INNOCENT BAKO pays tribute to Uba Sani at 54

At his birth on December 31, 1970, probably no comets blazed even though he was destined for great things. But as he turns 54 today, it is worthy to reflect on the milestones of Kaduna State governor, Senator

Uba Sani, as a dedicated public servant.

While he studied Mechanical Engineering, a course dedicated to working with inanimate objects, at Kaduna Polytechnic, Sani’s life course is all about serving humanity. Early as a student, he defined himself as a human rights activist and politician. By 1999, at the return of democracy to the country, Sani joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and supported Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidential bid. Upon becoming president, Obasanjo appointed Sani as his Special Adviser on Public Affairs. Sani would later work in advisory capacity to then FCT Minister, Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai and also the Kaduna State Ministry of Housing and Works.

In 2011, Sani contested the Kaduna Central Senatorial seat but lost at the PDP primaries. Four years later in 2015, Nasir el-rufai emerged as Kaduna State governor and then appointed Sani as his Special Adviser on Political and Intergovernmental Affairs. Sani continued in that capacity until 2019 when again, he contested for the Kaduna Central senatorial seat, this time under the All Progressives Congress (APC). He won the primaries and also won the election. At the Senate, Sani distinguished himself as a dynamic lawmaker by sponsoring 32 bills, the most by any lawmaker. Two of his bills, including the bill establishing the Federal College of Education, Giwa, Kaduna State, were signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari.

In 2022, Sani picked APC nomination forms for the 2023 governorship election in Kaduna State. He won and was sworn in as governor. As governor, Sani has unleashed democracy dividends in Kaduna. From the creation of public goods such roads, schools, hospitals and markets to provision of services like security, education, healthcare and social welfare, the governor has been sterling.

In his early days as governor, a fact-finding mission by the Kaduna State House of Assembly discovered that N432bn of Kaduna’s money was misappropriated while el-Rufai was governor. It was a damning revelation. However, amidst the lack of funds and debts repayments, Sani went the way of prudence. He and members of his government denied themselves the luxury of acquiring brand new official cars. His major concern was how to dedicate the state resources to satisfying the people first.

Under Sani, law and order is being restored to troubled parts of the state. His administration implemented the Kaduna Amnesty programme whereby repentant bandits are disarmed, demobilised and re-integrated into the society. This move involved trust-building among a coalition of federal security apparatuses like the Office of the National Security Adviser, Army and Police and stakeholders like traditional, religious, community, youth and political leaders in affected communities. Known as the ‘Kaduna Model’, the system has brought normalcy to places like Birnin Gwari, which used to be a terrorist haven. Now, markets are being reopened as insecurity is becoming a thing of the past. It is worth mentioning that this strategy is being copied by other states.

Within one year, the state built 2,326 new primary school classrooms and provided 30,742 two-seater desks for 61,484 pupils. This development ensured that more than 300, 000 out-of-school children enrolled in school for the 2023/2024 academic session. And recently, the state announced it would build 50 new schools and get 200,000 out-of-school children back to school. The state government also keyed into the federal government’s Safe Schools Financing Plan initiative. Under this programme, 5, 000 personnel of the Kaduna Vigilance Service (KADVS) trained by the Nigeria Police were deployed to schools as School Protection Guards. Under Sani, education is being allocated ₦206.6 billion or 26.14% of its 2025 budget.

Knowing that agriculture employs 42% of the residents and contributes 42.81% to the state’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Sani went ballistic in supporting farmers. His administration launched a scheme ‘A Koma Gona’ (Get Back to Farm) which focused on empowering 40, 000 smallholder farmers across the state with seedlings, input and equipment. It also gave 120,000 smallholder farmers 240, 000 bags of fertilisers.The state has also partnered with StarAgri West Africa Limited to commit $120m over five years to transform state-owned warehouses and silos to modern facilities and deploy an electronic warehousing system. This would reduce post-harvest losses and benefit farmers. It is estimated that the partnership would create over 2,500 direct and indirect jobs.

With road construction, Sani has also wowed many. In 18 months, his administration has embarked on building 62 roads spanning 700 kilometres across the state, many of which connect farmers to markets. Already, some roads like U/Rimi-NEPA Road and Madauchi-Kafanchan Road have been completed.

As the chief Salesman of Kaduna, Sani markets Kaduna locally and internationally. And under him, the state is determined to explore its solid mineral resources, especially lithium. For instance, it has partnered with Ming Xin Mineral Separation Nigeria Ltd to build a $20 million plant in Igabi which is estimated to create over 3, 000 jobs. Other firms involved in mining in the state are the developers of the Jupiter Lithium Project, Basin Mining Ltd and Range Mining Ltd.

In the area of healthcare, Kaduna won a prize of $500, 000 after it emerged as the best state in primary healthcare delivery in the northwest region. Last year, Governor Sani recruited 89 doctors and equipped 290 primary healthcare centres (PHCs). His administration also approved the full implementation of the 2014 consolidated medical salary scale (CONMESS) for resident doctors working under the Kaduna State Ministry of Health. Hitherto, the resident doctors only received 75% of CONMESS. Also, under Sani as governor, the state began reconstructing nine general hospitals – three in each senatorial zone. Some of these hospitals had been abandoned for over 20 years.

In accordance with the law, Sani increased the minimum wage of workers in the state to N72, 000. This was just as he provided 100 compressed natural gas (CNG) buses to the state civil service staff to ameliorate their transportation. The Sani-led administration also re-imagined the famous Panteka Market for artisans to partner with other institutions to become a hub for semi-formal technological transfer.

In the area of sports, the Sani administration introduced a five-aside football competition where teams from the 23 local government areas participate in the Governor Uba Sani Tribute Cup Competition. And as per social security, Sani recently revealed that two million bank accounts have been opened for the ‘poor, vulnerable, and under-served persons’ in Kaduna for disbursements of palliatives to them. This revolutionary move improves efficiency and allows for transparency.

Married to Hajia Hafsat Uba Sani, the governor, in 2018, founded the Uba Sani Foundation whose goal is to increase access to good healthcare, education and

improved livelihood to the underprivileged. Those who know him well know that is what is at the core of his being. Hence, as Governor Sani marks 54, here’s to many more years of service and leadership, especially to Kaduna.

· Bako writes from Kaduna