Headlines
Northern elders kick against Nigeria’s breakup
By Nasiru Yusuf
Bashir Othman Tofa, a former presidential candidate of the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC) party during the annulled June 12, 1993 election said the North would never seek the break up of Nigeria as a country.
Mr Othman-Tofa disclosed this on Sunday during the inauguration of students’ wing of Northern Youth Groups, organised by Coalition of Northern Youth held at Bayero University, Kano.
He said the North has never agitated for the break up of the country, hence, it does not have any plan in the event of secession.
He advised Northerners to exercise patience in building the unity of the country, as they are the root of Nigeria’s unity.
“If you examine the situation, you would find out it is only in Northern Nigeria that there is no agitation for break up of this country. It is Northern Nigeria that doesn’t have any specific plan of its own, in case Nigeria is divided. This means we have absolute confidence that being together is the best thing for all of us.
“If you look at our population and what we have together is more than what anyone can hope for. So to try to destroy this is certainly lose-lose situation. That is why we here in the North would never say we do not want to live in this country. We know that people called us name, they do all sort of things. And our responsibility is to exercise patience to make sure we guide this country to the kind of unity and progress we need to develop into a better country and even become a nation state,” Mr Tofa said.
The elder statement, noted that, the unity of the country is sacrosanct, adding that the North has been playing the role of encouraging the unity of Nigeria “That is why we are the root of this country. If the root is up rooted, the tree will not be there. So we like to be patient, we like to encourage Nigerians to love their country to be united and tolerate one another. So that we can build a kind of country we like to build.”
In his address former Chief of Staff to former senate president Bukola Saraki and member of Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Hakeem Baba-Ahmed expressed disappointment in the leadership style of Northern peoples who hold various political offices in the country.
According to him, Northerners who hold different political positions had failed to address the region’s problems, adding that they woefully failed to live up to their billings in areas considered to be of paramount importance for the region.
He stated that northerners are aggrieved by the leadership style of those who are calling the shots in respective positions of authority, adding that people of the region would not wait until 2023 to vote them out.
“We are disappointed with our northern leaders at all levels. We will not wait until 2023 to vote them out. We will be putting pressure on them to correct their mistakes of tackling the problem of insecurity, poor quality of education and health, problem of economy among others.
“Henceforth, we will no longer vote any leader who deceived us. We want leaders who would go there to protect the interest of the North,” he said.
He however called on northern youth to ask governors of the region to protect the interest of Fulani herdsmen and livestock assets of the North.
He noted that while southerners were asking the Fulani to vacate their region, northern governors should provide shelter for them back in the North.
Highlights of the occasion include inauguration of three regional coordinators for Northwest, Northeast and North central geopolitical zones.
Headlines
Abdulaziz unveils project inspection initiative, trains APC social media inflluencers at Arewa media summit
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Media and Public Enlightenment, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, has unveiled a regional project inspection initiative aimed at showcasing key development projects in Northern Nigeria, while urging journalists and social media influencers to uphold ethical communication and combat misinformation.
Speaking on Monday at the maiden Arewa Media Summit in Kano, organised by his office, Abdulaziz said the gathering was conceived to strengthen dialogue between government, citizens and the media through accountability, responsibility and ethical communication.
He said effective governance depends on transparency, responsible civic engagement and a professional media that serves as a bridge between leaders and the people through factual and balanced reporting.
The presidential aide also cautioned social media influencers, who command large online audiences, to verify information before publication and avoid content capable of creating division, particularly as the country approaches the 2027 general elections.
According to him, more than 100 All Progressives Congress (APC) social media communicators were trained ahead of the summit to enhance their capacity to communicate government policies, programmes and achievements effectively.
Abdulaziz also unveiled the Gani Ya Kori initiative, a regional project inspection tour designed to spotlight landmark projects executed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Northern state governors that have received limited public attention.
“The initiative will help ensure that citizens are adequately informed about development projects and government interventions across the region,” he said.
The summit also featured a keynote address by the Minister of Information and National Reorientation, Mohammed Idris, who urged journalists and social media influencers to deny bandits and terrorists the publicity they seek.
“The media has an indispensable role in denying violent extremists the publicity they seek while promoting unity, resilience and hope,” the minister said.
He stressed that democracy flourishes when government remains transparent, citizens participate responsibly and the media performs its constitutional role with professionalism, fairness and integrity.
Idris observed that while the digital revolution has transformed communication by making every smartphone a broadcasting platform, it has also accelerated the spread of fake news and disinformation capable of undermining national unity and public confidence.
Declaring the summit open, Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf called on other states to emulate Kano’s Special Reporters Initiative, through which more than 150 young people have been deployed to ministries, departments, agencies and the state’s 44 local government areas to strengthen government communication and public enlightenment.
KANO FOCUS reports that the summit attracted journalists, broadcasters, filmmakers, digital content creators, academics, policymakers and communication professionals from across Northern Nigeria to deliberate on the theme, “Government, Citizens: Accountability, Responsibility and Ethical Media Practice.”
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
The Kano State Government says it has executed 1,508 development projects worth more than N928 billion across the state’s 44 local government areas since Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf assumed office, with about 80 per cent of constituency projects awarded between 2023 and 2025 already completed.
KANO FOCUS reports that the Commissioner for Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation, Comrade Nura Iro Ma’aji Sumaila, disclosed this during an international press briefing on the administration’s infrastructure development programme.
According to Comrade Sumaila, the projects cover critical sectors including roads, urban renewal, education, healthcare, security and other social infrastructure.
He said 799 of the projects have been completed, while 709 are at various stages of execution. He added that the state is also implementing 619 constituency projects through members of the Kano State House of Assembly.
The commissioner noted that about 80 per cent of the constituency projects have been completed. However, he said some projects remain unfinished because of rising construction costs caused by inflation.
He said the government has submitted a request to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf for an upward review of contract sums to enable contractors complete the affected projects.
Breakdown of projects
Comrade Sumaila said the administration spent over N169 billion on urban renewal projects, including road rehabilitation, drainage construction and other metropolitan infrastructure.
He said another N118 billion was committed to constructing five-kilometre roads in 38 local government areas to improve connectivity across the state.
According to him, the government also awarded contracts worth over N6.8 billion for the construction of Kano State Neighbourhood Watch security divisions in 36 local government areas.
He added that rural infrastructure projects covering education, healthcare and other social interventions across the 44 local government areas account for contracts valued at more than N397 billion, while other ongoing projects have a combined value of about N255 billion.
Commitment to transparency
The commissioner said the Ministry of Public Procurement, Projects Monitoring and Evaluation would continue to ensure compliance with due process and technical standards in the execution of government projects.
He said the ministry’s mandate includes monitoring projects to ensure value for money and prudent utilisation of public resources.
According to him, the administration’s investments in infrastructure are intended to improve mobility, strengthen security, expand access to education and healthcare, improve water supply and stimulate economic growth across the state.
Nasiru Yusuf Ibrahim
Kano State has emerged as the highest-ranked sub-national government in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for education spending, according to the latest Sub-National Education Spending Index developed by the University of Paris.
KANO FOCUS reports that the ranking places Kano State first among 209 first-level sub-national governments across 15 ECOWAS member countries, underscoring the state’s growing reputation for prioritising investment in education.
According to the published index, Kano topped the rankings with an overall S-WAESI score of 87.21, outperforming other leading regions, including Dakar and Saint-Louis in Senegal. Lagos State was the second Nigerian state on the list, ranking 16th overall.
The assessment evaluated states and regions using the S-WAESI (Sub-National Weighted Aggregate Education Spending Index) methodology, which measures government commitment to education through indicators such as actual education expenditure, spending per student, budget execution, education priority, transparency and evidence-based reporting.
The methodology assigns 35 points to actual education spending, 25 points to spending per student, 20 points to budget execution, 10 points to education priority and 10 points to transparency.
The report indicated that Kano excelled largely due to its strong actual education spending and budget execution, making it the best-performing sub-national government in the region.
The ranking covered states, regions, districts and municipalities across Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde.
Kano State Accountability Forum on Education (K-SAFE) said the recognition reflects Kano State Government’s sustained investment in expanding access to education, improving school infrastructure and strengthening educational planning and budget implementation.
KANO FOCUS reports that the achievement is expected to further boost the state’s profile as a leader in education reform within West Africa and provide additional momentum for ongoing efforts to improve learning outcomes across the state.
The latest ranking comes amid renewed attention on education financing across ECOWAS, with experts increasingly emphasising transparent budgeting, efficient resource utilisation and sustained public investment as critical drivers of quality education.
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