By Abdulazeez Alhassan, Rigasa
The BBC Hausa Kaduna governorship debate was keenly competitive by the three candidates of the forefront political parties in the state. The candidates are; Uba Sani of the ruling party(APC), Isah Ashiru of the main opposition party(PDP), and Suleiman Hunkuyi of NNPP.
The debate which held at Kaduna State University auditorium, witnessed a large turnout of supporters of the political parties, stakeholders and NGOs. The three candidates came well prepared and ‘armed to the teeth’ with relevant information, facts and figures that will enable them sell their candidature and manifesto to the good people of Kaduna state.
It was also quite impressive, particularly to a non-partisan observer on how the candidates answered questions ranging from insecurity, economy, education, agriculture, economy and healthcare. Although, there were some variations in the presentation of facts and figures between the figures quoted by Sen. Uba Sani and that of his counterpart Hon. Isa Ashiru. That while Uba Sani put the total number of medical doctors in the employment of Kaduna state government to more than 400, Isa Ashiru of PDP insisted that they were only about 200.
In light of the above, it is worthy of note that this article intends to highlight some unspoken issues from the governorship debate, rather than repeating what have been said earlier by the candidates. Since Kaduna citizens have heard/read what they have said. The debate as we all know was anchored by a polished and pedantic BBC Hausa presenter; Badariyya Kalarawi. The debate was a confab between the candidate of the ruling party, Sen. Uba Sani and the main opposition candidate Hon. Isa Ashiru of PDP, asssited by Suleiman Hunkuyi of NNPP.
Mr Hunkuyi criticised Governor Elrufai for demolishing over 40,000 shops and promised to reverse it if elected. unfortunately, he did not proffer a detailed plan on how he will restructure the policy if elected. Mr Isa Ashiru on the other hand, vowed to reverse the tuition fee of Kaduna State University that was hiked. However, he did not tell us how he plans to source for funds and execute this his kind gesture. Mr Ashiru should note that Kaduna state government claimed spending about 5billion on the university as the then 26,000 being paid by students was not enough to pay lecturers for three months.
On the part of Sen. Uba Sani, when asked about insecurity; particularly in Birnin Gwari, he answered that he will continue the good work of Governor Elrufai, since he is doing his best in mitigating the insurgency. He has forgotten to tell us his plans in providing adequate security in Birnin Gwari, Chikun Local Government and some parts of Igabi. If he believes Governor Elrufai is doing his best, yet there are security issues in the state, then will repeating the same approach by a different person change the rhetorics?
*In 2019, Kaduna state development plan* *school* reported that Kaduna state has the highest female school dropout in the state. *They estimated that about 37% of pupils drop out in primary six has females having the highest non-completion rate of 24.8% compared to males with 20.7%.* This was also discussed by none of the candidates.
It is also imperative to note that none of the candidates talk about the welfare of staff. Particularly primary and secondary school teachers. There are claims that some teachers were not paid for more than five months in the state. Also, the skyrocketing of foodstuffs in the state is alarming compared to other states in the north; which none of them talked about it.
Honestly, I am having a hard time understanding why Kaduna state students tend to be quiet about the increase in Kaduna State University tuition fees. After being given the golden opportunity to express their grievances and to *extract commitment* in the reduction of tuition fees in the tertiary institutions of the state.
In the end, BBC Hausa did an exceptional work for organising such a debate. As this has given us the opportunity to have insight into the direction of each of the three candidates. The destiny of Kaduna state citizens is in their hands to vote the right candidate that will pilot the affairs of the state to a promised land.
Abdulazeez Alhassan is the President of Universal Writers and Authors(UWA).
