Kano State governor, Abdullahi
Ganduje, has described his predecessor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, as the best civilian
governor the state has had since the late Abubakar Rimi.
Speaking at an event on
Monday as part of the 50th anniversary of the state, Mr. Ganduje, however,
made a rare positive appraisal of his predecessor in public, since the outset
of the conflict between both men.
He praised Mr. Rimi, who was
governor under the defunct People’s Redemption Party between 1979 and 1983, for
laying the foundation for the development of the state by executing several
projects under four years.
He listed the key achievements of
the Second Republic governor as creation of the state-owned City Television, also
known as CTV, and newspaper, The Triumph; Kano Agricultural and Rural
Development Authority, KNARDA; Kano Agricultural Supply Company, KASCO, the
State Rural Electricity Company; and many other projects he said still impact
lives in the state.
He said Mr. Rimi executed many
development projects, especially a series of agricultural programmes and
electrification of towns and villages, despite a low revenue base of the state
which also included the present Jigawa State at the time.
Mr. Rimi stepped down for Dawakin
Tofa in 1983 to seek reelection on the ticket of the defunct Nigerian People’s
Party but lost the bid to Sabo Bakin Zuwo who ran on the ticket of the PRP.
In the still-born Third Republic
between 1992 and 1993, Kabiru Gaya, who is now a senator on the platform of the
APC, was the elected governor of the state on the ticket of the defunct
National Republican Convention.
“Why I chose Kwankwaso as my second best governor after Rimi is because of the fact that no matter what, in his first coming he introduced various projects and linkage road networks”.
He recalled that Mr. Kwankwaso in
his first term between 1999 and 2003 faced many challenges arising from the
pressure by Islamic leaders for the implementation of Sharia laws in Kano.
“There were a lots of conspiracy against Kwankwaso at that time. Many people wanted him out of power despite the fact that he was trying his best to change Kano and he had to go.”
Mr. Ganduje said Mr. Kwankawaso
was dogged in his beliefs and stood his ground untill he staged a comeback in
2011, adding, “and when he came back he did his best, that is why he remains my
best governor”.
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