Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State has thrown his weight behind a single-term tenure for state governors as a pathway to effective governance.
The governor, who has spent two years in his first term, however, did not specify the length of the proposed single term or when such a policy should take effect.
Bago, who spoke during the swearing-in ceremony of newly appointed commissioners, local government council chairmen and their deputies, as well as some permanent secretaries and board members, noted that the quest for a second term often discourages leaders from taking bold decisions needed for development.
“There are some steps I ought to have taken to move the state forward but I dare not because of fear that taking such decisions would affect my victory in 2027. For example, some people who failed examinations and should have been sanctioned one way or the other could not be punished because of second term ambition.
“I am an advocate of a single term for governors. Everything in Niger state is being politicised and because of this, more decisive actions cannot be taken. There are some people I want to sack but I cannot. As the Governor, I am preoccupied with the search for a second term in office and as a result, governance is suffering and this is why one term is better to serve because you will be more focused from the beginning to the end of your one term tenure,” he remarked.
Commenting on the abduction of students, pupils and teachers of St Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School, Papiri, in Agwara Local Government Area, the governor described the incident as unusual in the state and urged residents to collectively oppose the menace.
“In the past, the forests across the state were safe for members of the Boys Scout to go for expedition, but that is not the case now. The forests are now being used as hideouts by bandits and that is why kidnapping and abduction are strange to us in Niger. “I urge you all to rise to the challenge at hand and pray for the rescue of the remaining abducted Papiri school children and their teachers and for peace to return to all parts of the state,” he remarked.
Bago also charged the newly inaugurated officials to align with his New Niger Agenda aimed at driving progress across all sectors.
“There should be no room for discrimination against anyone on the account of his area of origin, religion and parental background. We should have a new Niger where the son of a nobody will become somebody and this is time to retrace our steps to build a new Niger state,” he declared.
He, however, did not announce portfolios for the newly sworn-in commissioners, assuring that the assignments would be made public within one week.
