Former Foreign Affairs minister and ex- Jigawa State Governor Alhaji Sule Lamido is arguably one of the most prominent Nigerian politicians who is a dogged believer in political and economic freedom within the context of a democratic government.
Lamido became Jigawa Governor, 16 years after the state was created. But in all those years, Dutse, the Jigawa State capital, remained a glorified council headquarters. It only started showing a semblance of a state capital in 2008- barely a year after Lamido became governor of the state. As governor, he made a conscious and deliberate effort to run a humane and people-oriented government.
Today, nine years after leaving the stage, it is not possible for one to travel to Jigawa State without Lamido’s exploits in the place catching one’s attention.
He became Jigawa State Governor in May 2007 at the age 59. By January of the following year, his fellow school mates, the 1962 Form One set of Barewa College, Zaria, hosted him to a luncheon, in Abuja.
At the event, Lamido noted among other things that as an alumnus of Barewa College, he had a history to defend, adding that “I understand that I must try and do my best to meet the ideals of Barewa College…the ideals of integrity, excellence and hard work in public service.”
He further said “I would be a role model to the upcoming generation. I will remain a listening brother and friend. I will work hard to fulfill the dream and vision for the establishment of Barewa College, Zaria.” And for the eight years he spent, as someone who was very close to him, I can testify that the Jagoran Talakawa lived up to expectations.
For those who may not know, the famous Barewa College was a creation of the colonial masters. It was mainly designed for the sole training of future leaders of northern extraction. Students were carefully selected from the primary schools based on excellent and brilliant academic performance and put under instructions in the fields of arts and sciences.
Therefore, for Lamido to say without prompting that he has a history to defend, a history of hard work, integrity and excellence, he was referring to the traditions of Barewa College that had produced eminent leaders in every sector of the society.
The likes of General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), former Head of State; his successor, the late General Murtala Mohammed; former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Lawal Uwais; two former secretaries to the government of the federation, the late Shehu Musa and late Aminu Saleh and late Sunday Awoniyi, Private Secretary to first Premier of Northern Nigeria are some of the products of Barewa College.
Interestingly, by May 2015, when Lamido was leaving office, it was evident that he lived up to expectations. In fact, what the people of Jigawa may have lost under Saminu Turaki, from 1999 to 2007, they seemed to have gained under Lamido, through what could easily pass for Lamido’s revolution in Jigawa State.
It is on record that Lamido met huge debts upon assumption of office in 2007. But since then up till the time he left office, he did not borrow a dime from any financial institution; yet, he was paying the debt and at the same time building a new Jigawa, with the meagre resources of between N2.3 billion and N2.4 billion monthly allocation from the federation account.
There is hardly any structure you find in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, which you don’t find something close to it in Dutse, the Jigawa State capital. Talk of the Three Arms Zone, Jigawa has its own; for the Eagle Square in Abuja, there is the Aminu Kano Triangle in Dutse. The state’s broadcasting house, dwarfed what we have as NTA headquarters in Abuja, just as the Rasheed Sekoni Specialist Hospital, Dutse, could compete favourably with the National Hospital in Abuja.
Apart from probably Kaduna, Dutse is the only state capital in the north, where you find residences of all the emirs in the state capital. And even in the South-West, where traditional rulers are also revered because of their enduring significance, there is no state capital, where one can find such a thing, though symbolic and significant. Ironically, that of Jigawa was conceptualized and executed by a man many erroneously believed was anti-establishment and anti-traditional rulers.
Additionally, apart from probably Abuja, the official residences of the Speaker, his Deputy, the Deputy Governor, Chief Judge and Grand Khadi, in Dutse, are second to none in the entire country at the time the structures were put up. Lamido believes in building an ensuring institution. He once told me that doing that would inspire confidence in the people of the state.
This is even as he further said that the biggest challenge any government faces is human development, which according to him is because “human beings by nature are very insatiable. When you elevate them to a particular level, they would want to move to another level and so when you restore a state which was almost grounded, the expectation becomes high. So whatever you do is a further incentive for more to be done and it is going to be a continuous thing. But my dream is to have the best set of human beings in the world –everything perfect, ideal, everything which commands decency, self esteem and self worth, to be in Jigawa. And so, whatever we do daily is further incentive for us to strive for the development of the state.”
My dear Sule Lamido, as you mark yet another birthday today, I pray Allah grants you the Grace to witness your 80th, 90th, 100th and more birthday celebrations.
Happy birthday to you, the authentic Jagoran Talakawa.
