All roads led to the Presidency last week as Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello took a time out to visit President Muhammadu Buhari. In his undaunted march to creating a better and prosperous Niger State, alongside with kinsmen, traditional rulers, government functionaries and even members of the opposition, which included Alhaji Babangida Aliyu, the immediate past governor of the state.
Inter alia, the issues of gross infrastructural decay that has fraught the ease of living and economic activities especially as pertaining to road network were tabled before Mr. President during the visit. You would agree that good road is sin qua non to the breakthrough and economic prosperity of any given state.
Recall that, Niger State has a land mass totaling 76,363km2 making it the state with the highest land mass in Nigeria, having occupied 10% of the total Nigerian land mass. It is not unexpected that the State also has the highest number of federal roads in Nigeria, but most of them are more or less like death trap.
Therefore, Lolo’s gesture to see to how to change this narrative through the courtesy visit to Mr. President is a timely and undaunted march in the right direction. Such finesse is rare amongst the democrats of nowadays. It is very important to note that Niger state government bequeathed part of her landed property to the federal capital territory and as such deserves more federal projects to address the inherited infrastructural decay as a result of series of Government misrule and mismanagement of our natural resources, though, it will not be out of place to acknowledge the rehabilitation of some federal roads across the state while more is still needed to ease the transportation of goods and services within and outside the state.
The governor is working in the right direction to move Niger forward and this is worthy of commendation.
Muhammad M. Yusuf, Minna, Niger State.
