04/11/2020
FIRST 100 DAYS OF SELFLESS STEWARDSHIP TO THE PEOPLE OF BAUCHI STATE – THE JOURNEY SO FAR,
BEING AN ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF BAUCHI STATE
BY HIS EXCELLENCY MOHAMMED ABDULLAHI
ABUBAKAR Esq. GOVERNOR OF BAUCHI STATE
ON 5TH SEPTEMBER, 2015
====================================
Fellow Citizens of Bauchi State,
All Praises be to Allah, the Beneficent, and the Merciful.
We have marked the 100th day since we took the oath of committal to work assiduously for the progress of Bauchi State and its people; counting each day as an opportunity to serve our people to the fullest. Though relatively short, but, we do believe that the 100 day mark is a worthy milestone for our strategic focus and general governance direction to be evaluated on the gauges of intent, posturing and deliberate action.
2. Since we took the oath of office, our administration has not looked back on its promise to restore the dignity of Bauchi State and enhance the living conditions of our people. The reigns handed to us by the previous administration were no doubt replete with massive profligacy with state resources, wanton disregard of laid down administrative processes, absolute rot in resource management processes and crass nepotism in undertaking general governance duties.
3. We have taken the time since our inauguration as a government to fully assess the status of our system after the horrendous abuse it suffered in both its structure, staffing, process management and most especially resource management.
4. Indeed, the relative quiet that has characterized our initial days in government should be taken as enough evidence that precious time has been deployed literally to the task of cleaning the rot left behind by the previous government.
5. Our government has received the reports of the Main Transition and Technical Committees. Those comprehensive documents have commendably enriched the strategic focus of our government to strive towards the attainment of an educationally enhanced, economically advanced and constructively vigilant population. These have helped us outline priority programs in line with our campaign promises, enumerating impactful programs that will portray our preparedness to leave Bauchi State far better than it was bequeathed to us. A deliberate effort in this regard is the setting-up of the Budget Review Committee which was mandated to draw up areas of focus in line with prioritization for provision of funding, and has since submitted its report to Government. It also caused the setting-up of the state’s Assets Recovery Committee, one that has garnered statewide applause by conducting a rancor free recovery process of huge numbers of vehicles, generating sets and transformers that had been frittered away and personalized by officials of the previous administration and their cohorts. The Committee has also recovered several plots of land arbitrarily allocated against extant laws.
6. Consequent upon these commendable feats, our government has just broadened the terms of engagement and reference of the Recovery Committee and accordingly mandated them to their searchlight to the State’s Ministry for Local Government Affairs, State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the case of the Central Bank of Nigeria N2 billion Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Loan.
7. It is with enormous gratitude to this unrelenting recovery drive that I wish to announce the fruitful efforts in locating the state owned “Embraer 145 Aircraft” in Morocco. Series of meetings have just been concluded with a view to receiving the aircraft at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa International Airport Bauchi in a matter of days.
CIVIL SERVICE
8. Our government has in these 100 days earned for itself a toga of a labour friendly administration, one that has allowed the Civil Service the freedom to operate in maximization of its duties as enshrined in the state’s civil service structure. It will be recalled that, immediately after we assumed office, we were able to resolve numerous industrial disputes and strikes including those by the NLC, Staff and Students of the Abubakar Tatari Ali Polytechnic and the Staff of the College of Agriculture. Similarly, the Government intervened to resolve the dispute between Resident Doctors and management of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital. We have also, in an unprecedented feat, been able to achieve the settlement of a larger chunk of staff salary arrears as a mark of our commitment to the welfare of our workers. Let me use this occasion to also assure that all civil servants, especially teachers, whose salaries have unjustifiably not been paid will have their cases verified and settled accordingly. Our good people of Bauchi State, it is worth noting that as at this time of my address to you, we are yet to receive the bailout funds that was graciously extended to States by the Federal Government. We are however in the process and relentlessly following up to access the funds. Information just reaching me from the State Accountant General is that approval has finally left the Federal Ministry of Finance to Zenith Bank Plc.
9. With the current enabling environment, we are now good to go with our planned restructuring of the MDAs and the overhauling of the civil service. Already you will recall that an interim verification exercise was conducted for civil servants on the State and Local Governments payrolls. We are now at the point of carrying out a biometric exercise as a way of further identifying ghost workers and other irregularities.
Health
10. In view of the indispensability of health to the socio-economic development of our people, Government has taken the following measures, among others, in the area of health care delivery services:-
(i) Release of N160,000,000:00 State counterpart fund contribution for the sustenance and strengthening of routine immunization in the State under the tripartite arrangement between the State Government, Bill and Melinda Gate and Dangote Foundations.
(ii) Release of N87,000,000:00 for the procurement of essential drugs for our Hospitals.
(iii) Accreditation of Dental Health Services Training at the State College of Health Technology Ningi has been facilitated. Accreditation of Nursing and Midwifery in the same college has also been facilitated.
(iv) A five point health Agenda tagged “Lafiya Garkuwa” has been launched, details of which are as follows:-
Agenda 1: Strengthening primary Healthcare and Routine Immunization across the State
Agenda 2: Ensure access of mothers and children to reproductive, maternal, new born and Child health Services, including access to quality and cost effective live saving drugs.
Agenda 3: Motivating frontline health workers for effective and quality service delivery.
Agenda 4: Improving funding of health sector through innovative financing mechanisms, accountability and transparency.
Agenda 5: Demand creation Via Health Education, awareness creation and strategic Communication.
(v) In order to address the problem of infant mortality, Government has declared free medication and other health services to children under the age of five years.
INFRASTRUCTURE
11. In the area of physical development, we have just concluded processes for the commencement of work on the reconstruction of the following;
(i) Misau-Bulkachuwa-Udubo road
(ii) CBN roundabout-Federal Low cost-Railway
Road in Bauchi.
FIRE SERVICE
12. At the inception of this administration, there was no single serviceable fire truck in the whole State. Accordingly, our government has put up all the available 5 fire trucks in Bauchi and Azare for thorough overhaul while negotiating for the purchase of more in an effort to improve safety measures for residences and other public areas across the State.
ENVIRONMENT
13. We have remained committed to enhancing the image and environmental features of the state’s metropolis, and this has so far caused about 420 youths and women to be employed for the provision of cleaning services. The hitherto, arbitrarily littered heaps of refuse that almost took over the city of Bauchi are fast disappearing and giving way to a cleaner environment.
AGRICULTURE
14. In the area of agriculture, our core focus has been with regards to establishing the entire agricultural value chain process and ensconce its economic impact across the various parts of the state. In this farming season, we have procured 2,500 metric tonnes of urea for our fertilizer blending company in order for us to make up and distribute up to 10,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer. At the flag off of the sale of the commodity earlier on in Misau, we had announced government subsidy with the prices pegged at N2,750/bag of NPK and N3,000/bag of Urea. We have observed that, so far, these prices are the cheapest throughout the Northern part of the country. Accordingly, a Committee was appointed on the distribution exercise that has been able to ensure delivery of the commodity down to the electoral wards level in the State.
15. Our visit to Czech Republic was with a deliberate intention to forge strategic partnerships in the areas of agricultural implement acquisition, enhancement of agricultural produce, operational as well as technical capacity development, through knowledge and technology transfer processes. In the area of the planned acquisition of modern farm implements, it is worth noting that we have already started discussions with our local company- Messrs Steyr Limited with a view to encouraging industrial sustainability and growth.
16. In order to enable the timely and more efficient evacuation of agricultural produce, and to further complement the take-off arrangements with foreign partners, our government has commenced the repairs and reconstruction of some wash-out on rural feeder roads that are considered as major links to markets. So far, funds have been released and, in most cases, work has commenced on the following roads;
1. Soro-Gungura
2. Darazo-Gabchiari
3. Azare-Isawa-Giade
4. Darazo-Basirka
5. Dindima-Mainamaji
6. Tudun Gambo-Gokaru
7. Siri-Miya
8. Jama'are-Yola
9. Jama'are bye-pass
10 Tafawa Balewa-Bununu-Liman Katagum
11 Bogoro-Kalambu
12 Dass-Bunjang-Durr
13 Dass-Bagas
14 Dass-Makabarta
15 Misau-Ajili
All these projects are being undertaken through direct labor by the teams of our engineers pooled from the relevant government ministries, thereby enhancing cost-effectiveness, performance and further employment of rural labor.
TOURISM
17. During our recent visit to the Czech Republic, we executed a mutually beneficial working relationship with regards to revamping our tourism potential through the enhancement of wild life conservation and Anti-poaching method at the Yankari Game Reserve. These have been concluded through historic working agreements and Memoranda that have been executed with different parties. At the moment, funds have been released and various works are about being completed by a committee we have set up to ensure that all facilities, such as potable water, power, telecom. Internet facilities, game viewing vehicles, Kitchen/restaurant, furniture and linens, etc, at the Yankari Game Reserve are functional and befitting.
WATER
18. In the past few weeks, we have witnessed an improvement in Water Supply in Bauchi metropolis as a result of the following interventions:-
- Reconditioning of the 3.0MVA Power transformer to serve as back-up to the 5.0MVA Power transformer at the Main Treatment Plant.
- Procurement of chemicals for proper and adequate disinfection of treated water at the main plant.
- Regularization of monthly payment of power bill to Jos Electricity Distribution Company.
HAJJ EXCERCISE
19. Government has provided befitting accommodation, medical services and other basic requirements for the State’s pilgrims at Saudi-Arabia during the 2015 Hajj Exercise. About One Billion Naira was saved by the State Government through renegotiation of the cost of accommodation and other expenses normally incurred by the Government during the hall exercise.
SECURITY
20. Since assumption of office, the Government has been working hand in hand with security agencies (i.e. Police, SSS Army etc), and State Security Council meetings have been held regularly. Similarly, proactive measures were taken against real or perceived security threats. By the grace of God Almighty, the measures have paid off as Bauchi State has remained the most peaceful State in the North East Sub-region.
CONCLUSION
21. My dear good people of Bauchi State, we are still grappling with the challenge of huge paucity of funds as a government, but we will strive to achieve the programs that have been outlined for the progress of our state, with particular attention to the improvement in living conditions of our people and enhancement of the volumes of economic activities undertaken within the state. We are also committed to a continued improvement in the provision of essential utility services and other basic infrastructure in the areas of transportation, education and health.
22. We pledge to continue to work in an effort to build ourselves a memorable legacy, In-shaa Allah.
23. Thank you and God bless.
