Follow Us on Google
…Says, since the return of democracy in 1999, no governor has performed better in the administration of LGA than El-rufai
From Noah Ebije, Kaduna
An expert in local government administration and a non academic staff of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Dr. Isa Mohammed Idris has faulted and attacked those criticising the immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-rufai over the reformation of the affairs of the 23 local government areas of the State during his tenure.
An online media report had recently criticized former governor el-Rufai’s handling of local government affairs, accusing him of bastardising the local government system as well as blackmailing and rubbishing his local government reforms.
Dr. Idris in an interview with newsmen in Kaduna on Sunday, said it is on record that no government in Kaduna state, since the return of democracy in 1999, has performed better in the administration of local government than the government of El-rufai.
He noted that under the administration of the former governor, there was high level of discipline and supervision, which accounted significantly for the transformation of the grassroots in the State.
According to Dr. Idris, “My reaction to the falsehood was not to defend the former governor, but to correct the misinformation maliciously peddled by some people to hoodwink gullible people. As a student of local government administration, and a proponent of separation of power among the three tiers of government, there is no state government that restored the lost relevance of local government system in Nigeria, than the government of Malam el-Rufai in Kaduna State.
“The el-Rufai administration prioritized welfare of staff of local government and reforms to enable the local government become a true catalyst of grassroots development and restore people’s trust in the system of local government to deliver a great feat lauded by both national and international organisations. “The publications by a newspaper and social media was a consolidated attack by a number of mischief makers, aimed at rubbishing former governor el-Rufai, who, lately, has been a target of carefully orchestrated political vendetta within and outside government circles.
“Sadly, the present leadership of the state, was alleged to have started interfering in the financial independence of local government, through return of joint projects.
“In 2015, former governor el-Rufai took the state by storm and began massive rehabilitation and reconstruction of broken down public infrastructure, human capital development and governance reforms in our state. At the time he embarked on the reforms, local governments in Kaduna state were in a very dire financial stress, that ensured 13 out of the 23 local government were unable to pay monthly staff salaries, not to talk of executing capital projects, with a dismal record of IGR for the State.
“El-Rufai’s government faced the problems confronting the state with vigour, eager to reverse the largely dysfunctional and wasteful government of the past. And within the eight years period, the administration built 443 km of township roads, 172km of rural feeder roads and over 60 km of solar street lights across the state, with massive school renovation, and reconstruction of health centers across the state.
“I would unapologetically state that the model of local government administration and disciplined supervision during el-Rufai government between May 2015 and May 2023, accounted significantly for the transformation of our grassroots in Kaduna state, and the former governor deserve commendations rather than consolidated blackmail”.
