Flyovers and bridges not priority of Sokoto people, says Tambuwal

Aminu Tambuwal, Sokoto governor, says the needs of his state are basic social amenities and infrastructure.

He said the priorities of Sokoto people were different from other states, particularly those inaugurating bridges and flyovers.

The governor made this known to civil servants and heads of government agencies who paid him the traditional Sallah homage at government house on Sunday in Sokoto.

Tambuwal said he would not use available scarce resources to construct flyovers in place of people’s needs in the areas of health, education and access roads.

“Our needs are completely different, states by states, and our priorities are not the same,” he said.

“I will not take Sokoto money to construct flyovers or bridges; these are not the priority of the state. Our priorities are tailored to the needs of our people.

“What we need in Sokoto state, particularly for our people in the rural areas are not bridges, flyovers, which are projects in billions.

“But what they need are smaller projects like basic health clinics, cottage hospitals, cottage industries, feeder roads, school infrastructure and scholarships to encourage learning.”

The governor renewed his administration’s commitment to change all negative indices of development associated with the state in the past.

He added that the state government was expanding the internally generated revenue (IGR) base of the state.

“The state IGR was less than 700,000 per month; as such we cannot compare ourselves with other states that generate billions monthly.

“So we are assuring you that this administration will embark on projects and policies designed to meet the needs of the people and change the negative narration about the state for instance in area of education would be pursued with vigour,” Tambuwal said.

He assured the civil servants of prompt payment of salaries and allowances, which he said were statutory, while other incentives would be worked out to further mobilise them to render optimal services to the state.

Tambuwal ascribed the achievements of his administration to the proactive strategies and support received from the bureaucracy, noting that attending to the needs of the civil servants was a sure way of reducing corruption in public service.