Governor cries out: Zamfara is bankrupt

Governor Dauda Lawal has declared that Zamfara State is bankrupt.

Lawal said the Bello Matawalle administration left nothing for him when he took over on May 29, 2023.

Lawal, who stated this on Wednesday evening at an interactive session with Zamfara professionals in Abuja, said the state was in in a bad state when he assumed office.

The governor said: “I believe in the history of our state, this is the first time where professionals and people of Zamfara State are here to interact.

“I am delighted to hear some of the comments made. It is indeed incredible.

“The Zamfara State we inherited is in a bad state. At the time we took over, Zamfara was bankrupt with nothing left.

“It is a state where we inherited so many bad things.”

Lawal, who disclosed that he inherited a three-month salary backlog with no single money to take care of the civil servants, said as of the time he took over, the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) was already over and the children were unable to sit for it.

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“Fortunately for us, NECO (National Examination Council) is about to start and if we did not do anything, the children may not write the exam,” he added.

Governor Lawal stated that though the state was owing WAEC about N1.6 billion and NECO about N1.4 billion which had made the students to be unable to sit for the examinations in the past, his government had recently paid off NECO’s debt.

He said his government had commenced reconstruction of primary schools and building the capacity of the teachers to boost their productivity, adding that when he came in, Zamfara State had 28 ministries which had now been reduced to 16 ministries

The governor, who lamented over the condition of the hospitals in the state, said he was committed to change all the narratives.

Lawal, therefore, solicited the professionals’ support in order to build the state in the interest of the people.

Lawal said as part of the efforts to tackling the security challenge in the state, he met with the Chief of Defence Staff, the Chief of Army Staff, and the National Security Adviser on different occasions on Tuesday.

He said he also met with officials of the European Union and the World Bank on issues of insecurity, education, health, and infrastructural development, noting that they were ever ready to provide support.

The Star