The rank of leaders of thoughts in Taraba State and in the north applauding the recently inaugurated administration of Taraba Governor, Dr. Abu Kefas, as worthy of emulation swelled at the weekend when chieftain of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) and the state wing chairman of the union, Comrade Nathan Solomon, identified the development agenda of the governor as the best strategy in curbing challenges facing the country.
Speaking on the sidelines of Arewa meeting of NUT in Katsina State capital, Katsina, Solomon gave assurance that the best thing that could happen to Nigeria is for other governors to have the courage to borrow a leaf from Taraba State.
He described Gov Kefas as a workaholic who is coming at a critical time in the state, while encouraging people of the state to give maximum support to the governor for Taraba to have a better future.
“I just want to say few things about my governor, the workaholic governor, Dr. Abu Kefas. First and foremost, Gov Kefas declared a state of emergency in education sector and as I speak with you now, he has declared free education in both primary and secondary schools.
“Abu Kefas has gone round and has informed people that education is his major priority and that we are seeing on ground because our salaries now are being paid as and at when due. In fact, it has never exceeded between first to fifth of every month, which is a plus to the state.
“Formerly, we used to get our salaries after a month or two but you can see with the recent development, we get our salaries between first to fifth of every month; that is a great achievement,” he said.
Solomon added: “Before I left Taraba, the governor made it clear to all ministries that forms will be circulated to all civil servants in the state so that they will fill in promotion arrears.
“For instance, people that were placed on grade levels 12 and 13 when they were due to be on level 16 or thereabouts will fill the forms with his assurance that any moment from now, he will implement promotion so that all civil servants in the state will smile again. In fact, we have never had a governor, a working governor like the governor we are having in the state now.”
The Taraba NUT boss assured the readiness of the union to rally round the governor, given his emphasis on education.
“And we think he has gotten it right because when a society is educated, it means the whole environment will be crime free. So, we appreciate him very much and we will do everything possible to see that we support him to succeed,” he disclosed.
Asked if other governors should be urged to borrow a leaf from Taraba State, he replied: “I think that will be good; that will be the best thing for Nigeria. I am saying this confidently because my governor has never relented on any effort; in fact, he has touched almost all the areas in the state.”
Already, he said, the governor is working on roads in the state while seeking dependable partners to collaborate with his administration to move Taraba to a greater heights.
According to him, tourism had also been accorded top priority and the influx of tourists into the state remained a welcomed development.
“If you have a governor like that in almost all the states, this country will have no problem,” he opined.
To actualize the governor’s goals, Solomon tasked teachers in the state to do the needful through the services they render to students and people.
“I will go back home and encourage them the more to make sure that we don’t relent on our efforts so that Taraba State will have a brighter future.
On the Arewa meeting, he said they were in Katsina to brainstorm on how to mobilize their colleagues to help the incoming teachers to have a better standard of living and contribute to the development of teaching as a profession in Nigeria, particularly in the northern region.
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