Our attention has been drawn to yet another vacuous commentary by one of Governor Tanko Al-Makura's commissioned writers, Rayyanu Bala, with the caption "Labaran Maku and His Primitive Politics" which appeared on an unknown blog - today.com on Sunday 2nd August, 2015.

It is not surprising that such a hollow commentary came only a few days after former Information Minister and the APGA governorship candidate in Nasarawa State, Mr. Labaran Maku laid bare the humongous corruption taking place in the administration of Al-Makura.

We are aware that the Punch interview granted by Mr. Maku had embittered Al-Makura who thought he could rule over Nasarawa State like one of his failed business enterprises without any challenge. The response were the invectives poured on Mr. Maku to demonstrate the bitter deep-seated ill will Al-Makura harbors towards anyone who dares to speak against his misrule.

The motive behind the vexatious write-up has rendered it impotent to the discerning people of Nasarawa State who watched helplessly how their common wealth is being fretted away by a cabal that perpetrated itself into power through a fraudulent election.

Rayyanu deliberated ignored to respond to the issues of impropriety in governance and the insurgency taking place under the watch of Al-Makura. Instead, he attempted to chase shadow in order to divert and divide public opinion.

One does not need a soothsayer to understand that the insecurity in Nasarawa State is fueled by insurgency and not by communal clashes as being postulated by Riyyanu. The communal skirmishes in Nasarawa State have since been replaced by insurgency akin to the one raging on in the North-East.

Insecurity is now at its highest peak since the creation of Nasarawa State with over 100 communities razed down by roving bands of mercenaries across the state. The entire social and economic life of Nasarawa State has been dislocated under the highly unpopular regime of Al-Makura.

Hardly a day passes by without deaths being recorded in the state. The entire agrarian communities in Nasarawa South Senatorial Zone have been displaced by insurgents. Those who venture to go to their farms are hacked to death while their daughters and wives are raped by the imported mercenaries with impunity.

Those who refused to vote for Al-Makura in the April election are being visited with death and destruction.

Despite the threats and blackmail, we remain unshaken in our resolve to demand, for the umpteenth time, that Al-Makura should account for the alleged misappropriation of N100 million taken from the state's coffers monthly under the guise of Security Vote, which amounted to over N4 billion. Yet Nasarawa State is the most insecure state in the North Central.

Funds that could have been deployed to the construction of cottage industries, hospitals, roads and sinking of boreholes were allegedly siphoned on the pretext of providing security.

A state that cuts the salary of its workers by half could not claim to be solvent despite over N150 billion that accrued to Nasarawa state through monthly federal allocation, and other regular funds coming from the Ecological Fund, Universal Basic Education Fund, Excess Crude Account, SURE-P, tax remittances among others. This is in addition to the N30 billion bond obtained from the capital market and other loans collected from banks. Yet Nasarawa State remains the most backward in all indices of development in the North Central.

The claim that Maku was an ethnic and religion champion in Nasarawa politics was a futile attempt to blackmail Maku, who surprised all the power brokers and the godfathers by forging an inter-ethnic and inter-religious solidarity to defeat Al-Makura in the April 11 election.

Maku incurred the wrath of the power brokers within and outside Nasarawa State for daring to challenge the status quo, which falsely believes that a Christian, no matter how popular, will not govern Nasarawa State.

Maku went ahead to prove those who hold such divisive and primitive notion wrong by galvanizing support across ethnic and religious lines to defeat an incumbent governor who hanged onto power by dividing public opinion and setting tribes against one another.

Peace and security eluded Nasarawa State since the emergence of Al-Makura as governor about four and a half years ago. He brought untold hardship, death, destruction, poverty and misery on the people, who responded with their votes by massively voting him out of power.

Maku is on trial by Al-Makura and his godfathers and cohorts simply because of the religion he professes. That's why they keep on spinning all sorts of lies to cast aspersions on his person.

Ibrahim Sule Dogara
Chairman
Nasarawa State Conscience Youth Association

OYO

The change crooners , una never see anything