Bauchi State Governor, Barrister Mohammed A. Abubakar, is putting the state’s money where his heart is: rural development and education. A tour of the state last week (January 16 – 20) showed that the Mohammed Abubakar Administration is aggressively pursuing a rural development programme, even as it has made education a top priority (the 18.5% allocated to education in the 2018 Bauchi State budget is the highest by any government in Nigeria at all levels).

The tour took News Express and some other major online newspapers and blogs round the three senatorial districts of Bauchi. In every place visited, News Express saw work in progress on road and building projects, in addition to several already completed ones.

Our first stop was at Zalanga under Ganjuwa Local Government Area (LGA) where we inspected the Zalanga Shari’ah Court Sitting center which is being renovated by the Governor.

Other notable projects include the following:

*Construction of Health Clinic, provision of hospital equipment, construction of Staff Quarters, and drilling of Hand Pump Boreholes at Zalanga Community in collaboration with CSDP (Community and Social Development Project).

*Total Renovation and Upgrading of Government Girls Secondary School, Soro, fully equipped with laboratories, etc. The school is one of the places Boko Haram attacked and destroyed. Soro is under Ganjuwa LGA.

*Renovation of classrooms, offices and store at Shadarki (A&B) Primary School, Darazo LGA. This is one out of more than 800 Primary and Junior secondary schools being renovated and more 600 newly constructed by the current administration. More than 10,000 desks have been provided to the schools in the first batch of distribution under the Ministry of Education and about 18,000 were provided under SUBEB.

*Ongoing construction site of 22km Darazo – Gabchiyari Road in Darazo LGA.

*The over 100 km Misau – Udubo – Gamawa road construction with two standard bridges.

*Primary Health Center Madachi, Katagum LGA. This is one of 19 PHCs constructed by the administration across the 20 LGAs of the state. Each PHC is fully equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, doctors and nurses’ quarters, VIP toilets and boreholes.

*Dualisation of Jama’are Road and Rehabilitation of Sule Katagum Road in Azare (ongoing).

*Construction of a solar-powered borehole with a large water tank for the people of Babban Garejin Azare. During the 2015 governorship election campaigns, the Governor, who was a candidate at that time, promised to provide a lasting solution to the problem of water scarcity they were facing that time. He later returned to fulfill his promise.

*Complete rehabilitation of High Court of Justice, Azare (ongoing)

*Design and construction of over 50km Hanafari – Jurara – Garin Babani – Sabon Kafi – Dogon Jeji Road.

*Complete renovation and upgrade of four-storey building of classrooms, dining hall, kitchen and toilets at Govt. Girls College, Special School Kafin Madaki, Ganjuwa LGA. The school has also been provided with computers, brand new desks, solar-powered security lights across the school, boreholes and large tanks, and lab equipment, etc.

*Bauchi State Orphans and Vulnerable Children Agency (BASOVCA) Amb. M.C. Abubakar Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) Vocational College. The college is tuition-free and currently has more than 170 students. The state-of-the-art facilities include Administrative Block, classrooms, desks, hostels, rooms for college staff, modern kitchen and dining hall. Others are large standard auditorium, fully equipped workshops (wood work, tailoring, electrical, mechanical), modern toilets, ICT centre and a shuttle bus provided by the Abubakar Administration.

*Bauchi Fertilizer Company. The Governor resuscitated the dying company abandoned by the previous administration. The company now provides job for hundreds of youths and is also a source of revenue for the state. It provides fertilizer to neighbouring states like Gombe and hopes to dominate the entire northern market in the months ahead.

In all, the administration, which took office on May 29, 2015, has constructed/renovated 1,240 classes. Out of these, 840 classrooms have been renovated in all parts of the state while another over 400 classes are currently undergoing construction.

Security has equally improved in the state even though it is a frontline state – meaning one of those in the region targeted by Boko Haram.

In the area of education, the administration’s investment has been paying off, as Bauchi’s

performances in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and Joint Admission and Matriculations Board (JAMB) Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) have improved significantly.

How is Governor Abubakar able to find the money with which to drive his administration’s programmes in these lean times, especially as Bauchi is not an oil-producing state and relies heavily on dwindling federal allocations?

It is all down to prudent management of resources, says the Governor’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Ali M. Ali. He disclosed that Barrister Abubakar, upon assumption of office, cut his salary and that of his deputy by 50%, while reducing that of political appointees by 10%.

“When he took over, he said that there would be no free money; that unless there’s a good reason, he won’t open the state coffers,” Ali said. “The Governor believes in investing in the next generation. He inherited four months salary arrears but has cleared all.

“He does not charter flights but drives 150 kilometres to Gombe to board a flight like every other person. He continues to use the things he inherited. As a matter of fact, since he assumed office, he has changed only one vehicle and that was following repeated demands.”

Ali, a seasoned journalist and administrator, appealed for more support for Governor Abubakar, assuring the people of Bauchi that the administration would continue to work harder to make life more meaningful for them.