Omololu Ogunmade
8 July 2009
interview
Lagos — Sokoto State Governor, Alhaji Aliyu Wamakko, is one of the only two former deputy governors who eventually became governors in the current tenure. While his counterpart in Zamfara and name-sake, Alhaji Aliyu Shinkafi became governor on a platter of gold, his was a rough adventure, as he had to move to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to run against the candidate of his former boss. Four journalists had an encounter with the governor in Sokoto recently, where he spoke on his performance so far, electoral reform, the Harvard debacle, state creation, the judiciary among other issues of national interest. Omololu Ogunmade who was in the team presents excerpts of the interview
So far, how will you describe the task of governance?
To start with, I have been in the system in the last 37 years. I was in government, in the civil service. I was a permanent secretary; then politician, deputy governor and governor. That has given me some advantages to know the real concerns of this state. So, when I came in, I did not have much trouble to prepare my blue-print for the state in terms of education, poverty alleviation, health care delivery, economic empowerment, commerce and other sectors that will lead to economic development of the state.
Having prepared our blue-print, we went into action to address these areas of education, poverty eradication, agriculture and youth empowerment. We have addressed and still addressing all these.
What impact has your administration made so far in education?
We address the sector from the grassroots, the mid-level and the high level. What I mean is that any attempt to address education, you must start from the fundamentals, that is, primary education. When we came in, there was a low morale in teachers. Students could not pay school fees. There was lack of facilities. So, we ban payment of school fees in the primary and secondary schools. This gave a boost to the enrolment as students walked to school without any hindrance.
We boosted the morale of teachers through salary increase. We purchased motorcycles and other facilities and gave them to the teachers through loans. We also encouraged re-training of the teachers.
We equally addressed the problems in the secondary schools. We increased feeding allowance of the pupils by a hundred per cent.
We spent N2 billion to renovate and rehabilitate our schools. Equally, we have increased bursary allowance for both local and foreign students. We also have special bursary allowance for Law students, medical students and so on. We increased the allowances of those in teachers' training colleges or colleges of education by hundred per cent. All the levels of education have been affected positively. Today, the enrolment level in the primary, secondary and tertiary level has increased, from about 23 to 29 per cent.
Girl-child enrolment has also increased by over 30 per cent in the last two years. At the tertiary level, we have been able to increase enrolment by over 29 per cent. Policies and programmes are put in place to raise the quality of students, teachers and the environment, to foster living.
We have also gone ahead to mobilise the community because they have a role to play. We mobilised the Parent Teachers' Association to assist us so that we can get the desired result. Thank God, the involvement of parents is very encouraging.
Do your educational programmes also cover the university education?
Last year, only about one third of qualified candidates got admission into the university. So, we worked towards having our own state university. The paper works have been done. We are about to get approval for take-off from the National University Commission. This month, we will lay the foundation of the university. We are getting a temporary site to start-off before the permanent campus can be put in place.
Is it being sited in Sokoto?
It is about 10 kilometres from Sokoto. If we put everything in the capital, it means we are neglecting the rural areas of the state. I don't believe in that. I saw what happened abroad when I was in the United States. Many universities are not in the big towns. They are in the small towns. Through that, there will be roads and many facilities. The environment is conducive. We have finished all the necessary grounds and in few days time, we will inaugurate the committee for the take-off of the university. The ceremony will be attended by numerous personalities, including the Senate President and members of Senate Committee on Education.
Is it necessary to establish a new university when we already have a proliferation of universities in the country?
There are so many universities, but where are they? Not in Sokoto. You may wish to know that in Nigeria, Sokoto is one of the few states that do not have universities of their own. Our people are not getting admitted adequately into the existing universities in the country. So, the yearnings of our young people who want to go to the university in this country are not being met. It is part of our obligations as a government. Sokoto is an educationally backward state.
In view of the global economic meltdown and the dwindling revenue from the federation account, how have you been coping with the funding of some of your projects in the state?
I have been in government for sometime now. I am conscious of the fact that we cannot continue to get the sweet oil money everyday. There can be decline sometimes. So, by planning, programming and exploring new avenues, we can make progress. We do not try to spend everything we get, with the hope of getting another one every month.
We continue to execute our projects without being affected. In Sokoto State, we make payments for our projects as at when due and still maintain some reasonable savings. I had been part of government before. So, I use the experience I have gained over the years to plan well, so that we will not fall into such a trap and midway, we are confronted with lack of funds and be unable to continue with programmes and projects.
There was a controversy recently that the 36 state governors signed an agreement with the Harvard University. Being one of them, what is the true account of the story?
I am not sure that I can address that question.
Why?
Because I wouldn't know what transpired. I know It was mentioned in our meeting that there was the need for some kind of trainings on terminal short courses for governors, the kind that takes place at the federal and state levels and that Harvard is associated with quality. I am not sure, but I think the Chairman of Governors Forum should be able to tell you more about it.
One of the governors said he was not in support of the programme. Were you in support of it?
I am not competent to answer some of these questions.
Doesn't this imply that the rank of the governors are divided over the programme?
No. I am not competent to speak on it.
In some states, the legislative and executive arms are usually at war. What is responsible for the cordial relationship between you and the House of Assembly?
If you look at history, Sokoto is one of the most peaceful states in the country. Sokoto has been a seat of leadership of this country, since the days of Obafemi Awolowo and Ahmadu Bello. Alhaji Shehu Shagari (former president) is also from this place. We do try to ensure that Sokoto continues to be the seat of leadership and the most peaceful place in the country.
Secondly, in governance, the key word is mutual respect, transparency. If there is transparency and there is mutual respect between the two arms, there is no need for quarrel. Whenever there is quarrel, it may be that there is no transparency and there is no mutual respect. Both arms should work hand in hand to achieve a common goal of developing the state under their care.
What is your position on the proposed electoral reforms?
I have spoken about electoral reforms. The reform we need is that we should reform our own attitudes as Nigerians. We have very good laws in Nigeria. The attitude of the politicians and stakeholders is the challenge. Unless we rededicate ourselves, unless we respect the laws of the land and do things according to the law governing us and we start behaving the way we should behave, there is no reform we need to change our attitude. Laws don't work on their own. It is the people that will make the law work. No amount of law will change us, unless we change ourselves. That is my opinion.
But laws exist to regulate human conduct and relationship and where there is no law, there is no sin.
Laws are supposed to regulate people's attitudes. That is the language. Unless we are prepared to work with those laws and respect them, we can't achieve the desired result. But once we continue to behave as bad players, bad losers, winners take all, these electoral reforms and constitutional amendment may not solve the problem.
Having been a victim of judicial powers in this dispensation, in view of the re-run governorship ordered in this state, what is your perception of the judiciary?
The judiciary has performed well. We have to commend them for doing a good job. I rate them every well.
Were you happy when judges annulled your election?
I cannot say I was happy. If I say I was happy, I will be wrong. But I do not blame the judiciary for annulling my election because they might be right on the point of law and that is why they are there. They are not there to nullify anybody. They are there to adjudicate, to say what is wrong or what is right and that was what they did.
Do you believe that the judiciary is always right?
It is a human institution. No human being will always do good things all the time. The judges are human beings. They cannot be hundred per cent perfect.
Not long ago, your opponent, Alhaji Maigari Dingyadi alleged in Abuja that you have been oppressing and harassing the opposition in this state in an alleged bid to turn it into a one-party state. Isn't this allegation correct?
He was only expressing his opinion as a typical politician. They speak in many kinds of languages. They are the people who can do something worse than that.
What is it that you are doing differently when compared to what the previous administrations did?
Fundamentally, what we are doing differently is that I am running a government with a listening ear, a government that respects the views and yearnings of the governed; a government that is accessible and a government that allows itself to be guided in policies and programmes by the views of the people.
How effective is your relationship with your deputy?
My deputy has been a great friend of mine over the years. We worked together. When he was Attorney-General, I was a Permanent Secretary. We have been together for 30 years. I have been in government for some time. We understand ourselves very well and we will continue until the time we retire.
What are the specific programmes put in place to address poverty in the state?
Eighty per cent of the people of Sokoto are farmers. We tried to encourage farmers with fertilizers worth over N2 billion and we gave them the products on loans to pay after harvest, in cash or in kind. We also tried to give them insecticides and other tools. We also carry out youth empowerment, whereby over 20,000 youths are being trained on skills - carpentry, mattress making.
If you visit our centres, you will see how we are planning for our youths to be gainfully employed and empowered. This reduces crime in the society. Instead of waiting for government appointment, they are now gainfully employed.
How feasible do you think are the issues of constitutional amendment and state creation in Nigeria?
We can always amend the constitution. As I said earlier, the problem is with our own attitudes as Nigerians. If we decide to play the game by the rule; if we decide to obey those laws that are already there, we can make progress. I am not saying that it is bad to amend the constitution. There must always be a room for improvement.
Coming to the issue of state creation, in Nigeria, we have people who are angling to become leaders - councilors, chairmen, governors, commissioners. In as much as there is that urge in us, the need for state creation will never decline. The clamour will always be on the increase.
In the Constituent Assembly held in 1988, there was a long list of demand for state creation. It will continue. If it is permitted, we will have over 200 states and one or two million local governments in Nigeria. At times, some of the requests are not based on genuine demands. They are based on selfish, personal interests. If states and local governments are created now, there will still be demand for more.
I have spoken about electoral reforms. The reform we need is that we should reform our own attitudes as Nigerians. We have very good laws in Nigeria. The attitude of the politicians and stakeholders is the challenge. Unless we rededicate ourselves, unless we respect the laws of the land and do things according to the law governing us and we start behaving the way we should behave, there is no reform we need to change our attitude.
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