₦airaland Forum

The war of words between the Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, deepened yesterday as the minister accused the governor of promoting North-South divide with the manner he criticised President Bola Tinubu’s Tax Reform Bills.

Tuggar also disclosed that the federal government was making contingency plans to deal with any situation arising from the migration policy of the United States President Donald Trump as it affects Nigerians.

This is just as he explained the delays in the posting of ambassadors to foreign missions.

Speaking on ARISE NEWS Channel, Tuggar said he had no problem with the governor of his home state, Bauchi criticising the Tinubu’s administration but the manner he was doing it to stoke the crisis.


“The problem with him is not criticising President Tinubu but the manner he is doing it. He is not doing with sincerity; he lacks sincerity of purpose. He is doing it to create a North-South divide,” Tuggar explained.

The minister described the claim that the North was against Tinubu’s administration due to the tax bills as a dangerous narrative by the opposition elements who wanted to perpetuate themselves in power.

Tuggar argued that the governor was hiding under his selfish ambition to make accusations against Tinubu’s administration.


The minister also accused the governor of mismanaging the resources of the state.

“We seem to be against Governor Bala Mohammed simply because no other state is going through what Bauchi State is going through today. Bauchi State has been pauperised.

Instead of focusing on social services, instead of focusing on infrastructure, he is busy expanding the government house with variations. He started at N6.6 billion. He took it to over N9 billion, then to over N12 billion, and then to N16.6 billion. Is that our priority? What about education for out-of-school children? Healthcare or the poor, giving farmers the needed input so that they could farm. Is that not the priority? Is it the government house? Who asked him to build a government house for us? What is wrong with the one he has now and where did he get the money all of a sudden to build another mansion in Bauchi while the construction of the government house was going on?” the minister queried.

“This is what is making people like us angry and that is why we are speaking out. Don’t forget Bauchi is full of agrarian communities. It fell those people into hardship. Those people blocked rivers, creating disasters, creating flooding that is not natural,”.l he added.

Reacting to the allegation by Governor Muhammed that he (minister) was being distracted by his ambition to become governor, Tuggar said: “The governor knows that I don’t work that way. It is not about governorship. If it was about governorship, I wouldn’t have been the one inviting him shortly after he had been sworn in as governor. I invited him to Berlin where I was serving as an ambassador where he signed five MoUs with German companies and a German state and through that initiative, he was able to make perhaps what was the first positive impression of his administration. I organised for him to receive 1,000 what they referred to as a mobility court for the disabled.

The pictures are there, the video footage is there and the MoUs he signed are there. I then also organised an NGO called Water is Right. He doesn’t know that NGO from Adam. I organised it because the owner of the NGO happened to be someone that I went to school with, a German. I then organised them to come and fix toilets in all the local governments in the state-owned hospitals, He knows that. If it was about the governorship, I wouldn’t have done that. I wanted him to look good. But now, the situation arises where I see him deliberately trying to mislead people and trying to sow the seed of discord in Nigeria because of his personal ambition,” Tuggar explained.
Speaking on Trump’s policy on migration and deportation, Tuggar said the Nigerian government was monitoring the situation.

“Even yesterday, I spoke with our Chargé d’affaires in Washington DC and he said he is in constant touch with the US government and said he knows exactly the number being held. It’s not like the figures other countries have to deal with thankfully. I don’t know if the situation will change but we are already making contingency plans to deal with it,” Tuggar explained.


The foreign policies of Tinubu’s administration are strategic autonomy. We will deal with all countries to protect, and improve for the benefit of our national interest, and of course, around that we have four pillars which are four Ds – Democracy, development, demography, and the diaspora. When I say democracy, I do not mean every country has to be under a democratic government like us because there are different approaches to democracy but definitely, we are in full support of constitutional governance. If there is a constitution that protects the fundamental rights of individuals, we will know you are on the right path,” Tuggar added.

Explains Delays on Posting of Ambassadors

When asked to explain the cause of the delays in posting ambassadors, Tuggar said: “When you post our ambassadors, you can’t send them without something to work with, what they need for their families – their wives, and their kids, all of them have to be taken care of. In some places where they don’t have vehicles, you have to provide all these for them. I’m not making excuses for the President. He knows best; he said he is not ready for that yet. I’m going by what the President said. I know our missions are functioning and we will continue to do our best. I urge you to seek an interview with him,” the minister said.

Oluwabash:
*Says Nigerian govt making contingency plans over Trump’s migration policy

*Explains delays on posting of ambassadors




https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2025/02/02/tuggar-bala-mohammed-creating-north-south-divide/

Vicotex:
Una go just open mouth dey talk was, like say North and south first unite before

ValarDoharis:
He is not! Tinubu and Wike do not represent the South

Agugbadin:
He remains the worst FCT minister Nigeria has ever had in history.

Oluwabash:
*Says Nigerian govt making contingency plans over Trump’s migration policy

*Explains delays on posting of ambassadors




https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2025/02/02/tuggar-bala-mohammed-creating-north-south-divide/