Deconstructing public office and separating the wheat from the chaff, By Bilal Umar Etsu

The people of Niger State are discerning and well-informed, capable of distinguishing facts from fiction, and will undoubtedly recognise the truth behind the contestations between the two political figures. While political office breeds all sorts of envy and sense of competition, however the truth needs to be painstakingly separated from fiction.

It is quite interesting to consider the campaign of calumny going on in the contestations between two former governors of Niger State – an earlier governor, Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu and the immediate past helmsman, Senator Abubakar Sani Bello – with the former having launched a vile tirade against the latter. Yet, in asmuch as politics could most times be a vicious blood sport, it is worth bearing in mind that the dedicate politician ought to truth of Winston Churchill’s famous quip that, “You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks at you,” rings true. This wisdom translates to the path to one’s destination is often obstructed by distractions and unwarranted attacks

While I am not personally enamoured of politicians, I find much of the tirade of Dr Aliyu against Senator Bello quite distracting and having lived in Minna for the greater part of the past two decades, and experienced the respective administrations of the two gladitors, I find the posturing of Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu quite unnecessary and unfortunate. If one had to make a choice, I would rather consider the now Senator Abubakar Sani Bello, the immediate past governor of Niger State, as the more  astute administrator, who appeared more committed to public service for the advancement of Niger State. And, that is despite the anomalies carried out before he assumed office.

I am aware that there have been a number of instances in which Dr Mu’azu Aliyi antagonised Bello politically and tried to bring him to ridicule through what many consider as the misrepresentation of facts. This has been most untoward. Hence, it would be important to set some of the records straight by interrogating some of the claims propagated through the agency of the former Governor of Niger State, the self-styled “Chief Servant”, Dr Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, which hordes of people in the state regard as fallacious.

In relation to his predecessor, it is easier to admit that the tenure of Senator Sani Bello stood more as a testament to prudent governance that left an indelible mark on the state. This is what a number of commentators think is the source of frustration for former Governor Babangida Aliyu, who has had to watch Senator Abubakar Sani Bello embody his unattained aspirations. Bello, a two-time governor, seamlessly transited to the National Assembly, having achieved the remarkable feat of securing the 2023 presidential, gubernatorial, and parliamentary elections for his party’s candidates, in feats that eluded others before him.

Ironically, there is also the convenient manner in which Dr Babangida Aliyu seems to have forgotten his own administration’s shortcomings, which he criticises his successor in power, but the Niger people have always done him the honour of refreshing his memory. It has been pointed out that despite labelling himself as “Chief Servant”, he lived extravagantly and acted like an Emperor, collecting a staggering annually house rent, while neglecting the State Government House. This could rightfully be considered as a wastage of taxpayers money.

However, it was fairly well known that throughout his administration, Senator Sani Bello refrained from employing any deceptive title but instead opted for a modest life without noise, residing in a three-bedroom government lodge, and prudently managing taxpayers’ funds. He left behind a state-of-the-art Government House, a symbol of responsible governance.

There are also serious public allegations pertaining to the sale of the State House of Assembly and Commissioners’ Quarters by the Babangida Aliyu administration, with the former governer also being said to have allocated some units of the latter accommodation to himself, in a manner that violated the ethics of public office, while alternative housing was not provided for the state legislators and the cabinet members.

More so, there is also the issue of the so-called “ultra-modern stadium” at Maikunkele, and the 5-Star hotel along U.K Bello Art Theatre Road, which many allege that despite the substantial budget allocations to these projects, there was no tangible infrastructure on the ground to show they were all done under the administration of the “Chief Servant”.

Thus the foregoing tends to suggests that Dr Aliyu’s legacy projects were merely white elephant projects, initiated and disbursed in the manner of many public projects, which are essentially patronage for loyalists and cronies. It could thus be said that the Aliyu administration had negligible impact on the lives of Niger State people. The few road projects undertaken by his administration in Minna and other parts of the state are considered as not up to standard and they lacked proper drainage systems, which defeated their purposes and placed a huge burden of reconstruction on his successor.

There are the other allegations of mismanagement of the 7.5 per cent Contributory Pension Funds, claimed as responsible for a missing N7 billion Naira meant for pensioners. Additionally, the mismanagement of over N500 million SUBEB funds. These unfortunate situations happened during eight years  in office. There are issues with Ecological Funds that have become entangled in legal battles, etc.

Notably, despite the challenging economic and security conditions faced by Senator Sani Bello’s administration, it displayed fiscal prudence. Redirecting funds towards projects that directly benefited the people. Senator Bello’s economic expertise and business acumen played a pivotal role in elevating the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from N5.7 billion annually in 2015 to an impressive N15.8 billion in 2023, a testament that he was a responsible and accountable Governor.

Contrary to this, I for one see the greater impact of the Sani Bello administration on the level of the state’s infrastructure, healthcare, education, agriculture, transformation of the state and repositioning it as a key player in Nigeria’s journey towards food security and self-sufficiency. There was the meticulous rejuvenation of the Kampanin Bobi Grazing Reserve to provide herders with a secured grazing area, coupled with the collaborative alliance with FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria for milk production.

The people of Niger State are discerning and well-informed, capable of distinguishing facts from fiction, and will undoubtedly recognise the truth behind the contestations between the two political figures. While political office breeds all sorts of envy and sense of competition, however the truth needs to be painstakingly separated from fiction. Inasmuch as Dr Mu’azu Aliyu has run his race, it actually seves no purpose to try to muddle or heat up the public space through vile tirades against his successor in office towards settling political scores, particularly when your own records can be subjected to scrutiny in a way that shows that there few angels left in heaven. Senator Sani Bello has equally run his race and his records should be allowed to testify for how well he has managed and delivered on public expectations.

Bilal Umar Etsu Is a Social Critic and Writes From Minna.