An Open Letter To Governor Abubakar Sani Bello Of Niger State. “Ugly Face Of The New Niger State”
Your Excellency Sir.
Your election victory and emergence as the governor of Niger State and that of President Muhammadu Buhari at the center was expected to culminate in landmark, fundamental changes and restructuring especially in the public service, Infrastructural development, job creation and to a large extent, substantial improvement on internal revenue mobilization capacity and efficiency in public expenditure.
The expectation of Nigerlites was further bolstered by your record of success in the private sector. In addition to being on the political Map of Niger State for quite some times now. It was also anticipated that you had grasped and developed alternative framework of policy action or people centered initiatives (button-top) programmes to drastically cut the cost of running government “financial prudence” on the aftermath of self-inflicted economic comma, no thanks to 16years of People Destruction Party (PDP) Plutocratic government of Financial recklessness , absolute impunity and institutionalized corruption.
Sir, with due respect to your bloodline, before you are a legacy of integrity and performance which you should jealously protect while carving for yourself a place in the history book of the power state and by extension a positive reference point for other states in Nigeria. With dwindling allocation from federation account and the reasons there-with a public knowledge. It is only ideal the issue of ghost workers in the state civil service be URGENTLY and AGGRESSIVELY resolved. Owing to the fact that Niger State is rather very much still a civil service state.
The success of any policy, decision or programe in this regards will require a total “brake-away” from existing structure which has persistently aided the presence of such problems while creating gridlocks to your administration in fulfilling campaign promises and responsibility to electorates. Similarly if history does not lie, then as a people we must never repeat mistakes of the past. Hence at this point in time, three of the most significant issues to address are as follow;
Since the inception of democratic dispensation in 1999. Almost a dozen screening has been conducted with subsequent phenomenal of ghost workers only keeps on increasing. The simple and ethical fact is that except those on top of the revenue pyramid responsible for such criminal acts are fished out and immediately dismissed from service otherwise, the dead would in no time finds its way back in to the state payroll, while creating a state of disappointment for your government in the eyes of long suffering, hardworking but poor civil servant and public officers.
In specific term, Sir If culprits would not take responsibility for their action and punished accordingly. Then the entire screening is better forgone. In Kano State for instance, this very line of action was taken last week which lead to the dismissal of seven (7) government officials and suspension of one director in the Ministry of Local Government. Only and only similar action is what is required to sanitize the system once and for all.
On the issue of internal revenue. Niger State does not export crude oil or gas for revenue. The very structure that yielded over 1.6 billion naira to the state government before the 2015 General Election is still very much the same that is in place today if for anything, the figures should be increasing and not reduce drastically otherwise.
Statistically, we must immediately evaluate and put in place measures aimed at improving internal revenue of the state in a transparent and sustainable manner. This in addition to evaluating and putting in motion other alternative means or sources of revenue insulated from loopholes of the past.
Your Excellency, with the present state of financial crunch coupled with dilapidated state of public infrastructure. The state must radically move away from past development model of contractocracy and adopt a framework that is more productive especially from government point of view.
With a systematic strategy of directly using existing state structure, agencies or institutions and Army of unemployed youth, this government will be able to achieve more developmental success in addition to getting people involved or participating in development process of the state as well as earning real income for their efforts.
On a final note, with stream of productive strategies in motion the present state of economic challenge could be a disguised blessing or opportunity in achieving success by the present administration
“MAY GOD SAVE NIGERIA FROM ENEMIES WITHIN AND WITHOUT”
TSADO MOHAMMED
08067739393.
