Since his epoch marking election in 2019, Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya has made giant and remarkable strides in the roads, health, education, rural infrastructure, power, pipe borne water, agriculture, urban renewal, housing, transportation, security, civil service reform, manpower development and women and youth empowerment sectors thus justifying the record number of honours, awards, garlands and recognitions that have been bestowed on the Gombe Action Man as a consequence.
This bouquet of awards is hardly surprising given the sheer scope and breadth of Governor lnuwa Yahaya’s infrastructural, developmental, socio-economic, ethical, industrial, agrarian and grassroots-oriented revolution that has transformed Gombe State to become one of the fastest growing economies in the West African sub-region. For instance, in three consecutive years starting from 2021, Gombe State had been rated No 1 in the Ease of Doing Business ranking by the Presidential Ease of Business Enabling Council under the distinguished chairmanship of former Vice President, Yemi Osinbanjo, the first rating of its kind for any state in the Northeast region.
With that fitting background, the chronology of Governor lnuwa Yahaya’s award progression continued in Year 2022 in the auspicious month of April with the prestigious Award of Grand Commander of Security and Peace in Nigeria (GCSPIN) conferred on him by the People’s Security Monitor (PSM) in ‘recognition of his sterling leadership, superlative performance and uncommon commitment to security issues. According to the PSM citation: ‘the decision to confer this highest award on Governor lnuwa Yahaya followed strict scrutiny and comprehensive appraisal of his result-oriented, sterling leadership and immense achievement in security and peace in Gombe State, the Northeast and the North in general’. Shortly after the historic PSM citation, in May 2022 the Board of Editors of Leadership and Vanguard Newspapers overwhelmingly voted Governor lnuwa Yahaya as the Governor of the Year 2022 and Most Outstanding Governor of the Year 2022 respectively.
As if this was not enough, the state has also been rated as the Most Secure and Peaceful State in Nigeria by Statiscense, a data tech, economy and security analysis company and thet Most Peaceful State in Nigeria by Eons Intelligence, a media,strategic intelligence and advisory group. Further accolades have come from the Conference of State Directors of Security (SDS) in the Northeast which rated Gombe as the Most Peaceful State in the region.
The Centre for Fiscal Transparency and lntegrity Watch (CEFTIW), a highly regarded transparency watchdog rated Gombe State No 7 in Nigeria and No1 in the whole Northeast region in good governance, fiscal probity and financial prudence in public service expenditure in the Transparency and integrity Index, a further confirmation of Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s rigid anti-corruption and arch- accountability ethos.
Fittingly, the Citizens United to Save Humanity, an empowerment based civil advocacy group has in November 2022 overwhelmingly garlanded Governor lnuwa Yahaya as the Grandmaster of Good Governance in Nigeria (GOGGIN) for his infrastructural, developmental, socio-economic, ethical, industrial, agrarian and grassroots-oriented revolution that has placed Gombe State as an undisputed primus inter pares in the league of star performing states of the federation and beyond.
More awards have continued to pour in with the conferment of the Most-Women Friendly Award on Governor lnuwa Yahaya in recognition of his invaluable contributions, support and empowement of women in Gombe State by Tozali Magazine /TV .Not to be left out of the bevy of garlands and honours, the Northern Surveyors Forum (NSF) has thrown its considerable weight behind Governor lnuwa Yahaya, conferring him with an Award of Excellence in recognition of his ‘outstanding performance, particularly in the area of land reforms including the upgrading of land administration, management system and processes by strengthening the operations of the Gombe information Systems to ensure maintenance of an accurate data base of all lands in the state’ .
As a crowning feather on his much festooned hat, an agglomeration of public policy think tanks, blue chip apparatchiks, civil society groups, public affairs analysts, social affairs commentariats and the ubiquitous media punditocracy under the aegis of the National Interest Forum have coroneted Governor lnuwa Yahaya as the Founding Father of the New Gombe State for his unparalleled and unprecedented contributions to the growth, development, progress, peace, unity, stability and prosperity of Gombe State.
There is little doubt that more awards, garlands, honours, recognitions and commendations are coming the way of the politically agile, astute and adept Governor lnuwa Yahaya as he continues to do what he knows best, the constant, consistent and concrete delivery of democratic dividends to his beloved people. To God be the glory
Danjuma Hassan, a good governance advocate wrote in from Gombe city, Gombe state
