Sunday, March 01, 2009              

Musa Blames Govs For Poverty And Underdevelopment In The North
From Saxone Akhaine, Kaduna

Former civilian governor of the Old Kaduna State during the second Republic and Chairman of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), Alhaji Abdulkadir Balarabe Musa, has accused the 19 Northern Governors of been responsible for the worsening economic and social condition in the North, saying that they have allegedly participated in the corruption and stealing that have ruined the nation.

Besides, Musa particularly criticized the administration of the present governor of Kaduna state, Alhaji Namadi Sambo, for poor performance and the decision to embark on white elephant projects, describing it as the worst since the creation of the state about 42 years ago.

He said that "the northern governors knew there was a 40-year gap in educational development between the north and southern part of the country, but they have done nothing practical to address the situation."

Citing the poor performance of governor Sambo in Kaduna State to further drive home his points, the former governor who is also the national leader of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) faulted the free education and medical care policies of the administration, pointing out that such policies were best left to imagination than experienced.

Speaking with newsmen in Kaduna, Musa also wondered why the Sambo administration would embarked on a gigantic project like the so-called Mega City without even having the wherewithal.

Alhaji Musa further argued "when we had the banking reform in Nigeria, which brought about the existence of 25 mega banks, there was a debate as to how the north could be represented in the banking sector in Nigeria, but the northern governors have not done anything to ensure that the section is represented in the banking system.

"As at today, only one or two of the banks, out of the 25 are controlled by Northerners. And at the beginning of the reform, it was made quite clear that the governors should do something about it, the North is underdeveloped not only in education, even in industrialization. Go to Kano, and come to Kaduna, all the industries have collapsed. What have they done about these situations? Instead, they have been part and parcel of the problem of Nigeria in general and the north in particular."