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By Shafa’atu Suleiman, Sokoto
Governor Ahmed Aliyu has inaugurated the Board of the Sokoto Investment Company, with an assurance that the state government will address the challenges hindering its smooth development.
He said his government has decided to look into the company with a view to attracting more investment for the state to boost the internally generated revenue (IGR) and challenged the Abubakar Sulaiman Goronyo-led Board to buckle up to achieve the set target.
He noted that the main sources of income for the state are those from the federation account and IGR, which are often volatile due to the uncertain nature of the state’s economic variables.
“It is on this basis that the company will guarantee an alternative source of income for the state government through portfolio investment in various key profitable sectors of our economy.
“We count on you to see accountability and transparency in your conduct and in every action you take pertaining to the investment portfolio.”
Governor Aliyu said during the inauguration that his administration has within one and a half year executed numerous people-oriented projects across the state.
He assured of the sustenance of such a gesture and sought their continued support.
He added that the administration has made numerous promises to the electorate in order to improve their socio-economic and political well-being, with guarantees to deliver effective public goods and services.
“The government stands by that commitment and will commit all the resources necessary to ensure the attainment of the objective,”he emphasized.
The Board chairman, Goronyo, thanked the governor for the opportunity given to them to serve the state and promised not to disappoint.
In a related development, Governor Aliyu also inaugurated the state and senatorial zones projects and contracts monitoring committees and charged the members to be honest and sincere in the discharge of their assignment.
He said the committees were set up to ensure that people of the state get quality projects that would fast-track the needed development across the 23 local government areas.
He said his administration has since coming on board awarded several contracts across the state including the construction and asphalt overlay of roads, feeder roads, Mosques, Islamiyya schools, health centres, blocks of classrooms and water projects to improve the living condition of the people.
“This necessitated the setting up of these committees to verify the said projects in line with the contractual agreements. This would further ensure that there was no compromise on the quality of the projects.”
He reminded the members of the committees that they were appointed based on their track records, integrity, honesty, dedication and patriotism.
He, therefore, charged them to have the fear of Allah in the discharge of their assignment and to operate in line with their committees’ terms of reference which include identifying the contracts awarded by the state government, identifying all the ongoing and abandoned projects and ascertaining the level of work of ongoing and abandoned projects.
They are also to find out payments so far made as well as the outstanding payments if any, confirm or otherwise, the certificates for payments issued by the supervising client/ Ministry, before recommending the same to the state government for payment.
Responding on behalf of other committees’ members, Alhaji Bello Na-gwari assured that they will discharge their assignment without any fear or favour.
The projects monitoring and verification committees for the state and the three senatorial zones have Amb.Abubakar Shehu Wurno, Bello Na-gwari, Dalhatu Sidi Mamman and A. T. Adamu as chairmen.
