*Pledges peace, prosperity
The newly sworn-in Governor of Katsina State, Malam Dikko Umar-Radda, says his administration’s priority is to provide peace and prosperity for the state.
Umar-Radda stated this in his inauguration speech shortly after being sworn-in as the governor of the state at Muhammad Dikko Stadium, Katsina on Monday.
“Over the next four years, our task as government is to provide peace and prosperity for the people of Katsina State.
“The insecurity issue will be paramount to this administration, and I will deploy all available resources in ending banditry and criminality across the state, with the will of Allah.
“We will also engage communities to ensure that security is sustained.
“Those affected by banditry and insecurity, I assure you, my administration will do its best to build your lives.
“We will focus on your mental well-being and provide special support to women and girls who have endured unimaginable pains,” he said.
The new governor admonished those engaging in banditry to shun the act and reintegrate themselves into society or be dealt with severely.
He also urged the youth in the state to shun drug abuse, time-wasting, and all forms of criminality.
“We will work with relevant law enforcement agencies to provide social order and overhaul the security of the state,” he said.
Umar-Radda said that the public sector must be up-scaled to work more efficiently, in line with the strategic policies of the administration.
According to him, promotion and placement of civil/public servants would be entirely on merit, and not through favouritism.
“We will apply stick and carrot measures in our approach to rewarding performance. We will establish key performance indicators across all cadres in the public service,” he said.
The governor said that his administration would develop an agricultural value chain along essential commodities and ensure that every local government benefitted from the activities in which it had comparative and competitive advantages.
On education, he said that the best students would have access to world-class academic facilities across the state.
“I call on all teachers to embrace our drive to improve the educational system so that we can produce students who can compete with their peers in Nigeria.
“Our future development will depend on the educated population ready to contribute to the state.
“We will also focus on technical and vocational education for those who need skills to become productive in society,” he said.
Umar-Radda further stated that government would improve access to quality healthcare at all levels and support small-scale businesses with new initiatives.
He also said that his administration would introduce Treasury Single Account (TSA) to strengthen accountability and close all loopholes in the financial system.
The governor further stated that government would conduct a comprehensive staff audit to eliminate ghost workers to ensure that public servants serve the government efficiently.
He expressed his administration’s readiness to partner with the Federal Government, under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu, to bring development to the people of the state.
The governor, who noted that politics was now over, said that he belonged to every person in the state, hence the need for all to join hands with him and move the state forward.
He warned that he would not hesitate to change any member of his administration who failed to deliver on his mandate, as the people of the state deserved nothing less from his government.