By Abba Dukawa and Ahmad Danyaro
Change presents humanity with a confounding paradox. Whereas change is constant and inevitable it forebodes a vague sense of unease. Fear of the unknown taunts the nerves of even the valorous of men. Men of destiny however prepare for change, meeting it at the doorstep with secure pace .The Nigerian Navy get a breath of fresh air on January 26 2020 with the appointment of Rear Admiral AZ Gambo to succeeed Ibok Ekwe Ibas as the highest ranking Naval officer in Nigeria .The Nigerian Navy is a branch of Nigerian armed forces. It is among the largest navies on the African continent ,consisting of several thousand personnel, including those of the Coast Guard .
One of the challenge before Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) is safeguarding Nigeria’s territorial waters. Gulf of Guinea is another security challenge which has become dangerous and threatens the country utilization of its full economic potentials . This vast maritime space with utmost economic significance to the adjoining countries and it a vast area of coastline with 20 sovereign coastal states and islands and a number of landlocked states.
According to a report by the International Maritime Bureau of the International Chamber of Commerce, a total of 121 acts of maritime piracy were recorded in the Gulf of Guinea, incidents in 2018. In 2019 incidents rose to 195 and last year, Kidnappings by pirates in the GoG hit a record in 2020, with well-armed and violent gangs defying Regional Navies. United Nations reported that Nigeria lost about $2.8 billion to piracy as a result of crude oil and maritime crimes.
This is a worrying trend that can only be resolved through increased information exchange and coordination between vessels, reporting and response agencies in the Gulf of Guinea Region. Latest statistics shows this is one of the problems CNS will ensure to tackle due to the increased capabilities of pirates in the Gulf of Guinea with more and more attacks taking place further from the coast. This require prompt action with urgent need to address this crime, which continues to have a direct impact on the nation economics, and security of innocent seafarers.
Rear Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo appointment came at a period when the country was facing serious security challenges and he has as expected from Nigerians hit the ground running by tackling the worsening insecurity across Nigeria’s territorial waters which have making life difficult for Nigerians.
Without doubt, he hit the ground running by unveiling his vision and mission envisioned the type of the Navy to head during his maiden meeting with principal staff officers, flag officers commanding and commanders of autonomous units of the Nigerian Navy directed all operations commanders to sustain aggressive clearance operations to make suspected militants, pirate camps Non-Conducive for any nefarious activities to thrive and rejected the resurging incidents of piracy and sea robbery within Nigerian waters.
Henceforth his stewardship will also focus on human capacity development through Result-Oriented training for enhanced professionalism and as well as strengthening logistics support and maintenance capabilities to sustain equipment serviceability and platform availability.
CNS intends to actualize his Vision and Mission in line with Mr President’s mandate within the first 90 days in office. While doing that, the CNS called for complete loyalty from all subordinate commanders and equally promised to take issues of personnel welfare seriously.
While his statements set to guide his stewardship of the Nigerian Navy, Rear Admiral Awwal Zubaru reiterate his readiness to promote and sustain Nigerian Navy core values of Integrity, Professionalism and Teamwork and would ensure personnel welfare is accorded high priority towards enhanced Patriotism, Integrity, Productivity, Innovation, Commitment And Dedication.
He also pledging guaranteeing Nigerians, personnel and officers of the Nigerian Navy and even those around riverine and coastal areas as CNS will ensure nation waters remains safe from all forms of maritime criminalities and has zero-tolerance for indiscipline, criminal activities and will formulate a policies to sanction identified Nigerian Navy personnel that collude with economic saboteurs and other criminals.
Another important areas the new Naval Chief need to pay attention is taming corruption and identifying the bad eggs of the naval service. The immediate past Chief of Naval Staff while handing over lament that many officers of Nigerian navy still connive with illegal bunkers, sea robbers ,oil thieves and other maritime criminals to undermine existence of the country.He said the negligence of the officers at their duty post is aggravating challenges in maritime sector.
The story of the 21st indigenous Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) and 9th since returns of democracy in the country Rear Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo is that of Triumph of the human fortune. His life is a proof that with strong will to succeed in life and divine nod to one’s actions, one can turn all obstacles to blessings. The effort of this gentleman makes him to attain greatness by building fruitful Navy career from the bottom up the top echelon of top the Nigerians Navy.
The new CNS quick start in office cleaning the Augean stable clearly shows great sense responsibility, exceptional courage, sincerity of purpose and readiness to take the organization to higher unprecedented level. There is no doubt that his legacies shall remain eternal source of inspiration for many generations to come.
Dukawa and Danyaro wrote in from Kano and can be reach onabbahydukawa@gmail.com
On Mon, Dec 7, 2020, 8:39 AM Adeyinka Adewusi
Good morning Abba, please find the link below on your article. Thanks
Dissecting Kwankwasiyya double stand over sale of Kano Public Properties
On Sat, Dec 5, 2020, 10:13 PM ABBA DUKAWA
Dissecting Kwankwasiyya double stand over sell of Kano Public Properties
By Abba Dukawa
Even at the peaked of the tussle between Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and Alhaji Rabiu Musa Kwankwanso, the former remained focused and dedicated toward the actualization of his objective which is to deliver democratic dividends to Kano people, a covenant he entered with them during his electioneering campaign. As a gentleman politician and, in line with people’s expectation, governor Gandunje had not only kept faith with his promise to complete projects and pursuing progressive policies of his predecessors, he had moved on to actualize and consolidate his own projects and policies.
Surprisingly, notwithstanding the huge achievements in infrastructural provision, promotion of policies engendering security of lives and properties of the people and unprecedented encouragement of commence and industry, members of Kwankwasiyya movement in Kano State sees nothing good in what the government is doing.
Sadly, Almost six years out of power, Rabiu musa Kwankwaso and his mislead foot soldiers go about with erroneous impression of self importance by presuming to be undefeatable power brokers in the state. They delude themselves in frame of mind convincing them of having the powers to do and undo, make or mar as well give power to whomsoever they wishes and wrest same from whomsoever they disapprove.
Funny enough, a significant members of kwakwasiya movement have not realized how the movement has been come a paper tiger as it crumbled like a pack of cards. It is important to observe that the antisocial activities being perpetrated by RMK and remnants of his supporters are possible because the tolerance of the present administration, broadmindedness of the governor and his democratic credentials.
Members of kwankwanso movement are in hurry to forget of when their leader was at the helm of affairs of the state the freedom they now enjoyed under this administration was not guaranteed RMK. In fact, the administration did not only unprecedentedly narrowed democratic space in the state through the antidemocratic actions of the leader, it undoubtedly retarded commercial activities rather than promoting commerce for which Kano has been well-known.
One funny and laughable things that further reduced the movement to ridicule lies in the fact members of the group have now metamorphosed to defender of public properties. If there is any governor in the history of the state that treat public property with reckless abandon is Musa Rabiu Kwanwanso.
He felt on top of the world doing this because he was power drunk, while his rabid supporters gave him the erroneous impression he was untouchable leader wearing shoes made of metal which enable him to step on any body’s toes no mater how highly placed.
This is not to count the ordinary citizens, civil servants and pensioners who suffered varied degrees of maltreatment by Kwankwaso’s government. In fact, taking into consideration the trouble the state found itself during second coming of MRK, the prayer should be that God should not allow to repeat itself in Kano in future.
We have not forgotten how billion naira belonging State pension fund borrowed billion to build Bandirawo and Amana Housing Estates that are so expensive that only ample of Government Department and Agencies now occupy the House. This wrong policy of Kwankwans is now making it difficult pensioners to get their gratuities when they disengage from service.
Recently, Kwankwasiyya movement accused Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje of illegally selling public property to cronies and family members as unconstitutional and selfish action. These baseless allegations on the properties said to be sold by the Ganduje administration include Daula Hotel, Triumph Publishing Company, part of the Eid Ground, Panshekara Modern Abattoir, Hajj Camp, Shahuci Motor Park and the State Zoological garden.
Let them wake up from their slumbers to recalled it was former governor Rabiu Musa administration who ordered the closure of Daula Hotel and sacked all the staff of the Hotel. RMK handed over the property to School of Hospitality and Tourism but the school only occupies 10 per cent of the structure situated within premises.
Unknown to the peoples of the state at that time when, Hotel was closed down some reputable Hoteliers drew the attention of then administration in power to grant an agreement with them to managed Daula Hotel under Public Private Partnership (PPP). This, out of stubbornness of Kwankwanso was turned down. Maybe he had other cynical motives.
Now Ganduje’s administration engages private developer through Public Private Partnership (PPP) to developed the property into residential buildings, Malls and Hotels at former Daula Hotel premises in it continues efforts to explore more ways of enhanced revenue generation in l the state government.
The present administration works assiduously in seeing to the actualization of the bringing back to life of Triumph newspaper. Governor Ganduje shows his commitment in revitalisation of the Triumph Publishing company knowing that the Company is not just newspaper publishing company but a training ground for journalists across the country.
Around October 2012, we the staff of the company on Thursday at about six o clocks as we were going about our normal duty saw a team of security operatives in the premises of the company accompanied by then state commissioner of information who told us that Governor RMK has decided to closed down Triumph Publishing Company.
This brutally and unceremoniously closed down would remain in our mind even though (we), the staff of the newspaper were lucky since we were no given treatment Daula staff were given.
c I can testify that Triumph Publishing Company is relocated to a convenient place befitting a newspaper house to pave the way for the development of a more economically viable and modern Bureau de Change Market that can generate more revenue to the state and provide employment opportunities to the teeming populace.
On Zoological Garden, no government will fold its arm and watch the lives of its citizens endanger. One may recalled last year when one of the Lion kept in the Kano Zoological Garden escaped.
This state of affair cause serious trauma to the residents around Gandun, Tukuntawa and Zoo Road Housing Estates.
No zoo garden across the world is found in a residential area and there is nothing wrong if Zoological Garden is being relocated from residential areas for public safety because when Zoological Garden was established, it was on the outskirt of Kano with no human inhabitants.
With relocation of garden, the place will now be put to more economic use. For the residence of Fagge, Zango, Kofat Mats, Kofar Wambai areas Eid Ground remain scary place to passed by because some miscreants turn the ground to a hiding area in commuting heinous crime to by passers. Because of this development, a lot of peoples have lost their lives from phone snatchers and other related criminals. They have forgotten It was during his first tenure some part of kofar Mata Eid ground were allocated to some individual closed to then administration. With the structures puts in place surroundings the Eid ground, the level of insecurity has drastically reduced as the area is beautified.
The civil servants and their families would not forget how the then Governor Kwankwaso sold Government GPs at the exorbitant price beyond civil servants that occupied said properties earning.
While there are available records on how his government sold such GPs to to cronies of the administration at giveaway price. At the tail end of the administration, some vehicles belonging to the state government valued at millions of naira were sold to themselves at giveaway price.
Another laughable act by Kwankwasiyya movement is the treat that they would not fold its arms and allow public assets to rot away. Despite the financial difficulty the country and the state at large facing, governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje is doing very well for the overall development of the state.the administration has taken the state to the highest feats were he made free and compulsory education for teaming children most of whom are wards of the poor in the society.
There is nothing wrong if such comatose and structurally defective properties would be turned around with committed stakeholders through Public Private Partnership agreement with willing investors in the best public interest, as part of a noble futuristic move to make the ancient city catch up with modernity for a befitting mega city status.
Dukawa wrote in from Kano can be reach atabbahydukawa@gmail.com
