Sokoto Governor Aminu Tambuwal’s strides in different sectors give nothing but hope and promises to the citizenry, Onuminya Innocent reports
According to Governor Aminu Tambuwal, leadership is a previlege and opportunity to serve and leave a lasting legacy of positive change and continue growth.
With accountability and fiscal discipline as the strength of his administration, Sokoto State Governor is giving leadership an entirely different meaning.
The State under the leadership of Tambuwal has witnessed remarkable level of financial discipline, probity, transparency and accountability lately, borne out of the governor’s burning desire to keep the state within the range of steady progress for socio-economic and political advancements.
As a former Speaker of the House of representative, who supervised ministries, departments and agencies, Tambuwal through his vision, steadfast and innovation, has made steady progress and engineered far-reaching reforms geared towards restructuring, re-engineering and reinvigoration of the state’s economy.
This is in keeping faith with his campaign promise to pilot the affairs of his state to the satisfaction of the masses that voted him into office.
Today, the effect of the dwindling federal allocation to states and local governments due to the downturn in the oil sector has made it imperative for government at all levels to review several issues hindering development and proffer solutions on how best to service the people.
This, perhaps, has informed the new thinking in Sokoto State in line with the Governor’s desire to give the state quality leadership and render selfless service in an atmosphere of peace, accountability and fiscal discipline.
Tambuwal, in tandem with the state’s economic team has been working tirelessly for the implementation of the 2022 budget which has almost seventy percent implementation.
To make the budget a reality, the state government in its wisdom concentrate on areas that has direct bearing on the people for implementation.
Currently, the state’s monthly federal allocation stands at N3 to 4billion, out of which N2.5billion goes for workers’ salaries, N288million for the monthly settlement of pensions, N129million for allowance of political office holders, N80 to N100million for treatments of water by the state water board, and N600million for the service of the loan taken by the previous administration. With this financial engineering, the state is able to meet up with its monthly financial obligations due to transparency and probity imbibed by the governor.
In 2020 in acknowledging the state’s financial prudence, the office of Accountant General of Federation (AGF), rated Sokoto eightth best state in fiscal sustainability and prudence in public fund management.
It also rated the state best in meeting monthly recurrent, expenditure and loan repayment in 2019. The independently verified and quality assurance agency of World Bank rated the state 93 per cent in financial discipline and due process.
This made the state to secured an approval for N6billion grant from the World Bank due to its commitment to financial stability, tax reduction and due process.
Before Tambuwal’s assumption of office, the state internally generated revenue (IGR) stood at N200million monthly, but with the reforms brought into the system, the IGR has surpassed N600million monthly.
Despite the financial crunch in the country, especially with the non remittal by Nigeria National Petroleum Company(NNPC), Sokoto is one of the states that is consistent in payment of N30,000 minimum wage to its workers, while workers’ salaries and pensions are paid as and when due.
The state had also invested N1.5billion in the Bank of Agriculture and industry, while injecting N500million in Taj Bank.
In the health sector, Governor Tambuwal is doing everything humanly possible to revitalise the sector. As with several other sectors in the state, the health sector has witnessed what could be regarded as significant developments in the last seven and half years under the Tambuwa-led administration.
On assumption of office in May 2015, the governor discovered that the health sector was one of those in critical state. Though the previous administrations did a lot to salvage the situation, but for Tambuwal, more needed to be done to leverage the sector.
In his first term, the governor ordered the renovation and equipping of the specialist hospital, which gulped hundreds of millions of naira. Today the specialist hospital can favourably compete with any tertiary health centre in the country. It is also used as a referral centre within and outside the state.
To the governor, having Usman DanFodio University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH) and Specialist Hospital in the State was not enough to provide tertiary health care service delivery to the people of the state. The work at Sokoto State University Teaching Hospital, Kasarawa, has reached eighty percent completion level.
When recently a delegation of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Sokoto State Council, led by its Chairman, Comrade Dalhatu Safiya Malgori, paid an inspection visit to the project site at Kasarawa, the NUJ Chairman lauded the efforts of the governor for embarking on people-focused projects.
According to Malgori, the project tallied with the yearning and aspirations of residents of the state. “As watch dogs, we come here to see what the governor is doing with public funds and not to antagonise him but to work as partners in progress.
“During the electioneering campaign, the governor made many promises to the people of the state, including providing quality health service delivery”.
He added that what was on ground attested to the fact that the governor was fulfilling his campaign promises to the people of the state.
The project consultant, Architect Kabiru Umar Yabo, while speaking to reporters, disclosed that the contract was awarded for the sum of N6.8billion with the time frame of 30 months, adding that the project comprised 22 structures, two site fences and administrative block.
Barely three months after the project was awarded, work has reached 80 percent, meaning it could be ready before the completion period.
When the governor also spoke on the project at the groundbreaking by Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, some some years ago, he said when completed, the teaching hospital would provide tertiary health service to the people of the state, the country and also used as a training center for medical students of Sokoto State University.
The Tambuwal administration has also completed and inaugurated Farfaru Advance Diagnostic Centre (FADC), which is to serve as advance laboratory abd is equipped with modern equipment to conduct all forms of laboratory tests.
Before now, some advance and complex medical tests were sent to Kano and other places from the Usman DanFodio University Teaching Hospital. But with Farfaru Advance Diagnostic Centre, most of these tests would be done in the state, which will go a long way in saving lives.
The state has also launched contributory Health Scheme in July 2018 for its workers with 21 accredited general hospitals and 65 primary health centres to cater for the scheme.
There’s no debating the fact that by the time all these projects come into fruition, Sokoto’s health sector would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with any from any part of the country. Indeed, it is a different kind of revolution that dares to change Sokoto.
In area of security, Tambuwal has engineered a new security architecture aimed at fighting crimes in every nook and cranny of Sokoto State.
Despite security challenges in some parts of the state the undaunted spirit of the governor made the state relatively peaceful than the neighbouring states. The Governor has procured over 50 vehicles worth N500million to further strengthen the security agencies across the state.
In the education sector, upon assumption of office, the governor declared state of emergency in the sector. He has also constructed modern class room blocks across the 23 local government areas of the state.nIn some places some classroom blocks were renovated to give it a facelift.
Recently, Tambuwal directed that over 1,000 teachers should be recruited to add to teaching workforce, while bursary to indigent students studying at home and abroad are paid as at when due.
