It was Monday the 29th of May, 2023 and the atmosphere of celebrations for the swearing in ceremony of His Excellency, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, was palpable. From the chants and dances of women and children, to the loud celebratory songs billowing from megaphones and sub- woofers, to radiant faces painted with smiles and gratitude, it was clearly an extraordinary day of good tidings in Gombe State.
People trooped to the Pantami Stadium in droves to relish the moment and witness the swearing in of His Excellency Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya as Governor of Gombe State for his second term – a historic occasion in all its ramifications.
In the buildup to the swearing in ceremony, Inuwa Yahaya emerged as the Chairman of the 19 Northern States Governors’ Forum as well as conferred with the national honors as Commander of the Order of the Niger CON – such lofty feats were never achieved by past governors of Gombe State added color and weight to the occasion.
For the nearly four million people in Gombe State, the swearing in program was not only a landmark but a turning point as projects capable of making their lives and lots better, started by this administration in the last four years, will not be jettisoned.
The electric personality, Inuwa Yahaya’s ascendance to power, was apparently to make things better as evidenced by the massive reconfiguration and repositioning of every sector of Gombe State in so little time.
As encomiums came pouring, one wonders what manner of man is Governor Inuwa Yahaya! His Excellency Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya CON, is a rare human being, in fact, a veritable unicorn – I say this without mincing words!
By “a rare human being” or ”veritable unicorn” I mean someone with uncommon acuity in leadership and guardianship. In truth, people like Governor Inuwa are very few and far between. Such human beings are specially endowed by God with exceptional vision and an unflinching sense of purpose for trusteeship and superintendency.
Upon assuming office in 2019 Inuwa Yahaya came prepared – his goals were clear – his consciousness to achieving those goals stayed with him like a faithful compass leaving great benefits in its wake.
As social observers have indicated, “luck” is when opportunity meets preparedness, it is clearly evident that Inuwa Yahaya did not just plan on the job. He had, ostensibly, thoroughly planned, fashioned and figured out what he wanted to achieve the moment he stepped foot in the office as the Governor of Gombe State – as it is popularly said these days, “he hit the ground running”.
There is no better way to explain, or wrap our brain around the scale, magnitude and wide reach of the impact of his policies and programs on the citizens of Gombe is such little time other than to aver that; “preparedness has met opportunity!”
One of the best qualities of great leaders is consistency – yes! Consistency of character, purpose and drive – this singular moral goodness helps in steering the course of a person’s life and determining his or her usefulness to humanity.
A leader that is consistent walks the talk and puts his money where his mouth is. He carefully eschews unhealthy compromises that would endanger his astute aspirations and plans for the common good – he remains sturdy, focused and proactive.
With well graded asphalted roads reaching erstwhile “impregnable” and “hardest-to-reach parts” of Gombe State, we begin to catch a little glimpse of how prepared Inuwa came into power – completely and fearlessly taking the bull by its horn.
My promising Pero Chonge Constituency (consisting of Kushi, Filiya, Gwandum, Burak, Bangunji and Gundali) has witnessed the largesse of this government with the recently erected massive bridges to stem the heavy floods that had made travel and farming by extension, grossly unbearable last year. With the new asphalt road to reach Gundali our people who are traders and largely farmers can seamlessly navigate and convey goods. This is no small boost to the overall economic growth and development in Pero Chonge Constituency and Gombe State at large.
On the same topic of roads, Governor Inuwa’s “Network 11-100” is like a magic formula for creating roads in places that were once thought impossible, or better still, “impassable”. For example, it was almost unimaginable that a day would come when rocks and impervious elements of Tula Yiri axis would be carved, cut, subdued and asphalted. However, it was made to look like an easy task by the adequately prepared Inuwa Yahaya. By taking on such a historic project without raising an eyebrow, Inuwa has solidified his legendary status.
Need I to remind you of those roads of inestimable value to the people of Balanga (Degri – Bembelem – Reme – Dong – Talasse) and by huge implication, the entire state? What about those great roads, culverts and bridges in Akko, Nafada and Gombe metropolis, in fact, all the local governments in the state? Such a seismic record of road construction has blown road projects carried out by past administrations out of the water!
As a journalist, I remember in 2022 an impromptu request was made by course 44 of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) who came to understudy Gombe. They placed a request for Governor Inuwa to tell them “a little” about Gombe State whilst paying the governor a courtesy visit. He (the Governor) obliged and told them about Gombe in “abundant details” – his presentation was riveting as it was awe-inspiring!
The NIPSS executive members of course 44 were indeed impressed and at the same amazed at the governor’s excellent presentation without recourse to notes, slides or teleprompters. His encyclopedic knowledge of the state ushered in greater respect for the leadership of the state.
That singular event always reminds me of what I read about Mahatma Gandhi who was invited by the Congress of the United States of America to make a presentation on India’s push for self-determination. The story has it that Gandhi spoke in a compelling manner for several minutes and without a note! When Gandhi’s assistant, Mahadev Desai, was asked by a reporter about the secret for such erudition. He said, without missing a beat: “You don’t understand Gandhi. You see, what he thinks is what he feels. What he feels is what he says. What he says is what he does. What Gandhi feels, what he thinks, what he says, and what he does are all the same. He does not need notes”.
I make bold to say that Governor Inuwa Yahaya does not need notes for the same reasons as Gandhi! From my keen observations of Inuwa’s uncommon leadership style, a fraction of which I have cited in this piece, I have begun to see in him a leader who drank deep from the well of the world’s finest leaders. In fact, he is a kindred spirit with leaders of global repute who have engraved their names in pure gold in the annals of history.
Inuwa is that leader who doubts his doubts and believes his beliefs. He is that leader that keeps his head above the murky waters of politics and shuts his ears against deafening noises of distraction – he is always calm and collected in the eye of the storm. He is that leader that is “planting not just rice to safeguard the present but also planning trees to safeguard the future”.
Talking about Inuwa’s sterling vision, the immediate past vice president Professor Yemi Osinbajo said, “under Inuwa Gombe State is thinking like a sovereign not just a subnational”.
The Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Amina J Mohammed, said of Inuwa’s Ten Year Development Plan document (DEVAGOM): ”Gombe needs to become the city of the future that is why we need to invest in this plan today”.
Inuwa’s untrammelled consistency has knocked out every vestige of suspicion or hint of pretence usually conjured up and exuded by unscrupulous politicians hellbent on winning power for self-aggrandizement. Inuwa’s idiosyncrasies and proclivities all point toward “collective aggrandizement” or in the words of social economists, “greater good for the greater number”.
All litmus tests carried out on Governor Inuwa’s performance only left the hard-nosed critic speechless as there is no reasonable room for arriving at a negative verdict.
Inuwa is, indeed, the real deal, the cream of the crop and the ne plus ultra in new modern governance; the governor who raised the bar and broke the bar in championing the true meaning of excellent leadership. He is one who studied the legends and became even more legendary.
As the masses joyously welcome His Excellency, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya’s second coming, they seem confident that far reaching projects like the Muhammadu Buhari Industrial Park capable of giving jobs opportunities to thousands, the rapid transformation of Gombe into Nigeria’s most favorite investors destination, massive masses oriented health programs such as Go-Health to mention an infinitesimal few.
In time to come, libraries and history books will contain copious discourses and theses on Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s uncommon leadership style which is a textbook definition of good governance.
In my subsequent installments of this writeup I shall continue to share with you how Governor Inuwa Yahaya has implemented the textbook definition of economic growth and development in every nook and cranny of Gombe State.
– Luka sent this piece from Gombe.
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