MONDAY EDITORIAL
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On Thursday, the 6th of July 2023 Zamfara state government announced the appointment of Barr. Ahmad Liman as the new Head of Service of the state.
Liman a Permanent Secretary and former solicitor General hails from Gusau local government area of Zamfara state.
Many people were shocked when they heard about the appointment of Gusau born permanent secretary as the new Head of Service, especially with the current expectation for appropriate power balancing as the new government tries to put its governance structure in place.
The immediate past head of service Mr. Kabir Muhammad Gayari is from Gummi local government area precisely in Zamfara West, and it was expected that to make the power sharing more balanced, the position should either be retained in the zone looking at the fact that in the current power arrangement the zone with six local governments has only the Deputy Governor as senior principal officer or move it to Zamfara North the zone that has only Speaker of the state house of assembly as among the principal officers of the state.
There is strong belief that the current government of Dauda Lawal is concentrating many powers and attention to Gusau and Zamfara central by extension and this is sending a palpable fear that other senatorial zones namely Zamfara West and Zamfara North may suffer serious marginalization by the Dauda Lawal administration.
The Governor is from Gusau, Secretary to the State Government of Zamfara is from Gusau and now the Head of Service also from Gusau, just one out of the (13) local governments that made up of Zamfara state.
Going by the major appointments he has so far made, except for SSA Broadcast Media, Press, and Public Affairs Mustapha Jafar Kaura and indeed Mal. Nuhu Salihu Anka the DG. Press to the Governor and Abdulmajid Anka the SSA Domestic 80% of the appointments made are for people of Gusau and indeed Zamfara Central.
The major policy pronouncements made by the Governor centered around Gusau and this is sending a serious fear whether the government will be all-inclusive considering the facts that those that worked for its emergence cut across people beyond Gusau and Zamfara Central by extension.
I think the Governor of Zamfara Dauda Lawal needs to be careful and take the most appropriate steps of widening his government to give the (14) local governments a better sense of inclusion.
Governor Dauda Lawal should learn from the experience of the past where Governor Bello Matawalle dominated his government with people from Gusau in terms of major appointments and the result of such political suicide cost him his second term bid.
It is always fair and in the principles of natural justice that all the (14) local governments in Zamfara be given fair spirit of participation and that will guarantee the safety of the political journey.
IN KUNNE YAJI, GANGAR JIKI TA TSIRA
