Most probably, no one, not even Governor Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed had thought that the 2023 race to Bauchi state government house will be this competitive. This is especially because soon after the 2019 governorship election, the political turf in the state became virtually passive with the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, government having a field day. It was therefore not anticipated that the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) will emerge from its governorship primary election with a standard bearer as formidable as Sadiq Baba Abubakar. More so, it was least expected that a third force would emerge as the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) with Senator Halliru Dauda Jika as its governorship standard bearer. Thus, beyond all the political arithmetic and projections of three years ago, in the tripod stand, there are chiefly three variables, x, y and z, in the Bauchi state governorship political equation.
And while their political values continue to rise and fall, and vice versa, as the pregnant time unfolds events, all of the governorship aspirants are already in the campaign trenches seeking votes. Nonetheless, even as they canvass for the votes, they obviously have different challenges to face. For the incumbent Governor Bala Mohammed, it is a matter of proving to the electorate that all promises made ahead of the 2019 governorship election have been delivered. He will have to face the electorate and explain to the good people of Bauchi state whether or not he has made life better for the common man. This is necessary because it is the foundation on which the governor can build his 2023 campaign promises. The PDP Governorship Campaign Council must explain how the government in the state has made the state civil service better by making the working environment more conducive and ensuring effective implementation of promotions as well as prompt payment of salaries, yearly increments, pensions and gratuities.
In the same vein, without any rhetoric, the good people of Bauchi state deserve to know, with indices, how the state education system has been made better than it was in 2019. Is there equal access to education by all children in the state now? How has schools` learning environment improved? What efforts have been made to provide better teaching and learning materials? Have teachers been trained to be equipped with new teaching skills for better output? How has Bauchi state’s performance in national examinations improved? On 13th October, 2022, the Guardian newspaper reported that Bauchi state had the highest number of out of school children in the country with 1,239,759 roaming the streets. What has the state government done to curb this menace? More so, using the right dimensions of measuring health system performance, the incumbent government in Bauchi state should tell its citizens how healthcare service delivery has improved in terms of quality, cost and accessibility. What is the current ratio of patients to a doctor in hospitals? What is the present maternal mortality rate in Bauchi state?
Also, with regards to agriculture, what efforts have been put by the PDP led government in Bauchi state to further harness agricultural potential production for economic growth as well as improvement of livelihood? How has the state government supported especially peasant farmers with farm inputs and implements? How has the state`s agricultural productivity improved in the last three and half years? Furthermore, given the numerical strength and energy youth and women have, it is factual that they must be empowered if the future of Bauchi state is to be bright. To what extent has the government motivated them to challenge their status quo and become stronger and confident so that they gain control of their lives? Is giving out goats, yams or pure water the right approach to empowerment?
More so, as the PDP administration in Bauchi state seeks second term, it has to explain why it prioritizes construction of roads with no economic importance and renovation of the state government house to other issues such as payments of salaries, pensions and gratuities that are not only important to human capital development in the state but also amongst the promises it made whilst seeking mandate ahead of the 2019 governorship election. In the same vein, on fiscal policy, how workable has Bauchi states budgets been since 2019? What have been the performances of the budgets? And on fiscal responsibility, how has the states Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) improved since 2019? And ultimately, what does the PDP led government intends to do differently that, if given another chance, it do better than what it has done thus far?
On the part of the APC, its governorship candidate, Ambassador Sadique Baba Abubakar, whose mantra is “Justice for All,” has presented a 7-point manifesto and they are about good governance, healthcare, education, agriculture, economy, youth and women development as well as security. On good governance, the APC governorship candidate pledges leadership by example, which can facilitate in harnessing the potential of Bauchi state and reposition it to greater heights. In this regard, the civil service will be repositioned for better performance. Salaries, pensions and gratuities of civil servants will be paid duly and accordingly. The manifesto also explains that Ambassador Sadique Baba Abubakar is very passionate about productive public service, which through inclusiveness, can deliver critical services to the good people of Bauchi state and consequently transform the state to a prosperous one.
On healthcare service delivery, Sadique Baba Abubakar is committed to ensuring that the abundant human resources, which Bauchi state is endowed with, become healthy for enhanced productivity. Thus, the APC manifesto notes that if given mandate, its government will invest in the healthcare sector so that at least the minimum required number of health personnel will be attained and critical health infrastructure, basic hospital equipment as well as drugs will be provided. Also, the manifesto emphasises on the passion the APC governorship candidate has for education. As such, under their stewardship, education will rank top in the priority list of government. The future of the state solely depends on the extent to which the youth are nurtured. Therefore, school is a place every child must go. All efforts will be put in place to take to classroom the over 1.2 million children who are out of school.
In the same vein, conducive learning environment, which entails well furnished classrooms will be provided. Teaching and learning materials will also be made available just as the training and retraining of teachers will be given the priority it deserves.
On agriculture, the APC governorship candidate sees it as not just a way to attain food sufficiency in the state, but also a means to economic emancipation. Therefore, according to the manifesto, if given mandate, an APC government will put to full use of the vast arable land in Bauchi state by stimulating agripreneurship through mass enlightenment, providing agricultural inputs and implements, opening up markets for sale of produce and encouraging farmers to form cooperative societies. Thus, with agriculture as the main stay of the economy, wealth creation will be a lot easier. This is especially so because raw materials will be readily available and the over 20 moribund industries in the state will have reasons to resume production. This will translate into countless job opportunities. More so, to strengthen the economy, revenue leakages will be plagued and transparency as well as accountability in the administration of public trust will be upheld.
The Sadique Baba Abubakar manifesto also explicitly mentions how the development of youth and women will top an APC administration`s priority list. With their numerical strength, they not only make the workforce of the state but also constitute its future. They will therefore be involved in the development agenda of Bauchi state through academic scholarships as well as entrepreneurship and skills acquisition trainings for unemployed youth and women. The youth, women and the disabled will be motivated to get empowered and subsequently take control of their lives.
And on security, being a security expert, Air Marshall Sadique Baba Abubakar (rtd) is very much equipped with the requisite knowledge on how to curb insecurity in Bauchi state. According to the manifesto of the Bauchi state 2023 APC governorship candidate, security challenges in the state will be addressed through the involvement of all stakeholders in the state in the name of intelligence gathering. This will go a long way in preventing occurrence of security breach and ensuring rapid response when one occurs.
With all the aforementioned about the APC manifesto, it is incumbent on the APC Governorship Campaign Council to prove that its candidate can deliver on the promises made by bringing to the fore his past record. The Campaign Council needs to tell the good people of Bauchi state how Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar met the Nigeria Air Force in a situation similar to that of present Bauchi state; how he grappled the challenges and left it a better place.
Meanwhile, for the NNPP governorship candidate, Senator Halliru Dauda Jika, no manifesto has yet been presented as a working document which they intend to execute if given mandate. In the meantime, a very good explanation is needed as to what experience qualifies the candidate to be governor of Bauchi state. For, the senator has no administrative experience, whatsoever, having never worked anywhere in the past and never held any appointive position in the executive arm of government. And for the legislature where he has been, it is being circulated in the public courts that the senator has never sponsored any bill, be it at the State Assembly where he was speaker, the House of Representatives where he was before 2019 or the Senate where he has been since 2019.
Jarmajo writes from Kukadi/Gundari ward, Misau local government area, Bauchi state
