Southern Kaduna Journalist’ Forum (SKJF) has appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to consider picking Kaduna State ministerial nominee from Southern Kaduna region in the spirit of fairness, justice and inclusive governance.
At a press conference in Kaduna yesterday, the group which champions the development of Southern Kaduna senatorial district through reportage, said its appeal had become imperative in view of the marginalisation of the zone by both the state and the federal governments.
The chairman of the group, Ango Bally in a statement signed by its secretary, Lilian Silas, averred that since the return of democratic governance in 1999, previous administrations, both at the state and national levels had demonstrated fair distribution of appointments between the North and southern parts of the state.
Bally said, “A precedent had been set between 1999 to 2014, wherein, when the governor of the state is elected from the northern part, the ministerial appointment and Secretary to the State Government (SSG) naturally goes to the southern part and vice versa. This ensured equity, fairness, and inclusive governance.
“For example, between 2003 and 2007, the northern part of the state produced the Governor (Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi), and the minister (Nasir Ahmed El-Rufai), while the southern part produced the deputy governor, secretary to the state government and another ministerial slot, when the state was lucky to have two ministerial slots.
“However, between 2015 and 2023, the governor was from the northern part (El-Rufai), along with the two ministers nominated from the state, leaving the southern part with only the position of the deputy governor and throughout the eight years of Governor El-Rufai, the southern part of the state was denied the SSG position, as against the tradition in the past,” it said.
It further averred that currently, the Governor Uba Sani is from the northern part; the speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas and speaker Kaduna State Assembly are all from the northern part; including the secretary to the state government (SSG).
“ We passionately appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to please consider picking El-Rufai’s replacement from Southern Kaduna for equity, fairness, and inclusion. The candidate could be any competent person from Southern Kaduna, irrespective of party, or religious affiliation.
“We are of the strong conviction that if Mr President picks his minister from Southern Kaduna, it will bring the people of the region closer to the government and in return, align their interests with Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope Agenda.’ This will equally give the people of Southern Kaduna a sense of inclusion both at the state and national levels,” he said.
