When I first read about the achievements of Dr Ahmed Aliyu in his first 100 days in office as the executive governor of Sokoto state, I thought it was one of those media stunts often sponsored by some unscrupulous public servants. But a personal investigation on the matter baffled me. Why would Governor Aliyu care so much for homeless and fatherless children just three months after his inauguration?
This clearly shows how compassionate he is about people in need of help, especially the downtrodden of the society, because the fashion of modern political leaders, especially in Nigeria, is to first compensate godfathers and party loyalists before anything or anyone else. But in Sokoto, Governor Aliyu is genuinely changing the narrative. His attention is going first to the most vulnerable in the society.
In today’s Nigeria, even children whose parents are alive roam the streets seeking daily feeding how much more of young people and children who have lost their parents and have no responsible extended relative from near or distant family to take care of them.
The uncommon ways Governor Aliyu shows love to orphans in the state portrays him as a devout Muslim who follows the traditions of the Prophet, because caring for orphans is a significant part of Islamic culture. Orphans are mentioned many times in the Muslim holy book. Their mistreatment is a serious sin, while nurturing and caring for them is an immensely valuable good deed.
Muslim tradition says the best house among the Muslims is the house in which orphans are well-treated. The worst house among the Muslims is the house in which orphans are ill-treated. To me at the present, Governor Aliyu makes Sokoto best among the 36 states of the federation.
During hard times, we may consciously or unconsciously give nothing or less to charity, feeling that we can’t afford to be generous in hard times forgetting that the power of charity is that it never decreases your wealth.
The orphans we help are from poor families who can’t afford basic nutritional food. Every year, around 3.1 million children die due to hunger. This is a completely preventable tragedy and to Governor Aliyu, it is unacceptable.
By sponsoring the orphans, he protects them from the devastating effects of hunger and malnutrition; and potentially saving their lives from the vagaries of economic realities. These children’s parents have died, unknown or have permanently abandoned them.
Compassion is the major room in the heart of the governor, to many of those who are following his political precedent. The orphanage home in Sokoto was one of the major priorities in the 100 days plan of action.
When Governor Aliyu paid a visit to the orphanage home shortly after inauguration, he directed that everything possible should be done to make life lively for the kids. He specifically directed that food supply to the orphanage home should be a thing of priority. He donated additional vehicles to the home
This same compassionate governor immediately reintroduced the monthly allowance to disabled persons in the state, which was suspended by the preceding administration.
So far, the state government has spent tens of billions on people-oriented projects. Despite all these that
have been achieved within a short time, more is still expected. So, we are waiting anxiously to see that Governor Aliyu gets a higher national assignment after the people-assured eight years in Sokoto State Government House.
Baba Haruna,
Sokoto, Sokoto state.
