GOVERNOR FINTIRI’s ONE YEAR IN OFFICE: Adamawa is Working
Daniel Tabiyatiya
One year ago, thousands celebrated the victory of Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri who defeated the incumbent Governor in a fierce encounter at the 2019 General Election.
Governor Fintiri in less than a year in office has been inspiring and has impacted positively on the lives of the people of the state.
He has proven, by all accounts, to be a good manager, and has made significant progress in all aspects of life.
The people of Adamawa State will bear me witness to the fact that the state is now on the path of development.
All these things made him stand out among his peers even as he was crowned the “LEADERSHIP GOVERNOR OF THE YEAR 2019”.
The early part of his administration has been punctuated by development that provide assurances for good governance and prospect for a state like Adamawa which has remained under the shackles of poverty, deprivation, repression an under development.
His popular policies and a handful of achievements during the early part of his administration rekindled the hope of the Adamawa population for a better deal.
For an administration that has to contend with a huge debt profile of about 140 Billion on assumption of office, the debt status of the state may be contrary.
As a leader who understands the art of governance and the frustrations of his people, his determination to translate into concrete reality his 11 points agenda apparently because the source of the strength to take his teeming supporters out of our present political and economic quagmire.
In his wisdom, he has established a pattern, spanning 5 major critical areas of governance which have so far yielded positive results and these areas include, Security, Education, Infrastructural Development and Workers Welfare.
A cursory look at what he has managed to accomplish would be in order.
SECURITY
Since his assumption to office in 2019
He swept through the entire murderous dynasty of hoodlums, bandits and extremists’ groups –
Alas! Adamawa is salvaged under his untired fists of confident leadership
Gone are the days when kidnapers, gunmen and the deadly Shilla boys carry out their activities unabated.
His tough stand on insecurity is responsible for the arrest of over 200 Shilla boys, over 50 kidnappers and also brought to the barest minimum, farmers and herders clashes which were getting out of hand, all in his first 3 months in office.
It is safe to say that the present administration has achieved 95% success in the fight against insecurity.
In the same vein, his administration acquired 80 Toyota hilux and more than 100 motorcycles and was distributed to security outfits in the state.
Facilitated the return of 133 Nigerian refugees to Adamawa Origins who fled from insecurity to Cameroon.
Led security chiefs to an ongoing communal clash at Tingno and Tito communities in Lamurde LGA, and repelled the attack in the process.
Governor Fintiri has lived up to his expectation as chief security officer of the state by keeping the men of the underworld away from the streets.
EDUCATION
Though meeting education at a decline, he has revived it from introducing free & compulsory education to free WAEC and NECO; from school feeding programs for secondary schools, to rehabilitation and rebuilding of school structures. From UBE stimulus package in excess of 8 billion to scholarship for 60 students to India to study engineering.
Though meeting education at a decline, he has revived the sector. His love for qualitative education made him introduced free and compulsory education, with free WAEC/NECO as well.
He also reintroduced school feeding programme in secondary schools in the state.
For students to learn in a conducive environment, he approved for the rehabilitation of 5000 classrooms in school across the state.
The Governor was also instrumental in the conversion of Moddibbo Adama University of Technology Yola (MAUTECH) to a conventional university that will make it possible for the institution to accommodate more courses and admit more students.
His administration has also approved the payment of matching grant to UBE for accessing over 8 Billion Naira UBE stimulus.
After the payment of scholarship funds to Adamawa Students all over the country, he approved the scholarship of 60 students to India for engineering courses.
The Governor also distributed educational materials to public schools in the state.
PRIMARY SCHOOLS
1,800 student desk/chairs
21,000 assorted textbooks
319 teacher table/chairs
6,000 instructional materials
JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS
46,440 STAN Assorted textbooks
27,750 Assorted textbooks
SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS
22,400 Assorted textbooks
2,750 students desk/chair
Laboratory equipments
19,950 Chemistry textbooks
8,830 Physics textbooks
6,790 Biology textbooks
800 first aid kits
1,650 double bunks
3,300 student mattresses
INFRASTRUCTURE/ URBAN BEAUTIFICATION
The last time citizens of the state benefitted from housing allocation is close to 10 years during times of Former Governor Nyako and Boni Haruna.
It is because of the housing deficit in the state that Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri decided to build 2000 houses for the citizens of the state.
Toungo Local Government Area which has been cut off from the national grid for more that 20 years has now been reconnected all thanks to the current administration.
Reconnecting Madagali and Michika Local Government Areas to national grid after being disconnected for more than 5 years by the dreaded Boko Haram is currently ongoing.
Road construction is going simultaneously around the state capital and environs, with the Bachure road construction at the forefront.
Construction
Benue Street
Kaduna
Lusaka
Abeakuta
Ndaforo
➢ Philip Maken & Links 2.5km
➢ Lagos street – 1.5km
➢ Falu road and links – 2.31km
➢ Mambila and Jambutu Street – 2.7km
➢ Old Government House road and links – 1.35km
Reconstruction of Bachure road – 3.185km
Rehabilitation of Nepa road – 2.2km
Completion of some abandoned projects
➢ Completion of construction of selected roads in the Adamawa State University Mubi – 5.3km
➢ Mubi Township roads phase II (12.55km)
➢ Some selected Ganye Township roads (Buwangal-sangasumi road) – 7.okm
➢ Asphalting of Song bridge and approach roads.
➢ Asphalting of Mustapha isonail Street × links in Jimeta.
➢ Construction of Additional road and links in Dougerei and part of Lekki Taba Street.
➢ Resumption of work on the construction of Kiri Junction, Kiri-Shelleng road 37.5km.
Contractors are mobilized to site inorder to complete the abandoned Pella – Maiha road that was abandoned for more than 5 years.
Constituting a 1×7.5MvA 33/11KV Injection sub station with associated lines × installations of 6 No.500KV transformers at Army Barracks Road.
WORKERS WELFARE AND ENTITLEMENT
Known as the ATM Governor, workers welfare, salaries and entitlement is among the top of his priorities.
He has since last year approved the implementation of the national minimum wage, even went further to pay more than the FG’s agreed wag.
Not only is salary being paid before 25th of the month, it is paid even without collecting overdraft, he paid the 2019 leave grants, pension and gratuity of retired civil servants have been paid from 2012 and also he raised the monthly allocation for payments of pension and gratuity from 50 million to 100 million so that the accumulated pension and gratuity of pensioners will be settled.
Apart from approving wardrobe allowances to staff of Adamawa Television cooperation (ATV Yola), he approved and paid for the back on terrestrial train.
HUMANITARIANISM
Humanitarianism goes hand in hand with politics, Humanitarianism has an ideological aspect, representing the industrialized world’s aspirations to relieve suffering in societies faced by acute crisis, but may also be conceived as a self‐evidently practical response to needs.
Governor Fintiri has proven times without y
numbers that he values humanity more than anything.
His first task of humanitarianism came in handy when Boko haram insurgents kidnapped and killed the CAN Chairman Michika LGA, he made it a point of duty to award scholarship to the children of the killed clergyman.
He donated 3mn for the education of the children of soldiers killed by Boko Haram in Garkida, Gombi LGA.
His benevolence was extended to fire victims at the markets in Ganye, Michika and Loko in Song LGAs as he donated 3mn each to the 3 local government areas to ameliorate the hardship caused by the inferno.
He is benevolent enough to donate his 3 months salaries to help in the fight against the novel Coronavirus.
As if that was not enough, he donated 20mn to tricycle riders in the state in an effort to ameliorate the hardship caused by the lockdown order in the state.
The Governor went further to direct the Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency (ADSEMA) to distribute foodstuff as palliatives to the 21 Local Government Areas of the State.
Items distributed include 3,948 bags of 50KG rice, 4,545 25L of vegetable oil, 135 bags of 50KG sugar, 21 cartons of Couscous, 21 bags of 50KG Beans and 1, 530 cartons of Tomatoes Paste.
Others are 1, 060 cartons of Spaghetti/Macroni, 480 Second Hand Cloths Bale as well as 57 Second Hand Cloths Raps among others.
Rainstorm victims in Jada local government area also felt the breath of fresh air as the Governor donated 5m naira to enable them rebuild their damaged homes.
If I will doff my hat to the so far apt 1 year leadership of His Excellency Governor Ahmadu Umaru
Fintri, I will unforgettably say his administration’s judicious and dexterous use of tax payers’ resources, still stands out among other administrations.
His coordination of people-oriented projects have in daylight explain the prudent utilization of public funds
Despite the increasing challenges of the current public health crisis
Unleashed by Covid-19,
His Excellency Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintri uniquely halted the outrageous spread of the virus
He ensured the available supplies of Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs);
Isolation centres are beefed up with unending medical supplies.
Health workers’ hazard allowances are without arguments regularly made
Available to encourage their defying battle against Coronavirus in the state –
Different palliatives continue to flourish at the nooks of the state
Just to alleviate the hardships the pandemic might have influenced.
He even donated his 3 months salary to help fight off the pandemic in the state.