Kefas Takes Definite Steps to Develop Taraba

Governor Agbu Kefas of Taraba State seems determined to lay a new foundation for the state as evident in his programme of action since his inauguration in May, 2023. Wole Ayodele reports

Since assumption of office as governor of Taraba State on 29th May, 2023, Dr Agbu Kefas, has left no one in doubt about his commitment and determination to chart a new course for the state in a bid to attain its full potential.

Kefas inherited a state that is rated very lowly in all indices of development including human and economic and development.

It used to be rated as one of the poorest states in the country despite its vast human, natural and mineral resources.

Aside the civil service, the vast majority of the people of the state are basically farmers, majority of whom engages in subsistent farming as industries and companies that are supposed to drive economic activities are non existent even though the state is blessed with numerous minerals that are basic raw materials for industrial growth.

Though previous administrations in the state made attempts to set up an industrial base for the state with the establishment of cottage industries such as Taraba Oil Mill, Taraba Timber Company, Taraba Poly Products, Taraba Feeds and Taraba Food Processing Company, such business concerns became moribund after few years of operation. Though the last administration in the state made attempts to revive some of such companies, many of them were revived while others remain comatose.

To make matters worse, the Taraba Vegetables Company, established by the Ishaku administration which gulped over N4 billion became moribund even before the expiration of the lifetime of the administration. As at today, the Company, which was one of the star projects of the administration, has become desolate with all the billions gone down the drain.

Similarly, Kefas inherited a civil service that is disoriented and largely ill motivated as well as a very large pool of retirees that had lost hope in the system due to epileptic payment of pensions and non payment of gratuities.

It is noteworthy that Taraba is one of the two states in the federation that did not implement the new minimum wage of N30,000.

It was therefore not surprising that Kefas’ inauguration on May 29th was greeted with so much excitement and euphoria as there was high expectations from the generality of the people that considering his background as a clergy who have been committed and devoted to charity and charitable endeavours over the years, he would make a difference by making the interest and welfare of the people a priority.

Addressing the people of the state during his swearing-in at the main bowl of Jolly Name Stadium in Jalingo, Kefas promised to tackle the economic challenges being faced by the vast majority of the people using youth and women empowerment as a tool.

He equally assured that his administration would tackle the menace of insecurity that has been bedevilling the state over the years.

Being a security expert, the governor assured that he would engage all the stakeholders including traditional institutions, professionals, youths and other security experts to find a lasting solution to the insecurity bedevilling the state just as he specifically made strong commitments to revamp the educational and health sectors.

According to him, “my government shall make the necessary amenities and facilities available for better welfare of our people and we must ensure that the people are proud to call Taraba their own. My determination as governor is to make available proper health care and quality education to our people”

Though the Kefas administration did not embark on any construction project in its first 100 days in office, the administration is however being rated by residents as the most focused, most impactful administration in the state within just 100 days since its creation in 1991. The period under review was not only eventful, it revealed a governor that is on full throttle to rewrite the history of the state.

Kefas, having realized that the resources accruing to the state is grossly inadequate to develop the state and that there is need to seek partnership and collaboration that would fast track its growth particularly in the area of investment, embarked on several shuttle diplomacy to various international and local organizations to seek partnership.

Among such organizations are the World Bank; TETFUND; Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development as well as the Chinese and Czech Embassies where he had talks with the Ambassadors of the two countries.

Others are the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority; the German Embassy; the European Union; Simba Group (for the supply of Tricycles) and representatives of German CUTEC E&E Ltd (for climate change and waste management). It is worthy to note that all the organizations have pledged their commitment and readiness to partner with the state.

And to announce the magnitude of his dream for the state, the Kefas administration sought and secured a N206 billion loan from a consortium of banks payable within four years. The loan is to be repaid through federal allocation (FAAC), Joint Account with LGS (JAC), VAT and internally generated revenue (IGR). The loan was obtained to finance the revolutionary policies of the administration in education, health, power, agriculture, infrastructure, civil service, mining etc.

Operation Make Jalingo Clean

Not oblivious of the huge burden he has to shoulder, Kefas hit the ground running with the launch of Operation keep Jalingo Clean within 24 hours of his inauguration.

To achieve the objective, over 300 youths and adults were engaged to sweep the streets and were placed on a stipend of N15,000 monthly. Though the renumeration may seem paltry, it was enough to attract unemployed graduates who have hitherto been idle over the years as well as other petty traders since the duration of work is 5am to 7.30am.

Local Government Election     

Within the same span of 24 hours, he dissolved the existing caretaker committees in the 16 local government areas and directed the transfer of Heads of Local Government Administration (HOLGA) to their respective local government areas to take charge of the running of the councils.

And in his determination to ensure proper governance at the local government areas, he has directed the Taraba State Independent Electoral Commission (TSIEC) to conduct elections into the Councils and November 18, 2023 date has been fixed for the poll.

Youth, Economic And Security Summit

In a bid to chart a new course for the sustainable development of the state in realization of his promises, Governor Kefas organized the Youth , Security and Economic Summit, the first of its kind in the history of the state. The Summit, which held between 13th-15th June was themed “Harvesting the Potential in Our Youth;/Repositioning Taraba State for Posterity; and Ensuring Our People’s Security”

Emphasizing the significance of the Summit, Kefas stated that it was put together to generate ideas from all the participants who were drawn from all the local government areas as well as various stakeholders, the  traditional institutions and professionals from all walks of life.

The primary charge to the Summit by the governor during the opening ceremony was to seek ways to attract local and foreign investors to develop the state’s economy.

Suspension of mining, banning of logging

Few days after the end of the Summit, specifically on the 24th of June, Governor Kefas signed an Executive Order suspending mining activities in his bid to curb illegal mining activities in the state. He lamented that illegal mining activities has wrecked so much havoc on the environment, communities and the economy of the state.

In his words “As Governor of Taraba State, it is my solemn duty to protect the well being of our citizens and preserve the precious resources that nature has bestowed upon us. Over the years, we have witnessed a surge in mining activities, both legal and illegal, which have caused significant damage to our ecosystems. The unregulated extraction of minerals have led to deforestation, soil erosion, water pollution and loss of biodiversity.

“Our rivers have become contaminated, affecting the health of our people and jeopardizing our agricultural activities. It has become a cancer eating away at the very fabric of our society. It has led to the exploitation of our vulnerable communities, increased crime rates and contributed to social unrest. The revenue that should have been channeled into public welfare and infrastructure development has been siphoned away, leaving the people in dire need”, he lamented.

To ensure total complaince with the Executive Order, Kefas set up a Task Force headed by Major General Jeremiah Faransa (rtd). The Task Force has since commenced enforcement of the Order with the arrest and prosecution of over 200 illegal miners including foreigners as well as seizure of several minerals including 22, 373 kg of Blue Sapphire.

In the same vein, the governor also placed a total ban on logging across the state especially Rosewood popularly called Madrid. Besides, Kefas also banned the sales and processing of the highly sought after wood just as he mandated the Faransa-led Task Force to enforce the order.

With the non existence of industries and companies that could boost the revenue base of the state and generate employment, the past administration had encouraged and promoted logging as a means of generating revenue for the state. But unfortunately, rather than bringing prosperity to the state, the bulk of the revenue generated ended in private pockets and caused serious deforestation and environmental degradation.

Education

In the educational sector, Governor Kefas has left nobody in doubt of his determination to walk his talk. Within his first 100 days in office, residents have witnessed the churning out of one revolutionary policy after the other in a bid to change the narrative. Tuition fees  has been reduced by 50% in all the tertiary institutions in the state including 50% reduction in hostel accommodation fees.

In the same vein, on July 7, 2023, the governor announced abolition of fees in public primary and secondary schools in the state and made the schools free and compulsory. That package also comes with free school uniforms, text books and notebooks and payment of external examinations such as WAEC, NECO, NABTEB and JAMB.

Parents are also relieved of the payment of such fees as registration fee, PTA levy, games/sports levy, sport special levy, guidance and counselling levy, jet fee, mock exam, examination fee and BECE exams fee.

And to ensure proper implementation of the policy and guide against sabotage by school heads, the governor engaged with the 2,217 Head Teachers  in the state as well as the 336 School Principals. The engagement, which took place on the 3rd and 4th of August, provided avenue for the school administrators to contribute their inputs to the successful implementation of the programme at the end of which the governor offered to give subvention to the schools for proper management without placing any financial burden on the pupils and students. The governor, after meeting with leaders of ASUU in the State University, approved the payment of four months out of the eight months salary arrears he inherited from the previous administration.

Security

In fulfilment of his promise to tackle the security challenges facing the state, Governor Kefas moved to rejuvenate the Taraba State Security Guard Marshall to compliment the activities of the conventional security agencies.

To this end, he appointed a retired Commissioner of Police, Mr Agyole Asenya Abeh as Marshall Commander. Besides, he has inaugurated a Taraba Security Solution Committee headed by the Commander, 6 Brigade of NigeriaArmy, Brigadier-General.F.S. Etim and comprising the State Commissioner of Police and heads of other security agencies in his efforts to tackle insecurity. The Committee’s terms of reference include: Study the Defence Industries of Corporation of Nigeria (DICON); Determine the type and quantity of weapons/equipment to be purchased by the state, considering the topography of the state and the type of training the state needs from DICON.

As it stands today, the people of Taraba are not just excited about Kefas’ dream and plan for the development of the state, they’re also very hopeful and expectant that the next four years will open a new vista for the state.