By Abdullahi Jibrin
On March 1, the ancient city of Zaria gave one of its illustrious sons, the incumbent Kaduna state Governor and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the April 11 election, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, a thunderous reception, as thousands of party supporters and residents alike turned out en masse to give him a rousing welcome.
Aside the fact that it was a grand campaign rally to mark the end of his governorship campaign, the rally was a reminder of some sort to the people: “Here is your son who has been destined from time immemorial to liberate you and give you a voice. Will you now reject your own?”
The ancient city of Zaria stood still as the campaign train of the governor arrived ahead of the April 11 governorship and state assembly polls. Governor Yero is the first Zaria man to have occupied the exalted office of the governor of Kaduna state. This, no doubt, explains the unprecedented crowd witnessed in Zaria on that historic day.
According to witnesses, no political activity in the ancient city before now had attracted so much mammoth crowd.
He was also treated to a well-known traditional horse riding, an honour reserved only for ‘special’ people or ‘special guests.’ The traditional horse riding, no doubt, added some colour to the reception accorded Yero. Thousands of supporters lined the streets of the city to welcome Yero and his entourage. The famous traditional horse riding was also part of the colourful reception ceremony accorded Yero by the people of Zaria during the campaign tour.
A visibly emotional Yero could not hold back tears as the massive crowd of supporters made it difficult for his convoy to move. It took the governor over four hours to arrive at Zaria from neighbouring Sabon local government area which normally would have taken not more than 10 minutes.
The mammoth crowd didn’t need Governor Yero to tell them what he has done in the last two years. It is on record that the Yero administration completed several projects in just little above two years. He has worked hard to ensure peace and security in the last two years, now there is stability in Kaduna state. When there is peace, there will be better prospects of economic growth.
And there is no better time for the people to initiate a better economic policy that will create more jobs and enable the government to carry out critical projects; and they can simply do this by giving Governor Yero their mandate on April 11 through massive votes. It is the only way that the gains of the past two years can be consolidated.
The Zaria Regional Water project, for instance, has reached about 90% completion. Several other projects have been completed by the present administration in education, roads, health and youth empowerment.
While on campaign tour across the 23 local government areas, the governor promised the electorate better days ahead, adding that “several projects have been completed across the state and we are ready to do more if given the opportunity to continue in office.”
The governor also called on politicians to eschew desperation in the quest for power, saying “we must not forget that we are only humans. God has already destined all things and it is only God that can give power to whomsoever he wishes. It is unnecessary to fight over power and politics cannot worth a single drop of the blood of any citizen.”
In all the local government areas, Governor Yero held meetings with stakeholders including traditional leaders, religious leaders, women and youths as part of his campaign for peaceful elections. Governor Yero called on the entire people of Kaduna state to participate fully in the electoral process, saying, “it is our collective responsibility to vote credible leaders. Do not allow others to scare you away from voting, come out and vote candidates of your choice on March 28 and April 11.”
Jibrin wrote from Maje Road, Tudun Wada, Zaria, Kaduna state