In 2024, President Bola Tinubu, in September, nominated Prof. Abdullahi Shehu Ma’aji as the pioneer Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the North West Development Commission (NWDC). In December, Tinubu revised the nominees for the Governing Boards of the NWDC, with Professor Abdullahi Shehu Ma’aji retaining his position as MD/CEO. The fact that Prof. Ma’aji’s name was retained is not a mistake but proof of his capacity and the trust that Mr. President has in his ability to engineer the transformation that the people of the North-West are yearning for.
The appointment of Prof. Ma’aji did not come by accident, nor did it come as a surprise to many of his observers. After all, a golden fish has no hiding place. His appointment came highly recommended in view of his experience, wealth of knowledge, and his results-oriented leadership style. His caliber is rare and needed to contribute to the development of the country because Prof. Ma’aji is a leadership genius who has been making his mark and leaving traces of excellence in every position of leadership he has held.
He is far-sighted, visionary, and a man whose integrity is as intact as a rock. Those who have high hopes that Prof. Ma’aji’s leadership will perform a miracle in transforming the North-West from one with a high index of poverty in the country to becoming a wealth-creation region for its people will not have their hopes dashed because Prof. Ma’aji has, over the years, forged a highly effective, anti-corruption system wherever he went, which has helped him deliver on any mandate assigned to him.
Prof. Ma’aji, a decent gentleman who had his Bachelor’s, Master’s, and PhD degrees in Sociology from Bayero University, Kano (BUK), is an academic to the core. Having served as a lecturer at BUK, the Director of the Centre for Research and Development at Bayero University Kano, and Special Adviser to Deputy Senate President Sen. Barau Jibrin, amongst others, he has been able to leverage his experience to impact greatly in molding young minds who have become great assets to Nigeria and the world at large.
As a renowned researcher, his interest in development studies, social policy, and community development are never in short supply. Many believe these will be leveraged greatly to quicken development, especially in rural communities, as it falls under the mandate of NWDC.
Having published numerous articles and books on development studies and social policy, supervised several Master’s and PhD students, and served as a consultant to various organizations, including the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and earned several awards like the National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM) by the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Bayero University Kano’s Distinguished Alumni Award, among others, it is obvious that Prof. Ma’aji is not one to fail on the job as MD/CEO of NWDC. With these rich experiences and expertise, the people of the region have high hopes that Prof. Ma’aji will bring the needed change within the mandate of the NWDC. Part of those expectations is for the Prof. to explore potential partnerships and collaborations to advance agricultural development in the region, which remains the comparative advantage of the North-West.
For most residents of the North-West, the region’s recovery lies in harnessing the huge potential in the agricultural sector, leveraging technology, innovation, and modern agricultural practices that will create opportunities for local farming communities to become empowered as a result of agricultural growth, which will also improve food security for Nigeria.
Napoleon Bonaparte, a former French general, once said, “A leader is a dealer in hope,” and indeed the people of the North-West have hope in Prof. Ma’aji based on his track records. What remains now is for him to do what he ought to do to prove the high expectations of the people from the North-West region.
The establishment of the NWDC gives us an opportunity to reflect on the need for Northern Nigeria to appreciate the efforts of true leaders who may not make too much noise about what they are doing, working assiduously yet silently, fighting for the good of the common man in every nook and cranny of every single community in Northern Nigeria. The Deputy Senate President, Sen. Barau Jibrin, has done well by bringing NWDC to reality, and over time, as the Commission rolls out its benefits, history will always be kind to Sen. Barau Jibrin for the honor done to the North-West region.
As we delve deeper into time, especially the politics of time, the people of Kano State, North-West, and Northern Nigeria must begin to prepare to explore the many aspects of Jibrin’s leadership in view of his unhidden love for his people, which typifies a beacon of transformation and resilience in a rapidly evolving global landscape of Nigerian politics in the North.
Sen. Jibrin’s doggedness towards the realization of NWDC today makes it clear that leadership qualities were inherent in him, suggesting that leaders are indeed born, not made. His kind must be a good pick for future leadership roles to help advance the course of positive change in the overall interest of Nigerians.
One asset that all leaders need is the support of the people they are leading; it serves as a moral booster and a pat on their backs to enable them to go the extra mile to do what they ought to do in the interest of the people. Because the success of NWDC is not an exclusive reserve of Prof. Ma’aji or Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin to enjoy, but for the good of the entire region, all hands must be on deck to encourage the NWDC leadership to succeed.
We, as the people of the North-West, must look beyond our differences and unite in support of Prof. Ma’aji as he rolls up his sleeves to get the job done as the pioneer MD/CEO so that the region can build a solid foundation upon which future leadership in NWDC can build to deliver a better society for us all; the time to support Prof. Ma’aji is now.
- Shawai can be reached via [email protected]
