17/10/2024
Today, I had the honour of receiving in audience the Honorable Minister of Defence, His Excellency Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, CON to Kaduna. He is in Kaduna as part of his working tour of the North-West Zone.
While in Kaduna, the Defence Minister will visit 1 Division Nigerian Army and the Air Training Command of the Nigerian Air Force. The visit will also enable him to put finishing touches to preparations for the official launch of Operation Fansan Yamma, the newly established Theater Command for the Northwest region and adjoining states like Niger. He will equally visit troops in Birnin Gwari LG and other frontline local governments to thank them for their patriotic services to Nigeria and to boost their morale.
In his remarks, H.E. Mohammed Badaru commended our administration for the successes so far recorded by security agencies in the fight against insecurity in Kaduna State. He particularly mentioned our sustained support to security agencies and the construction of roads to ensure easy access to hard to reach areas by security forces.
In my remarks during the courtesy visit, I commended the Federal Government for the establishment of the Joint Military Command and launch of Operation Fansan Yamma, adding that it is a clear demonstration of the Federal Government's commitment to decisively tackle the multidimensional challenges of insecurity confronting the North - West Zone.
I also seized the opportunity of the courtesy visit to urge the Honourable Minister to look at the possibility of bringing Operation Safe Haven in the Southern Kaduna general area under 1 Division, Kaduna. I equally acknowledged and commended the progress being made in setting up Operation Safe Corridor in the North West Zone.
I reiterated my call for a strong collaborative framework towards tackling challenges of insecurity. There is the urgent need for the development of a common strategy and operational plan by Northern States to tackle insecurity. We must establish a Command and Control Centre to coordinate our joint efforts against terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements in our region.
We must however go beyond the kinetic approach. Along with amplifying support to our security forces as a region, and enhancing our localized intelligence systems, we must collectively pursue other essential steps like stimulating investment, developing agriculture and agri-business, expanding rural infrastructure, broadening access to education and healthcare, and most importantly, nurturing engagement and promoting a sense of inclusion among all our citizens.
The establishment of the North-West Development Commission is a key step in our quest to tackle the key drivers of insecurity in the North-West Zone. We must however come together to fashion a Marshall Plan for the development of our region. That plan must be people–driven and all-inclusive. The North-West Development Commission must be run by men and women of transparent honesty; knowledgeable and innovative. There must be no room for incompetence or lethargy.
Senator Uba Sani,
Governor, Kaduna State.
October 17th, 2024.
