*thanks citizens for support
By; JACOB ONJEWU DICKSON
As Nigeria marked its 62nd Independence Anniversary on Saturday October 1, 2022, Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya is excited that citizens of the state are impressed by successes recorded under his administration since coming into office in 2019.
He expressed this in a broadcast to citizens of the state on Saturday, October 1.
“Despite all these accolades, there’s no greater recognition than the support and cooperation our administration continues to enjoy from our people.
” In my daily interactions with individuals, groups and organizations, the feedback I receive on our overall performance has been outstanding and encouraging,” he said.
According to Governor Inuwa Yahaya, “This support will come handy as we move towards all-important local and national elections in the next few months.
“We are going to campaign on our records and people will get the chance to choose between four more years of progress and responsive governance, and the uninspiring alternative that’s being dangled before them by the opposition,” he said.
Read the full text of the broadcast below:
TEXT OF A STATEWIDE BROADCAST BY HIS EXCELLENCY, THE GOVERNOR OF GOMBE STATE, MUHAMMADU INUWA YAHAYA ON THE OCCASION OF NIGERIA’S 62ND INDEPENDENCE ANNIVERSARY AND GOMBE STATE’S 26TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS, OCTOBER 1ST, 2022
My Dear People of Gombe State
It is with gratitude to Allah (SWT) that I address you today on the occasion of Nigeria’s 62nd Independence Anniversary celebration. For us in Gombe State, today is a day of double celebration as it also coincides with the 26th Anniversary of the creation of our dear State. The occasion also provides us an opportunity to reflect on what we did and what we need to do in order to actualize the dreams of our founding fathers of building a peaceful, all-inclusive, cohesive and prosperous state.
2. The struggles for the Independence of Nigeria and that for the creation of Gombe State share many similarities. Beside the common date of October 1st, both struggles were marked by collective sacrifice, undying commitment and shared hope in our future as one indivisible union.
3. The creation of Gombe State heralded a new era which enabled us to attain our rightful position in the history of this country. From relative obscurity, Gombe has risen to become one of the fastest developing states in Nigeria, surpassing its peers and predecessors. Twenty-Six years down the line, Gombe State has remained faithful to the dreams of its founding fathers. By leveraging on our unity in diversity, faith in God, rich heritage, abundant human and material resources, the jewel in the savannah is shining brightly atop the entire country.
4. Last year, we celebrated our silver jubilee and paid special tribute to all successive administrations, individuals and organizations for the various roles they played in the development of Gombe State. We demonstrated how our relentless march towards progress relies on three major attributes: our unity in diversity, the amazing resourcefulness of our hard-working people, and the spirit of continuity in governance.
5. It is my great honor to witness this important milestone as Governor, and to lead Gombe into a new era of progress and prosperity. I am conscious of the weight of responsibilities that history has placed on my shoulders. I’m committed, together with your support and prayers, to steer the ship of our collective destiny towards progress.
6. Our journey after attaining statehood is not without its challenges. However, with your support and prayers, there are no challenges that are not surmountable. There is no limit to what we can achieve as a people. We have been able to prove that Gombe is capable of becoming a bastion of peace and stability despite the scourge of Boko Haram insurgency and other security challenges in the North-east subregion and the country at large.
7. Over the past three and half years, our record speaks for itself. Our approach to governance has been pragmatic, evidence-based and prudent; one that is guided by the need of our people and the realities of our finances. We have been able to consolidate on past gains, complete projects started or abandoned by previous administrations, break new grounds and initiated new reforms and projects. Some of our achievements so far include:
• The charting of a long-term roadmap for the development of Gombe State as encapsulated in the 10-year Development Agenda for Gombe State (DEVAGOM), which is the first of its kind in the history of our state, and fully aligned with the United Nations sustainable development goals.
• Massive infrastructural development in all spheres of development, especially the Network 11-100 project, with over 500km of rural and urban roads constructed across our 11 LGAs
• Remobilization of contractors for the completion of the abandoned Gombe Mega Motor Park project.
• Construction and renovation of over 1200 classrooms in various schools across the state
• Upgrading of 5 Legacy Secondary Schools to Mega Schools that are capable of accommodating up to 15000 students with special facilities.
• Mopping up of over 400,000 out-of-school children through BESDA
• Recruitment of 1000 teachers through the Teachers’ Service Commission to address the human resource gap in the education sector.
• Provision of 1 fully functional PHC in each of the 114 wards across the state
• The establishment of Hospitals Services Management Board to improve service delivery in our hospitals.
• Upgrade of the State Specialist Hospital Gombe, General Hospitals Kaltungo and Bajoga.
• Construction of a brand new 200-bed capacity General Hospital in Kumo
• Construction of brand new 600-student capacity College of Nursing and Midwifery.
• Provision of affordable health coverage to over 100,000 residents of the State, including over 40,000 poor and vulnerable under the GoHealth scheme
• Expansion and rehabilitation of the Gombe Regional Water Supply Scheme, and other water and sanitation interventions through PEWASH, RUWASSA, etc.
• Unprecedented reforestation campaign through the Gombe Goes Green (3G) project that has seen the planting of over 3 million trees to combat deforestation and soil erosion.
• Rehabilitation of the 7.5km monstrous gully traversing GSU to Mallam-Inna.
• The ongoing construction of the Muhammadu Buhari Industrial Park in order to harness our huge economic potentials.
• The establishment of Gombe State Geographic Information System (GOGIS) to reform land administration in the state.
• Establishment of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms to improve productivity and performance in the civil service.
• Youth empowerment through the At-Risk Children Project (ARC-P); Gombe State, Security, Traffic, Environmental Corps (GOSTEC); KEKE rider’s scheme, joint skills development initiatives with ITF etc
• And many other policies, programs and projects that impact directly on the lives of our people.
8. The above reforms and projects have earned us national and international recognition. Only recently, our state was invited to share the experiences behind our success in health system reforms at the world-renowned Royal Institute of International Affairs, popularly knowns as the Chatham House. You may also recall that at the beginning of this year, our state was adjudged the best state in the entire country in terms of ease of doing business, a testament to our success in transforming Gombe into the commercial hub of the North-east subregion. In the next few days, all eyes will be on Gombe as we host the First-ever Gombe State Investment Summit. The summit will bring business leaders from within and outside the country, showcase our huge investment potentials, and attract the much-needed investments in targeted sectors of our economy and livelihood.
9. Despite all these accolades, there’s no greater recognition than the support and cooperation our administration continues to enjoy from our people. In my daily interactions with individuals, groups and organizations, the feedback I receive on our overall performance has been outstanding and encouraging. This support will come handy as we move towards all-important local and national elections in the next few months. We are going to campaign on our records and people will get the chance to choose between four more years of progress and responsive governance, and the uninspiring alternative that’s being dangled before them by the opposition.
10. As the political season kicks-off, I implore on all stakeholders to play by the rules, embrace peace and eschew political violence and blackmail. Our administration is committed, in line with the reforms introduced by President Muhammadu Buhari, to provide a level-playing ground for all parties. However, our commitment to the rule of law and democratic tenets should not be mistaken for timidity. As the chief security officer of the state, I will stand firm and deal decisively with any individual or group seeking to disturb our peace for political gains. The peace and security of our State are non-negotiable. The peace and stability of Gombe State is bigger than the political ambition of any individual or group.
11. Let me conclude by paying special tribute to the good people of Gombe State for your constant support and prayers. I call on you all to continue praying for peace and security in our dear state and Nigeria at large, especially as we transit into a new administration. I would like to also pay special tribute to our founding fathers who have paid the ultimate price for Gombe State and the Nigerian federation. Their sacrifice will always be remembered. On our part, we pledge to carry on with the struggle so as to actualize their dreams.
To borrow from our national anthem: ‘the labour of our heroes’ past shall never be in vain.’ May Allah (SWT) make it easy for all of us.
Thank you for listening.
God bless you all!
God bless Gombe State!!
God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria!!!
