Why I want to govern Yobe, by Ngama
Former Minister of State for Finance Dr Yerima Ngama has joined the governorship race in Yobe State.
He told reporters in Damaturu, the state capital, that his major priority is to foster development and halt the drift in the state’s economy.
Ngama is the only Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain who has indicated his intention to contest next year’s governorship election. But, a source said that the former Minister of Police Affairs and later, Agriculture, Adamu Waziri, is also interested in the seat. Waziri has contested for four times, but without success.
Ngama promised to serve with diligence, if elected as the governor. He said: “There can never be a better time to serve Yobe than now. My ambition is informed by the desire to end the plight of the common people and these poor people are in the majority. I am convinced that the time to offer myself for the service of my state at this exalted capacity is now.
“My ambition is not personal, but it is the ambition of every common man that desires change in Yobe. Together, we are going to reverse all the negative developmental indices that have characterised our dear state since its creation in 1991. In any development statistics taken in the country, you will discover that Yobe is either the second to the last or the last.
“The time has come for our people to live a good life and make healthy children for our future generation and that is exactly what I represent, if I am voted to be the governor of this state,” Dr. Ngama disclosed.
Ngama promised to fight the scourge of child killer diseases, including polio.
The former minister added: “We have the worst result in maternal mortality rate; 218 women die at childbirth out of every 1,000. Polio has been eradicated in all of the states in Nigeria except Yobe State. This is unacceptable. For Yobeans to have a better future for their children and generations to come, these kind of issues must be holistically tackled to say the least.”
He lamented that Yobe State is now being threatened by insurgency.
“The only area where Yobe has excelled, in 2008, is the area of peace and stability. If you look at the statistics of crimes being committed across the nation, Yobe has the lowest but today, even our area of strength has been turned upside-down. Today, if you ask anybody, the single area we were proud of is now lost,” Ngama regretted.