Gov. Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe state says the state had recorded significant achievements since its creation in 1996.
Yahaya stated this on Friday in Gombe during the commemoration of the country’s 61st independent as well as 25th anniversary of the creation of Gombe state.
“Throughout the world, development is and has always been a work-in-progress. In Gombe State, we can proudly say that the work of development has continued to progress since 1996.
“At 25, we should all be proud of what we have collectively achieved. While the task ahead is great, I will once again appeal for your prayers and understanding as we work tirelessly to move the state forward.
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“Today marks 25 years since our state was created from the defunct Bauchi State by the military administration of late Gen .Sani Abacha.
“This day also coincided with the 61 years of Nigeria’s independence. Indeed, the creation of Gombe State on the 1st of October, 1996, heralded a new dawn of hope on what we can achieve as a people bound together in this shared geographic territory with a long history of relationships and social interactions ,” he said.
He said the state’s ability to maintain unity in the midst of diversity was without doubt the greatest source of strength and the catalyst that keeps the state going, making it one of the fastest developing states in the country.
Yahaya commended all the past administrations of the state for contributing their quota to the development of the state.
He commended the first military administrator, Group Capt. John Orji (rtd) for laying a solid foundation by putting up a broad-based development agenda.
The governor added that Orji established the administrative structure of the state, provided critical infrastructure such as housing and office accommodation for civil servants, built roads, raised revenues and provided critical support to the citizens.
Although the achievements were modest, he said, significant accomplishments were consolidated and built upon by his successor, late Col. Mohammed Bawa (rtd).
Yahaya noted that under Bawa, the state witnessed significant increase in investments on basic infrastructure such as roads, bridges, schools and hospitals, coupled with important policies set to revitalize the basic education sector.
He also noted the contributions of the first civilian Governor of the state Abubakar Hashidu, Sen. Danjuma Goje and Ibrahim Dankwambo.
Giving account of his own stewardship since coming to office on May 29, 2019, Yahaya said his administration strove to consolidate on the achievements of all the past administrations.
“Our administration is pursuing a rapid and wide-ranging development by addressing long-standing infrastructure deficits, through aggressive spending on roads, hospitals and healthcare facilities,” he said.
He said his administration also introduced and implemented bold public sector reforms such as the treasury single account and a strong fiscal responsibility regime, while ensuring that overhead costs were minimized..
“We also established the Bureau for public Service Reforms and introduced the biometric standardization of civil servants to tackle the ghost worker syndrome and improve performance, among others,” he added.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the highlight of the event was an independence parade.
(NAN)
