2015: I’m flattered by reports – Sule Lamido
On September 23, 2012 · In Politics
12:12 am
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By Soni Daniel

… Says ‘I’m a rebel with a cause’
Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State remains an individual of note on Nigeria’s political firmament. He has been working assiduously to transform the once poor and rural agrarian state. He was rewarded with a second mandate in 2011 with an even wider margin of support in an apparent show of appreciation by his people.

Lamido’s name came up in the media last month as the possible PDP Presidential candidate already anointed for the 2015 election, a development, which instantly triggered serious political heat in the land. But in this interview, the governor says he feels flattered by the linkage of his name with the next presidential poll and speaks of what his administration has been doing to change the face of the state since his election in 2007.

Being a governor is a big deal in Nigeria; please do not say you disagree?
Well, I must say that I do not see any big deal in being the governor of a state. I am still myself and I continue to relate with the people the same way I have been dealing with them when I was a private individual. The only thing I have come to realise is that some people see governors as super human beings with so much powers and influence that they can do anything. It is not so.

To me, governance is just a position of leadership to provide service for your people. It does not change anything in me. What I can say is that governors are not super humans. They have many challenges to grapple with and they need all the support and understanding of their people in order to succeed.

So how are you managing without borrowing to run a state with a weak financial base?
I have a simple philosophy or rule for or understanding of my role as a governor. The law provides that I am entitled to four years in office and I should not therefore be seen to be accumulating debt for the next governor. I am always conscious of the fact that if I begin to take loans it might be difficult for my successor to grapple with the development of the state.

What I am saying is that you have no right to spend more than your income because somebody is going to take over from you after four years. That is why I have made it a policy that by the time I leave office as the governor of Jigawa State I will not leave behind a single kobo as debt. I don’t see any justification why as a governor I should go and borrow any money. If I cannot pay the money back during my time it means that the next governor will not have something to work with. Why should I eat into the income of the next governor? It is not right.

A governor should act and behave as a good cook by determining what he really needs to make a good soup and working out the cost of the ingredients and calculating it against his income or the strength of his purse before making the soup. In reality it is either you borrow money to cook an extra-ordinary soup or you eat what you can conveniently afford. While I am looking for ways and means to develop the state and make it one of the best in the country, I do not intend to borrow any money for that purpose.

Why do you not want to talk about your modest achievements as a politician?
The other way to answer that question is to ask why I wanted to be the governor of the state. Why was I elected? I am not doing anything new. I am working for the purpose I was elected. It is not something I should make noise about because the people who elected me to serve them must be given the best of what we can afford as a state. I am not a new person in this country and there is no amount of publicity that I can do to add any benefit to the citizens of Jigawa State. I prefer to work quietly for the state and allow God and the people to judge me after my tenure.

So what has been your guiding principle in trying to develop the state?
You see we are building a state that was forsaken. We made a mistake and we have to learn from our mistake, forget the past and make progress as a people. If we refuse to forget the past and work for ourselves we will have ourselves to blame in future. It is up to us. We have been destroying ourselves by ourselves and we have seen the consequences – the way we are seen by other Nigerians as people of Stone Age, uncivilized and primitive elements. So anybody who wanted to see a zoo came to Jigawa.

When I came on board, I said to the people we must change the poor perception about us. I reasoned that if other Nigerians are making it we could also make it. So it is simply what we want to do for ourselves that can take us to the desired level. We have to work for our own pride, image, honour and reputation. We decided that we must bring Jigawa from whatever position to the fore and from below the sea level to the sea level, and then gain our vision and move forward.

Most state governors name projects after themselves; why is yours different?
It is not in my political culture and upbringing to begin to appropriate something which is for the public. The resources are theirs and the money we use for the projects is not mine, but that of the people. So it is wrong for me to put my name on those projects. Why should I? It is the support of the people, the various institutions – civil servants and others – who have made whatever achievement recorded so far possible.

I am only one of the players in the development of the state providing leadership for many others in the background to move the state forward. A tree does not make a forest. There are many others who are working even harder than me and they are not mentioned either on radio or on television. You would be surprised to see that as late as 11 pm some people are still working in the state secretariat because of their strong belief that we should work more for the transformation of the state.

Jigawa civil servants know and believe that they are not working for others but themselves. They see themselves more as partners than mere workers. They see the development of the state as a collective effort and they work for it as it is their personal business. So whether one works as a contractor, civil servant or teacher, there is something that is challenging and compelling them to put in more. So what you see in the state today is a product of collective effort and determination to succeed and not my personal effort.

What I am doing in Jigawa State is nothing spectacular. It is just the normal job a governor does. The difference may just be that my own priorities are different from others. The money I get is different from what others receive monthly. I use 65 percent of my income for salaries and I get about N3 billion per month.

Gov Sule Lamido

Jigawa State is a new state and whatever you see here is new compared to what obtains in the older states. So whatever I am doing here are things that other states must have put in place already. I am just trying to catch up with others and put in place the necessary institutions and structures to give our people what to work with.

We have done over 1300 kilometres of roads here just to make the driving fun. I feel that driving in the state should be as smooth as what obtains in Europe. It is a very expensive undertaking but the benefits are enormous. I need to network the facilities that would provide the synergy for things to work well for the state.

Opposition parties in Nigeria are really working hard against your party in preparation for 2015. Do you think they can go far?

You see I have been a politician all my life and I am in a position to know if there is any real threat to my party or not. Which are the parties in this country that are threatening ours? I don’t see any threat from anywhere. Which of them is really an opposition party in Nigeria? None! Has the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, really emerged as a political party with strong followers? To me, CPC has no original followers in Nigeria.

Today it is only PDP and other formations. In 1999, it was only PDP, APP and AD. Today it is only PDP and other formations. I repeat in 1999, there were only PDP, APP and AD. Ten years after it is only PDP and other later inventions. They are all inventions. So CPC has no original followership. People who have failed in other parties now converge as CPC. CPC is a centre for failures.

There are suggestions that Nigeria should return to the parliamentary system of government. Would that solve our problems as a nation?

You see Nigerians like to seek help from where there is none. Whatever you want to achieve you have to work for it. We just feel that by changing the system or things, we will get what we want. First Nigerians don’t seem to have the patience and discipline to work for what they want. Parliamentary system or any other system would not work without changing the mentality and attitude of Nigerians.

There is growing agitation that power should shift to the North in 2015. Where do you stand?
Neither zoning nor whatever is the answer. What we really need in this country is for people to believe in themselves and their leaders for things to work well. By the time every Nigerian develops confidence in each other, trusts each other and supports one another then who becomes the president or governor would be immaterial.

But because our culture is that of rich culture with poor people and because the resources of this country have not been properly applied we think it is the system which is denying us what we really need as a people. But once they apply the resources well for the overall benefit of the people and people are happy and feel a sense of belonging then there will be unity and development in this country. Once you are comfortable and prosperous you don’t give a damn to who your president or governor is. But because the system is so rotten while the country is so rich the people believe that changing the system or institution is the solution.

Are you worried about this country?
To be honest nothing worries me about this country. Nothing! Let me tell you, what is happening today in Nigeria is because we each try to transmit our personal pains and feelings on the country. To me we have enormous resources which should be properly harnessed for the people.

Are you not even worried about the security challenges?
Look, it will come and go. We know what it is. Any boy who is 18 or 19 and who feels that there is no future for him, there is no hope for a stable and comfortable life, is likely to commit a crime. But then when he feels that there is no future in the midst of wealth and opulence, there is frustration.

Nobody would want to be a criminal. Nobody would want to fail his family. Everybody wants a good life. Everyone wants to be a decent human being, but if you feel abandoned by the system, and hopelessness begins to stare at you, there is the tendency to begin to look for self help. But we shall get it right as other nations have done.

Why are northern governors opposed to state police at a time of national security challenge?
You must understand the situation very well. State police is not something that can just be picked up like a product from the shop. There are procedures that can bring it about if need be. But the question is: Is that the answer to the nation’s many challenges? To me it is all about how we want our country to be.

This feeling of ‘I want state police and I do not want state police’ is informed by the mind of the people and the fear that something is failing apparently because there is system failure in Nigeria. But if the system is functioning this attempt to resort to self help would not arise. Where there are strong institutions there would be no need to resort to the wrong things in a bid to succeed. This attempt to do what is wrong in order to survive would not be there. We have numerous challenges as a people.

This is a country where people kidnap, bomb, kill and use human parts as if they were mere tools. These are things that are very despicable and should not be allowed in this country because no matter what we do we have a single country to live and work for. We should therefore begin to work to create a safe environment to ensure that there is trust and confidence. Although these things take time, but we must continue to build on them in order to succeed as a people. We shall overcome these challenges. Other nations rose above them over time.

Your name is being mentioned as the anointed PDP presidential candidate for the 2015 poll. What is the truth about it?

To be honest with you, I feel flattered that in a country with over 160 million Nigerians, my humble self from a small village in Jigawa State is being talked about. Secondly, the issue of leadership in this country is something which is within the exclusive preserve of God, who gives power to whoever He wants at the time He chooses.

Those who are here now were not there ten years ago and those who were there some years ago are no longer there. So no matter what happens someone will be in an office and a Nigerian must be there. And so to me what matters is let God give to Nigeria what is best for this country and it does not matter who he is. It could be any Nigerian. So be it.

Many of those who used to associate you with opposition politics are surprised at the way you have dramatically changed since you became a governor?

Look, Sule knows who Sule is from the very beginning and Sule remains Sule till today. It is only the views of the people about me that keep changing. I know who I am and I keep to that despite the way I am being perceived by some persons or groups. What they think and say about me does not in any way change who I am. I know myself and your own view of me is different from who I am.

Some people say I am even arrogant. Some say I was a rebel and so on. My response to them is yes, I was a rebel with a cause. I rebel at all times against injustice. I am a strong believer in human dignity because God has said that he made us in the best of form and anything done to diminish the human dignity is what I abhor. So I rebel against injustice and I have no apology if that is what people perceive to be a rebellion.

I think that one’s status in life should not be used as a criterion for treating the person in life because someone can choose to live a very simple life and still be respected as a human being. And to me, your social status or standing or your accumulation should not be a criteria for your grading or being degraded. But we seem to have lost our sense of human value in this country with an unprecedented clamour for wealth by the people.

People now feel that when you have a lot of money and wealth you can be recognised and respected by society but to me it is the person you are that is most important. But in truth I was never a rebel per se. Rebellion against who? But let me say that we should not lose sight of the fact that in whatever we do we should be guided by human love, human compassion and self esteem, honour and dignity.

But when you lower a man’s honour and dignity through squalor and poverty then you compel him to come and beg you have forced him to lower his human dignity. These are the things that I hate. So, my rebellion all along has been against injustice. Now perception of what people thought I was and what they think I am now is their own opinion because Sule has been Sule and Sule knows Sule very well and remains a friend and personal Sule.

Those who know me they know that I remain honest, simple and straightforward at all times. The people who are coming from my political background do not see performance in office as a big deal. They don’t see that performance as a feat or a particular attribute, but as part of our upbringing and political formation and entire service to mankind. Leadership entails working for your people continuously, enhancing their wellbeing and dignity.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/09/2015-im-flattered-by-reports-sule-lamido/

I do think this is one of the few northerners that understand what service means.Anyone who has been to Dutse know exactly what i mean about this man. He has also rejected Islamic extremism in his state and did a lot to encouraged southerners and Christians to feel at home in his state. I wonder if this is a bridge builder Nigerians can begin to groom for presidency someday to save this country?

NO PDP CANDIDATE IS QUALIFIED TO SAVE NIGERIA

SHIKENA

@ your topic, the answer is NO!!

Nigeria's saviour nes pa?

can any good come from the norh

No be only sule Lamido,na Kabiru sokoto

Why are we always looking for 'saviours' and messiahs in Nigeria? Is it our over-reliance on religion and belief in the supernatural or that we do not understand?

Why can we not simply begin any search for a President with a thorough, logical and fact-based inquisition into the background and achievements of prospective candidates?

It should not be about the system churning out names acceptable to them while the rest of us then go on a merry and naive dance contributing to an anointing ceremony favouring those who wish to keep us down.

It is how we got the "boy with no shoes". We should now be beyond the level where we vote or back candidates based on airy speech and flowery yet vacuous talk. We must thoroughly scrutinise the history of candidates to support those with the proven ability to innovatively solve problems and provide adequate solutions.

Conversely, we should be ready to automatically reject those, even if backed by the greatest spin machine, who are mediocrity personified. African Nations that have not moved beyond 'gambling' with their top political positions hardly see progress.

"Can Sule Lamido save his son?" is probably a better question to ask.

What sort of dumb name is that Sule lamido .. He's going to sell nigeria not save it

Tell him to go save his son first: https://www.nairaland.com/1130387/jigawa-governors-son-arrested-money-laundering

What has he achieved as a governor in his home state of Jigawa?

My message to the international community:

Nigeria, especially the northern region is a hotbed for islamic terrorist activities and must be declared state sponsor of terrorists. Nigeria's assets should be consficated and only to be released after disintegration of the hell-hole called nigeria. Nigeria is now harboring terrorists and jihadists

To be frank in as much as i hate PDP, sule Lamido is the best governor in the north, if you have visited jigawa state you will understand what am saying, the. guy has really tried but no too much media hype like other states.

Despite being in the core north jigawa is the only state without incidence of boko haram, may he is doing something right.