By Anas Sani Anka
If not for the recent face-off between the members of Nigeria Labour Congress and Governor Abdul’azeez Yari’s led administration and consequences it has caused for the economic and political stability of Zamfara as a state, I have decided to ignore him and his government for a single reason that, the Governor has failed to understand the basic
things that, are required for a democratically elected leader like a governor needs to succeed.
First of all, Governor Yari and his political team have failed to understand that, leadership is all about the people and by other way people together made a leader. Morally and by all democratic values, a leader should see himself as victorious if his people are happy and leader should have a course to regret if his stewardship is characterized by crises of lack of confidence from his people.
The essence of democracy generally is to help empower a leader to have political stimuli of implementing the wishes of his people using their own resources for their betterment. People and their demands should constitute critical component of government priority.
The development in China, Singapore, Malaysia, India and rest part of the emerging economies succeeded simply because, their leaders considered people as central to their thirst for development.
For Zamfara State, it is unfortunate, that the types of leadership we had produced since return to democracy in 1999 has deviated from this leadership values.
This negative development metamorphosed to the present predicament that befalls every sector of the state. From education to health, agriculture, commerce and industry, tourism, security, environment and solid mineral to mention but a few, all the sectors have almost virtually collapsed.
The Civil service which is the engine room of a sustainable development has been relegated to the background simply because the government especially the present administration has failed short of interest in the sustainable development of the state service.
The recent strike face-off between Zamfara State NLC and State government is worrisome because this stringent measure of complete shutdown should have been taken earlier than now.
Many people keep saying, the Governor would not succumb to threat by the NLC or Civil society on issues of critical concern to the state but I always disagree with those that have these types of mindset.
My opinion is no person not to talk of the current Zamfara State governor that is more powerful than over four million people especially under democratic dispensation.
I keep telling people that, government can be pushed to do the right thing only if there are right people who believe in what is right and insist in making sure that, the right thing is done.
If the current strike action is sustained in the next one week with all sectors of the economy shut down to the knee something miraculous is going to happen in Zamfara State.
At the level of Civil Society, we are already making effort to organized mass rallies in demonstration of our anger for the way the current administration of Gov Yari destroys the hope of Zamfara people.
My problem with the giant effort started by the NLC Zamfara is sustainability and fear of compromise by some its leadership.
I am optimistic that, every mindful citizen of Zamfara should be wary and concern with the absence of governance in Zamfara state.
If they say the Governor does not respect and listen to the royal fathers, religious leaders and even the elders, I am sure he can listen to the pressure of the citizens especially the Civil Society and organized labour union.
We have a course to tell the current leadership in Zamfara that, government and its entirety is for the citizens and the citizens hold the supremacy of decision making. Their voices must be heard, their wishes must be implemented and their dislikes must be the worst thing government should hate.
For those capitalizing on what S.A Dosara have said as a respond to the current face-off between NLC and Zamfara State government, I keep telling people that nobody not even Ibrahim Dosara can speak the mind of the Governor Yari.
The peculiarity of Zamfara state is that, no political appointee Commissioner or Special Adviser has the moral confidence to face the Governor and tell him the bitter truth. The simple reason is that, they considered their respective appointments as the last option for their survival.
The Governor on the other hand, misperceived the concept of leadership entirely to be a personal project and this is why he feels on every issue no matter its sensitivity and significance he can use his personal discretion to decide on it even if its against the wishes of the generality of the people of the state.
This is why our tax payer monies are being spent without careful consideration to state annual budgetary processes. Contracts are awarded without due processes; state budget is prepared annually without the backing of appropriate fiscal policy papers/documents.
Contracts of billions of naira are awarded without tender or bidden and in spites of the pressure mounted on him by the Civil Society Organizations, the governor has refused to pass in to law Public Procurement Law as domesticated as well as establishes the Bureau for Public Procurement.
Before I conclude this piece, I will like to say one things to those that are critical to bringing the governor back to his political senses, I mean the traditional rulers, Zamfara state elders, and religious leaders that God almighty has placed on them the burden of telling someone in position of authority like governor Yari the bitter truth, and that, God almighty will hold them to account for their reluctance in challenging the incompetent decisions of the Governor.
For the labour, I hold the opinion that, it would be good for the interest of saving the state from this state of comatose to sustain this pressure until the Governor succumb and do the right thing.
May God see Zamfara State true.
By Anas Sani Anka
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