Youths from Niger South senatorial district of Niger State under the aegis of Youth Advocacy Group (YAG) have demanded immediate completion of the 82km Minna-Bida Road.
They urged the incoming administration of Umar Mohammed Bago to ensure the completion of the project and provide adequate security for the people of the state.
The position of the group was contained in a communique issued at the end of a roundtable discussion to chart the way forward for the development of the state, organised by the YAG and held at the Federal Polytechnic Bida.
In the resolution, jointly signed by the chairman, Danjuma Usman Suleiman and secretary, Yahaya Alhaji Baba, the youths asked the governor-elect to take decisive steps to ensure that the road is completed on time.
While urging the outgoing administration to ensure that the contractors handling the project were kept on their feet to ensure a measurable progress before May 29, 2023, the group also called on the incoming administration to declare a state of emergency in the education sector to address the decay in the sector.
They said the government should endeavour to address the problem of the shortage of qualified and professional teachers, competent education administrators, state-of-the-art infrastructure, and staff welfare.
The communique reads in part, “The incoming administration should establish a strategic economic team with the mandate of reviving and improving the macro and micro economy of Niger South and the state in general by prioritising the support for the exploration of the Bida Basin mineral resources, agriculture and other economic ventures.
“The incoming administration should support the local security forces in various local governments, and utilise technological solutions to combat security threats in the state. This will require a multi-pronged approach that incorporates advanced technology, such as surveillance cameras, biometric identification systems, and other modern security tools, along with community involvement to improve intelligence gathering and crime prevention efforts,” it added.
