Gbajabiamila promises special budgetary attention to Zamfara over insecurity

House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila has said that the Ninth National Assembly will give special budgetary attention to the three senatorial districts of Zamfara State to resolve the issue of insecurity.

The Speaker, who stated this during his visit to the state as part of efforts to reconcile warring factions of herdsmen in the state, said the National Assembly would do everything within its constitutional powers to bring development to the state through the allocation of resources in the budget.

While addressing leaders of the warring factions in Government House, Gusau, the state capital, the Speaker said he was happy to be part of the historic reconciliation between the factions, whose activities held the state to ransom for about 16 years.

“I can assure you that the Federal Government, at least as far as the National Assembly is concerned, when it comes to budgeting of your 14 local councils, every senatorial district will be empowered as far as schools are concerned, as far as skills acquisition centers are concerned, for our people to learn and acquire skills and be empowered to go out and win the daily bread to take care of their families.

“It is for us to develop your three senatorial districts together with your state government. You have members that are from Zamfara who are representing you; they have already brought up the issues on the floor and when it comes to time for budgeting, which is very soon, I’m sure you will see that Zamfara will be well represented,” he said.

He, however, commended the state governor, Bello Matawalle, for his efforts, which saw an appreciable level of peace in the state.

Matawalle, who thanked the Speaker for visiting Zamfara to assess the situation on the ground and find lasting solutions to the issues that led to the escalation of insecurity in the state, said the state government had taken drastic actions on the issue of insecurity, which have yielded positive results so far.

He said the Zamfara State government had accepted the suspended RUGA policy of the Federal Government and that arrangements had been concluded to set up three RUGA settlements in the three senatorial districts of the state.

While calling on the Speaker to ensure the release of the N10 billion approved for rehabilitation and resettlement in Zamfara State under the 2019 budget, the governor appealed to the Ninth National Assembly to also come up with the North-West Development Commission the way it did to the South-South and North-East.