Governor Inuwa Yahaya

by Abdullahi Mukhtar Algasgaini

Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, CON, inspected the 200-bed-capacity ultramodern General Hospital in Kumo, Akko Local Government Area of Gombe State.  

The hospital replaced an earlier dilapidated facility and is designed to provide comprehensive healthcare services as a referral centre.

Governor Inuwa said, “The complete reconstruction of this hospital is part of our larger plan to provide quality and affordable healthcare services to the people. We inherited a completely moribund General Hospital that could not provide the required healthcare services due to a lack of necessary equipment. We had no choice but to rebuild it from the ground up.”

“We built the hospital to international standards so it can function as not only a general hospital but also a facility that can provide tertiary health services,” the governor added.

He explained that the state government has also established similar hospitals in Kaltungo and Bajoga and revitalised at least one primary healthcare facility in each of the state’s 114 political wards.

“Our performance in the health sector, from human resources to infrastructure, is evident for all to see”. 

Strategically located, the Kumo General Hospital will serve the local population and travellers along the Gombe-Yola road. 

The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Habu Dahiru, conducted the governor around the facility and said it can handle complex medical cases, including heart surgeries and other medical complications.

He highlighted its modern equipment and potential to become a leading healthcare centre in the state and across the Northeast.

“In this theatre, multiple operations can be performed simultaneously, making it ideal for emergency situations and life-saving interventions,” he noted.

The Governor inspected the well-equipped laboratories, wards, maternity unit, accident and emergency complex, mortuary, powerhouse, and mini water treatment plant, among other facilities.

By Muhammad Umar Shehu

The recent budget allocation by Governor Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has sparked concerns among citizens, particularly regarding the disproportionate allocation of funds. While a significant portion of ₦43.130 billion is earmarked for constructing a new governor’s residence, high court, and house of assembly complex, only ₦10 billion is allocated for road construction. This disparity raises questions about the state’s priorities and resource allocation strategy.

It is disheartening to witness such a large sum allocated to luxurious infrastructure projects while essential infrastructure like roads receives comparatively meagre funding. This allocation pattern reflects a misplaced sense of priorities and neglect of critical needs in the state.

As responsible citizens, it is imperative that we hold our leaders accountable and challenge decisions that do not align with the people’s best interests. We cannot afford to stand by idly while our state resources are mismanaged and squandered on unnecessary projects.

The people of Gombe deserve transparency and accountability in governance. We must demand greater scrutiny of budgetary allocations and ensure that public funds are effectively used to better our communities.

There is an urgent need to reallocate priorities to address pressing needs such as infrastructure development, healthcare, education, and poverty alleviation. Our leaders must be reminded of their duty to serve the people and prioritise projects that have a tangible impact on the lives of ordinary citizens.

As concerned citizens, we must unite and advocate for a more equitable distribution of resources to meet the needs of all residents of Gombe State. Together, we can hold our leaders accountable and work towards a brighter future for our state.

May Gombe State and Nigeria as a whole prosper and thrive. Amin.

Muhammad Umar Shehu wrote from Gombe via umarmuhammadshehu2@gmail.com

By Muhammad Umar Shehu

The issue of Kalare boys has found a bed in Gombe state, and the state’s government is aloof. What has Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s government, which was enthroned to solve the yearnings of the poor masses in the land, done?

This issue of Kalare is becoming worse in the state, and yet there has been no measure taken by the state government to curtail the menace.

Many of these devastating stories of Kalare boys have reached our eardrums as sympathetic to the victims. Still, the state government seems lackadaisical towards curtailing the menace of Kalare by our youths. Only recently did those Kalare devils enter the house of Shiek Albani Kuri and kill him. This is so dehumanising, unacceptable, and sympathetic.

Gombe state government needs to take urgent action to bring those engaged in this heinous action of Kalare to book to serve as a deterrent to people who engage in this illicit activity of Kalare in the state.

This heinous activity by Kalare boys in Gombe State has caused unbearable pain to the people of the State.

Gombe State, a home that was nursed to save lives, is now gradually metamorphosing, etching itself with smithereens so that the people of the land may find it arduous to excavate. Gombe is a land where peace has been our utmost priority, but these Kalare boys have made the state a magnet for visitors.

To curtail this Kalare boys menace in the state, I urge the state government to take some decisive actions by providing more employment to the youths of the state, and by doing so, in my opinion, the menace of Kalare boys will be a thing of the past in Gombe state.

May Allah guide those Kalare Boys to the straight path and bless Gombe State and Nigeria. Amin.

Muhammad Umar Shehu wrote from Gombe via umarmuhammadshehu2@gmail.com.

By Nazir Muhammad Saulawa

It has been about three years since the reconstruction project of the “Gadan Dauda” bridge began at the centre of Dadinkowa Town in Yamaltu Deba LGA, Gombe State. The project was started around 2019/2020 by the former Governor and the incumbent Senator representing Gombe Central, Alh. Danjuma Goje. He promised to address the problem of the constant water flood caused by the seasonal river, which, for over 15 years, led to the destruction of neighbouring houses and properties and eventually restricted vehicles, motorcycles and trekkers from passing through the bridge during every rainfall in the annual raining season.

In early 2020 after Sen. Goje’s intervention to rehabilitate the bridge, residents welcomed and celebrated the new development. However, it is unfortunate that the senator abandoned the project without notifying the people of the area of the reason for leaving it uncompleted. Since then, there has been no feedback from his aides or the contractor.

Moreover, after the demolition of the old one (more repairable), which people managed to repair and use for their everyday businesses, they were left with no choice but to unfollow the bridge or use its dilapidated sides to pass.

Gadan Dauda bridge is the shortcut road that people pass through, especially students of the Federal College of Horticulture, to go inside the town or merchants from different remote villages to reach Dadin Kowa Market quickly. Therefore, completing the project will ease the transportation of goods, save houses and properties and help the passers-by to go about their daily businesses without hesitation or infringement.

We appeal to Gombe State Governor, Alh. Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya and Sen. Danjuma Goje to finish the project and, if possible, build a new road for more benefits.

Nazir Muhammad Saulawa could be reached via nazzhubby@gmail.com

By Muhammad Rabiu Jibrin (Mr. J) 

It is heartbreaking and horrible that in a country that operates democracy, a nearby house is turned into a medicine store, and no matter the condition of a patient, they can’t be treated in the maternity when it’s raining. Windstorms blew off the roof some time ago. This has been the condition the people of the Komi community found themselves in for a long time despite reports that the gory images of the worn-out structure of the maternity have been submitted to the relevant authorities.

The 22-year-old maternity with a 6442 target population has been in deplorable condition for about 7-8 years.  Owls and other birds made their nests in its ceiling before the damage worsened to the extent that they had no option but to vacate. The staff in the structure reportedly killed two puff adder snakes.  The maternity clinic was built in 2000 by the then Funakaye Local Government Chairman Alhaji Abubakar Abubakar BD to ease people’s lives.

Not more than a month ago, the price of 25 litres jerrican of water skyrocketed from 100 naira – which has been viewed as expensive to any subsistent farmer – to 250 naira forcing many people to sleep on empty stomachs and animals stood thirstily. Until the rain became steady, the rain-softened earth dams retained some water, and the community breathed a sigh of relief from the cancerous lack of drinking water.

As part of their contribution towards curtailing the damages before it went beyond control, every civil servant in the community was tasked with a sum of one thousand naira monthly, which was used in repairing damaged places for a couple of months.

What has been happening could be viewed as an infringement of the right to health guaranteed in chapter 2, section 17, subsection 3(d) of the 1999 Federal Republic of Nigeria constitution. Under the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, the  ‘Right to Health’ has been guaranteed.

Also, it has been accorded recognition by many international treaties in which Nigeria is part and parcel. These include the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination (CEFD), the convention on the rights of the Child (CRC), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) among others.

It is high time the government came to the rescue of this community. Likewise, non Governmental Organizations and well-to-do individuals should, for a matter of help, come to their aid too.

Muhammad Rabiu Jibrin (Mr J) wrote from Gombe via muhammadrabiujibrin@gmail.com.

By Muhammad Rabiu Jibrin (Mr. J)

Before his election victory in 2019, Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya and his team garnered at hand the nitty-gritty of the development needs and priorities of the masses across the state. This necessitated the conduction of a needs assessment study to evaluate the availability, functionality of basic infrastructure and services across the 114 wards of the state. The assessment outcome made the state government consider health, education, security, agriculture, and rural development as its core priority sectors. However, despite its strides that yielded remarkable developmental projects, some stones remain unturned at Komi village of Funakaye North constituency of Gombe State. Hence, the community people cry for the government’s intervention. 

The  Komi maternity health care has been in a state of despair. This will lead to an increase in the maternal mortality rate if it has not been addressed. The refurbishment of the maternity will surely ease the health-related hardship that stroke the community. Moreover, it will help towards the actualisation of goal three (3) of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that aspires to “ensure health and well-being for all”, seeing to the possibility of bringing to end tuberculosis, epidemics of AIDS, malaria and other infectious diseases etcetera by 2030.

Education remains the pillar upon which every roof of socioeconomic mobility of any nation rests. It is an exit from abject poverty. Any country that wants to prosper in it, it must invest. This includes the provision of a suitable atmosphere for learning, qualified teachers and infrastructural materials. 

With the current situation of the “Komi Primary School”, the “Quality Education” as the goal four (4) of the SDGs is not attainable. Learning is no longer possible. The zincs are no longer there, and the floor turned to carpet grass. As such, the government’s failure to rehabilitate the dilapidated building could be seen as a denial of education to the pupils, which is a form of “social Injustice” as Ibrahim Sulaiman once said: “A nation is unjust and tyrannical if it closes the door of academic and moral development to some children because their parents are poor and of no consequence. Denial of education to a child is perhaps the gravest and far-reaching of social injustices.”

The well water and earth dam were the only two sources that the Komi community rely on for survival. They only taste the taste of pure water (if it is) during the rainy season. Over decades, lack of drinking water has been a significant catastrophe bedevilling the area. As law-abiding subsistent farmers, they virtually sell off their farm produce during the dry season to buy water. A 25-litre jerrican costs them N70 to N100.

People from afar migrated to the area due to its fertile land for farming, but lack of drinking water forced them to leave. The wells dry up annually in early February, and they all shift to the earth dams for a month and some weeks before it goes off. The earth dams no longer hold water due to colluvium. In trying to solve their problems, they put all hands on deck and dug an earth dam using hoes, shelves, diggers, among others, at few steps out of the southern part of the village.

This has been the life circle of the Komi community. The pathetic thing is that they no longer look for boreholes and so on to see how neglected they have been. Instead, they clamour only for the government to desilt their earth dams to use them before the rainy season.  When should these people be rescued? When would their earth dams hold water throughout the dry season?

 Muhammad Rabiu Jibrin (Mr J) writes from Gombe. He can be reached via muhammadrabiujibrin@gmail.com.