conscious of the fact that so many roads were started before the advent of his administration and he is continuing them and it’s almost at 75 per cent completion stage. Governor Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu has kept appealing that road should be completed. When completed, it will make life easier for motorists and the commuters along that route.
No, that is not true because the president is conscious of the fact that so many roads were started before the advent of his administration and he is continuing them and it’s almost at 75 per cent completion stage. Governor Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu has kept appealing that road should be completed. When completed, it will make life easier for motorists and the commuters along that route.
What activities are lined up for the hosting of the president and his team today?
There are so many activities. This is a unity rally where all party members will come together and Nigerians will know that PDP is still under one umbrella; that it is still solid. The groundbreaking of another 700 megawatts thermal station in Zungeru by the president will change the economic fortune of the entire community. Maybe this is payback time for the sacrifice that Zungeru made for Nigeria where amalgamation of the southern and northern Nigeria took place. The ancient town is supposed to be the centenary city or amalgamation city. So, with this development, life would open up for that area again and there would be change. So, we thank the president for doing that. That project had been in the blueprint since the Sardauna era and the feasibility was conducted since the colonial era and even in the first and second republics. Then, it came back to the drawing board 32 years before the president performed the groundbreaking ceremony. He has also actualised the dredging of River Niger up to Baro Port, which is already functional. The only thing we are waiting for is the road from Abuja to Baro and from Agaie to Baro. The oil exploration in the Bida Basin is already in the pipeline. The state has already made a presentation to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the organisation disclosed that this was about the most practical presentation they had received; where a state had done its home work and feasibility study and came up with evidence of the presence of hydrocarbon deposit in Bida Basin. It is beyond speculation now. Bida Basin is already working in concert with the Ministry of Mines and Solid Mineral Resources of Niger State to see how to actualise the next steps. So, for the first time, a state has come out with its own blueprint; that this is what we have discovered. Investors are already expressing interest in the exploration. The president has directed the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to look into it, in conjunction with DPR, and state officials have gone to Lagos to do the presentation. Oil exploration is not like going to the farm to harvest yam, it is a serious business. So, a lot of home work has to be done because it is a multi-million dollar investment. So, I think we are on course.
There are so many activities. This is a unity rally where all party members will come together and Nigerians will know that PDP is still under one umbrella; that it is still solid. The groundbreaking of another 700 megawatts thermal station in Zungeru by the president will change the economic fortune of the entire community. Maybe this is payback time for the sacrifice that Zungeru made for Nigeria where amalgamation of the southern and northern Nigeria took place. The ancient town is supposed to be the centenary city or amalgamation city. So, with this development, life would open up for that area again and there would be change. So, we thank the president for doing that. That project had been in the blueprint since the Sardauna era and the feasibility was conducted since the colonial era and even in the first and second republics. Then, it came back to the drawing board 32 years before the president performed the groundbreaking ceremony. He has also actualised the dredging of River Niger up to Baro Port, which is already functional. The only thing we are waiting for is the road from Abuja to Baro and from Agaie to Baro. The oil exploration in the Bida Basin is already in the pipeline. The state has already made a presentation to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the organisation disclosed that this was about the most practical presentation they had received; where a state had done its home work and feasibility study and came up with evidence of the presence of hydrocarbon deposit in Bida Basin. It is beyond speculation now. Bida Basin is already working in concert with the Ministry of Mines and Solid Mineral Resources of Niger State to see how to actualise the next steps. So, for the first time, a state has come out with its own blueprint; that this is what we have discovered. Investors are already expressing interest in the exploration. The president has directed the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to look into it, in conjunction with DPR, and state officials have gone to Lagos to do the presentation. Oil exploration is not like going to the farm to harvest yam, it is a serious business. So, a lot of home work has to be done because it is a multi-million dollar investment. So, I think we are on course.
What should Nigerians be looking forward to in today’s event?
We should look forward to a rousing reception for President Jonathan. We have done it before during his electioneering and he has had a chance to inaugurate a number of projects here before and this time, the president will be at home as usual in Niger State. The state accords a lot of respect to leaders and the Chief Servant, Dr Babangida Aliyu, is a believer of the work of God: that whatever God has designed, nobody can change it. So, we are on the path of the history of stabilising the polity. In history, Niger State has played a significant role in stabilising the Nigerian polity. Whatever anybody thinks about the country, we will make it. The challenges we are currently facing in terms of insecurity, economic downturn are not peculiar to Nigeria, they are a global trend. But the solution depends how we manage the challenges and how we tolerate one another and build a united nation. I pray that the forthcoming national conference will build blocks for national unity. I believe that Nigeria is on the path of greatness and that whatever challenges we face now will become history.
We should look forward to a rousing reception for President Jonathan. We have done it before during his electioneering and he has had a chance to inaugurate a number of projects here before and this time, the president will be at home as usual in Niger State. The state accords a lot of respect to leaders and the Chief Servant, Dr Babangida Aliyu, is a believer of the work of God: that whatever God has designed, nobody can change it. So, we are on the path of the history of stabilising the polity. In history, Niger State has played a significant role in stabilising the Nigerian polity. Whatever anybody thinks about the country, we will make it. The challenges we are currently facing in terms of insecurity, economic downturn are not peculiar to Nigeria, they are a global trend. But the solution depends how we manage the challenges and how we tolerate one another and build a united nation. I pray that the forthcoming national conference will build blocks for national unity. I believe that Nigeria is on the path of greatness and that whatever challenges we face now will become history.
What would you say are the achievements of the PDP-led government in Niger State that has called for celebration, leading to today’s unity rally under the umbrella of the PDP?
We should not lose sight of the fact that the state has opened the gate for investors. The development partners are beginning to have confidence because when the chief servant assumed office, he grappled with the issue of paying counterpart funding for development partners like the World Bank, UNICEF, UNDP and the European Union. He paid all of them and that gave all the development partners confidence and made the state a hub of development partnership. That is why we have enacted laws geared towards ensuring transparency in the system. That is a major milestone. Then, look at infrastructure. You have been in Minna before, you saw what the streets in Minna were like and virtually all the roads in Minna are now being dualised. The compliments we receive from visiting ambassadors and people from across the federation and abroad have shown that Minna, the state capital, is about the most beautiful city in the country. These are compliments you cannot wish away, whether you like it or not. Also, look at the education sector. At the advent of this government, about 600,000 students were in schools, but today, over 1.4 million students, as of 2011, were enrolled in the school system. That is a milestone, a major breakthrough for us as a government and for the people of Niger State. Look at the mobilisation and the engagement of the people at the grassroots level where we now have ward development committees where governance has gone to the grassroots and all 25 local governments and the 274 wards receive a grant of N1million each every month to execute projects of interest. That has galvanised development at the grassroots level. That is participatory democracy in action. The people account for the money before they get the next tranche and they are doing well. People are ready to articulate their own issues and present them for the support of the government. And when you talk about our school system, SUBEB has virtually renovated over 70 per cent of the schools with new infrastructure, which include tables and chairs that were almost lacking in the past. That has caused us pain because of the upsurge in the number of pupils who want to go to school now because the government has taken the burden off the parents and guardians in the state. The government is paying for students’ WAEC and NECO examinations, just as bursary allowance to students in tertiary institutions is not being neglected. Right now, the number of students that are craving to go to tertiary institutions is increasing because they can see a sense of pride in going to school and getting the support of the government. Today, Niger State is one of the states facing the challenge of managing graduates’ engagement because there is an upsurge in the number of students attending schools and graduates looking for employment.
We should not lose sight of the fact that the state has opened the gate for investors. The development partners are beginning to have confidence because when the chief servant assumed office, he grappled with the issue of paying counterpart funding for development partners like the World Bank, UNICEF, UNDP and the European Union. He paid all of them and that gave all the development partners confidence and made the state a hub of development partnership. That is why we have enacted laws geared towards ensuring transparency in the system. That is a major milestone. Then, look at infrastructure. You have been in Minna before, you saw what the streets in Minna were like and virtually all the roads in Minna are now being dualised. The compliments we receive from visiting ambassadors and people from across the federation and abroad have shown that Minna, the state capital, is about the most beautiful city in the country. These are compliments you cannot wish away, whether you like it or not. Also, look at the education sector. At the advent of this government, about 600,000 students were in schools, but today, over 1.4 million students, as of 2011, were enrolled in the school system. That is a milestone, a major breakthrough for us as a government and for the people of Niger State. Look at the mobilisation and the engagement of the people at the grassroots level where we now have ward development committees where governance has gone to the grassroots and all 25 local governments and the 274 wards receive a grant of N1million each every month to execute projects of interest. That has galvanised development at the grassroots level. That is participatory democracy in action. The people account for the money before they get the next tranche and they are doing well. People are ready to articulate their own issues and present them for the support of the government. And when you talk about our school system, SUBEB has virtually renovated over 70 per cent of the schools with new infrastructure, which include tables and chairs that were almost lacking in the past. That has caused us pain because of the upsurge in the number of pupils who want to go to school now because the government has taken the burden off the parents and guardians in the state. The government is paying for students’ WAEC and NECO examinations, just as bursary allowance to students in tertiary institutions is not being neglected. Right now, the number of students that are craving to go to tertiary institutions is increasing because they can see a sense of pride in going to school and getting the support of the government. Today, Niger State is one of the states facing the challenge of managing graduates’ engagement because there is an upsurge in the number of students attending schools and graduates looking for employment.
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