Gaidam Battles Waziri

TODAY’S contest in Yobe State would be between Governor Ibrahim Gaidam of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Adamu Aminu Waziri.

Gaidam

The governor is an accomplished public servant and astute administrator. He was born on September 15, 1956 to a family of Muslim scholars in Bukarti town in Yunusari Council. He started his early education at Yunusari Primary School between 1963 and 1969 before proceeding to Borno Teachers College (BTC), Maiduguri from 1974 to 1979, where he obtained the Teachers’ Grade Two Certificate.

Gaidam’s quest for knowledge and love for the mathematical sciences led him to the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria between 1981 and 1983, where he bagged a Diploma in Accountancy and a first degree, also in Accountancy, in 1990.

He later became a full member of the Certified Public Accountants of Nigeria (CPA). His public service spans over 30 years from being a classroom teacher to an Audit Officer to being an accountant in various government ministries from the old Borno State to Yobe State.

As his public service career peaked, he rose successively to the positions of Assistant Director of Finance in the defunct Directorate of Foods, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFFRI) and acting Director of Finance and Supplies in the Yobe State Information and Culture Ministry. Gaidam was appointed commissioner for Youths and Sports in August 1995 and moved to Commerce and Industries, a position he held until 1997. Between 1997 and early 2007, the governor was Director, Final Accounts, in the State Finance Ministry and Permanent Secretary in various ministries respectively.

In April 2007, he was elected Deputy Governor, but was later sworn in as governor on January 27, 2009 following the death of Governor Mamman Ali. Since assumption of office, Gaidam has brought a new spirit of commitment and service to public administration in the state through his wide-ranging transformative policies and programmes. He has worked and brought to logical completion all the major projects started by his predecessor in the housing, health, education, agriculture, roads, energy and other sectors.

His instruction to the state finance ministry on assumption of office to pay over 4,000 civil servants whose names were omitted in the biometric exercise, as well as the payment of teachers’ salaries according to the percentages recommended by the federal government, amongst many other interventions, are widely acknowledged in Yobe and beyond as magnanimous and legendary. Gaidam has also accorded priority to the education sector through massive funding of schools renovations and upgrading.

Recently, six female secondary schools were renovated and upgraded to encourage and improve girl-child education. In addition, the administration, since 2007, had spent over N800 million in the payment of student scholarships. The civil service also continues to receive adequate attention from his administration, while training and re-training through seminars and workshops continue to form part of the strategy at ensuring that the state’s workforce are adequately prepared to face the challenges of service delivery. These and many other far-reaching policies and programmes continue to win accolades and commendations for the governor. He is also a Fellow of the Certified National Accountants of Nigeria (FCNA).

Waziri

Waziri was born on September 14, 1952 in Potiskum. He had primary school education at Central Primary School, Potiskum and proceeded to Senior Primary School, Potiskum in 1964. In his quest for knowledge, Waziri gained admission into Government Secondary School, Potiskum in 1967 and moved on to Federal Government College, Sokoto in 1972 for his Higher School Certificate (HSC).

Incidentally, he was the best all-round graduating student at GSS, Potiskum. As a young lad, he carved a niche for himself among his peers as a result of his intelligence and dedication to improving knowledge, which saw him gain admission into Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in 1973 for his first degree and a Masters in Business Administration. After his national service at the defunct Bendel State in 1977, Waziri took up a lecturing job at the University of Maiduguri in 1979, moving to working for Hydro Quest Nigeria Ltd as Executive Director (Finance) from 1982 to 1985.

He served as an executive in several other top companies from where he gathered experience that made several government officials approach him to serve as a Special Assistant to then minister of Agriculture from 1994 to1995; Senior Special Assistant to the President on Employers/Organised Private Sector from 1999 to 2002; member, Technical Sub-Committee, National Council On Privatisation from 1999 to 2002; etc. His professionalism and pedigree also paved way for him to serve as Chairman, PTF Debt Negotiation and Payment Unit from 2000 to 2001; coordinator, National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) from 2001 to 2002; Chairman, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) from 2005 to 2006; and Executive Secretary, Petroleum Technology Development Fund. A

s a result of his track record, Waziri was appointed minister of State for Agriculture and Water Resources in 2007, and minister of Police Affairs later. His charisma and leadership qualities made him excel in politics and administration right from his childhood days. Sources said he remains the most outstanding House Captain of FGC Sokoto, where he led his peers from 1972 to1973. A royal blood from the Fika Royal House, Waziri took after his father, a grassroots mobiliser per excellence. He was a ministerial nominee in 1999, PDP governorship candidate in 2003, 2007 and 2011, member of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) since 2007.