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The Governor Who Chose His People Over His Politics: Abba Yusuf and the Moral Courage Behind Kano First

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5 months ago

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By Saminu Umar Ph.D | Senior Lecturer, Department of Information and Media Studies, Bayero University, Kano surijyarzaki@gmail.com

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There is a particular loneliness that attaches itself to leaders who choose the harder path. It is not the loneliness of isolation, of having no one around them, because such leaders are almost always surrounded by people, by aides and advisers, by supporters and well-wishers, by the constant human traffic of political life. It is a deeper and more demanding loneliness, the loneliness of the person who must make decisions that others will not fully understand until long after the moment has passed, who must absorb criticism that cuts personally while continuing to serve publicly, and who must find, in the space between the weight of expectation and the limits of human capacity, the daily resolve to keep going. It is the loneliness, in short, of genuine leadership. And it is a loneliness that Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State has come to know with an intimacy that his most vocal critics, comfortable in the uncomplicated freedom of opposition, will perhaps never fully appreciate.
To understand the moral courage that underlies the Kano First Initiative, one must first understand the political inheritance that Governor Yusuf carried into office. He did not arrive at Government House, Kano, as a political outsider unburdened by prior obligations and free to govern purely on the basis of his own convictions. He arrived as a product of a political movement, as a leader whose rise had been enabled by a coalition of forces, interests, and personalities whose expectations did not always align with the needs of the twenty-two million citizens whose welfare his oath of office placed in his hands. The tension between those expectations and those needs, between the claims of political loyalty and the demands of public service, is one that every Nigerian governor faces to some degree. What distinguishes Governor Yusuf’s story is not that he faced this tension, but what he chose to do when it became impossible to navigate it without choosing a side.
He chose his people. And that choice, made at considerable personal and political cost, is the foundation on which the entire moral architecture of the Kano First philosophy rests.
The financial scandals that emerged in the early period of his administration, the billion-naira deductions imposed on local governments, the Novamed controversy that drained hundreds of millions from the state’s healthcare resources, were not merely governance crises. They were personal trials of a particularly painful kind. Here was a governor, widely regarded even by his critics as genuinely humble, intellectually serious, and personally committed to the welfare of Kano’s people, discovering that the machinery beneath him had been partially rewired to serve interests other than the ones he had been elected to serve. His public acknowledgement that he had not been fully aware of the transactions in question was seized upon by political opponents as evidence of weakness or incompetence. It was, in fact, something considerably rarer in Nigerian public life: an honest man’s honest admission that he had been deceived by those he trusted.
Consider for a moment what that moment must have felt like. A governor who came to office with genuine idealism, with a sincere desire to honor the trust that millions of Kano citizens placed in him, confronted with the reality that the very people positioned closest to the levers of power were using those levers for purposes that betrayed everything he stood for. The temptation in such a moment, particularly for a leader whose political survival depended on maintaining the unity of a broad and sometimes fractious coalition, would have been to minimize, to manage, to find a quiet accommodation that preserved the alliance without confronting the rot. That is, after all, what Nigerian political culture most frequently rewards. Confrontation is costly. Accommodation is comfortable. And the short-term arithmetic of political survival almost always favors the comfortable choice.
Governor Yusuf did not make the comfortable choice. He made the courageous one. The decision to break decisively from the suffocating grip of godfatherism, to place the interests of Kano above the expectations of political patrons, and to govern on the basis of his own convictions and his own accountability to the people who elected him, was not a carefully calculated political maneuver. It was a moral act, born of the recognition that the alternative was a betrayal too profound to live with. And moral acts of that magnitude always carry a price. The price, in his case, was the loss of alliances, the intensification of opposition, and the kind of sustained political hostility that now defines Kano’s pre-election landscape. He paid that price willingly. The people of Kano should understand what that willingness cost him.
It is within this context of demonstrated moral courage that the Kano First Initiative must be understood, not as a political programme designed by a communications department, but as the governing expression of a personal conviction that has been tested under genuine pressure and has held. When Governor Yusuf says that Kano must come first, that the interests of its citizens must take precedence over every political calculation and every personal consideration, he is not reciting a slogan. He is articulating, in the language of policy, the same principle that guided his most difficult personal decisions. The Kano First philosophy and the Kano First governor are not separate things. They are the same thing, the same commitment, expressed in two different registers, one personal and one institutional.
The Kano First Initiative, developed with remarkable intellectual seriousness under the stewardship of the Honourable Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Comrade Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, gives this personal commitment its institutional architecture. The comprehensive policy framework for social and institutional reorientation that the ministry has produced is not merely a communication strategy or a governance programme in the conventional sense. It is an attempt to translate a governor’s moral convictions into a durable, evidence-based, culturally grounded framework for societal renewal, one that addresses not just the material needs of Kano’s citizens but the deeper normative and behavioral foundations on which sustainable development depends. It is, in the most meaningful sense, a document that reflects the character of the man whose administration produced it.
What strikes the honest observer about Governor Yusuf, and what his critics most consistently fail to account for in their assessments, is the combination of intellectual humility and moral steadfastness that defines his leadership style. He does not govern with the theatrical confidence of the politician who has never doubted himself. He governs with the quieter and more durable resolve of the person who has examined his own convictions carefully, found them worth defending, and committed himself to defending them regardless of the political weather. That quality is not weakness. In the context of Nigerian governance, where the pressures to compromise, to accommodate, and to prioritize political survival above all else are relentless and overwhelming, it is an exceptional strength.
His supporters understand this, and their loyalty is of a kind that is not easily manufactured by political machinery. It is the loyalty of people who have watched a leader face genuine difficulty and choose principle over convenience, who have seen him absorb attacks without losing his dignity or abandoning his purpose, and who believe, on the basis of observable evidence rather than mere political faith, that the man at the head of Kano’s government is genuinely trying to do right by the people he serves. That belief is a political asset of incalculable value, and it is one that no amount of opposition noise or digital hostility can easily erode, because it is rooted not in perception management but in the accumulated testimony of lived experience.
To the people of Kano who are watching the intensifying political contest that the approach of 2027 has already set in motion, this writer offers a simple appeal: look past the noise. Look past the slogans and the counter-slogans, the social media battles and the political calculations, the claims and the counter-claims that will multiply in volume and intensity as the election approaches. Look at the man. Look at the decisions he has made when making the right decision was costly. Look at the initiative his administration has championed, not in its press releases and communication campaigns, but in its intellectual substance and its institutional seriousness. Ask yourself whether Kano has recently had a governor who brought this combination of personal integrity, moral courage, and genuine policy seriousness to the task of governing a state whose people have waited too long for a leader worthy of their loyalty.
Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf is not a perfect man, and he has never claimed to be. He governs in conditions of extraordinary difficulty, navigating resource constraints, political pressures, institutional weaknesses, and social challenges that would test the most experienced and best-resourced administration in the world. He has made mistakes, as every leader does, and he will make more. But what he has also done, and what the Kano First Initiative represents most fundamentally, is to make the choice that defines a leader’s legacy more than any project or programme ever can: the choice, when it truly mattered, to put his people before his politics. Kano has not always been fortunate enough to be able to say that about its governors. At this moment in its history, it can. And that, in the judgment of this writer, is worth far more than the political noise that currently surrounds it.
Saminu Umar Ph.D is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Information and Media Studies, Bayero University, Kano. surijyarzaki@gmail.com

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Opinion

Rabe Darma’s First 100 Days: Laying the Foundation for Nigeria’s Housing Renaissance

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3 days ago

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August 5, 2026

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By Ahmad Danyaro
Housing is more than bricks and mortar. It is about dignity, economic opportunity, social stability, and national development. Countries that have transformed their housing sectors have not merely built homes; they have built systems that make homeownership accessible, urban development sustainable, and investments attractive. Nigeria has long struggled to achieve these ideals, but the first 100 days of Engr. Dr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma as Honourable Minister of Housing and Urban Development have offered encouraging signs that a new era may be unfolding.
Since assuming office on 27 April , Dr. Darma has approached Nigeria’s housing challenge with a clear understanding that lasting solutions require more than commissioning housing estates. Rather, they demand comprehensive reforms that address the structural barriers responsible for decades of inadequate housing delivery. His administration has focused on land administration, investment promotion, institutional coordination, industry regulation, and social inclusion—areas that form the bedrock of a sustainable housing sector.
One of the defining initiatives of his first 100 days is the proposed nationwide Social Housing Programme, designed to extend affordable housing to all 774 Local Government Areas of the federation. The programme represents one of the most ambitious efforts to decentralise housing delivery in Nigeria’s history. If effectively implemented, it has the potential not only to reduce the country’s huge housing deficit but also to stimulate local economies through construction activities, job creation, and infrastructure development.
Equally significant is the programme’s emphasis on social inclusion. By prioritising women, children, victims of insecurity, internally displaced persons, and communities affected by natural disasters, the Minister has demonstrated that housing policy must also serve as social policy. In a nation grappling with displacement caused by insecurity and climate-related disasters, such an approach reflects both compassion and strategic thinking.
Within his first 100 days, Dr. Darma has also underscored the indispensable role of private-sector participation in addressing Nigeria’s housing deficit. Recognising that government resources alone cannot meet the nation’s housing needs, he has actively engaged international investors and development partners. His discussions with Japan’s CHODAI Company Limited and other prospective partners signal Nigeria’s renewed commitment to attracting global expertise, innovative technology, and long-term financing into the housing and infrastructure sectors.
Across the world, successful housing programmes are anchored on strong Public-Private Partnerships. By assuring investors that Nigeria remains open for business and committed to creating an enabling environment, the Minister is laying the groundwork for increased investment capable of accelerating housing delivery and modern urban development.
Perhaps the most transformative aspect of his reform agenda is the renewed focus on land administration.
For decades, access to land has remained one of the greatest obstacles to affordable housing in Nigeria. Lengthy registration processes, insecure titles, bureaucratic bottlenecks, and ownership disputes have discouraged investment while placing homeownership beyond the reach of many citizens. Dr. Darma’s commitment to the Nigerian Land Titling, Registration and Documentation Programme (NLTRDP) represents a bold effort to tackle these long-standing challenges.
The proposed digitalisation of land records, deployment of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), electronic documentation, and the establishment of a more efficient land administration framework promise to improve transparency, shorten processing timelines, and restore confidence in land ownership. These reforms may not generate the excitement of housing commissioning ceremonies, but they are precisely the institutional changes capable of transforming the sector over the long term.
The Minister has also demonstrated commendable resolve in addressing the persistent challenge of building collapses through stronger regulation of Nigeria’s built environment. His insistence on ending quackery, enforcing professional standards, and strengthening regulatory oversight reflects a commitment to safeguarding lives and restoring confidence in the construction industry.
By advocating a coordinated regulatory framework involving all professional bodies and stakeholders, Dr. Darma is reinforcing the principle that sustainable development must be underpinned by professionalism, accountability, and strict compliance with building standards.
Institutional efficiency has equally featured prominently in his first 100 days. Through engagements with Federal Controllers of Housing across the federation, the Minister has emphasized improved project monitoring, stronger inter-agency coordination, and enhanced accountability in project execution. These administrative reforms may receive less public attention, but they are essential to translating policy into measurable outcomes.
Naturally, the true test of any administration lies not in policy announcements but in implementation. Nigerians have witnessed ambitious programmes in the past that faltered due to inadequate funding, bureaucratic delays, weak political will, or inconsistent execution. The reforms initiated during these first 100 days must therefore be sustained through transparency, measurable targets, stakeholder collaboration, and rigorous monitoring.Even so, the direction being charted deserves recognition.
For perhaps the first time in many years, national conversations on housing are moving beyond the mere construction of houses towards broader institutional reforms encompassing land governance, digital transformation, investment attraction, professional regulation, and inclusive urban development. This holistic approach aligns more closely with global best practices and recognises housing as both a social necessity and a catalyst for economic growth.
Housing remains one of the strongest multipliers in any economy. It drives manufacturing, construction, transportation, financial services, and numerous small businesses while generating employment across multiple sectors. A vibrant housing industry strengthens communities, improves living standards, and contributes significantly to national development.
In his first 100 days, Engr. Dr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma has outlined an ambitious roadmap for the sector. His priorities are becoming increasingly clear, and his early interventions suggest a willingness to confront some of the most difficult structural challenges that have hindered Nigeria’s housing development for decades.
The journey ahead will undoubtedly be demanding. Expectations remain high, resources are limited, and implementation will ultimately determine the success of these reforms. However, if the momentum generated during these first 100 days is sustained with consistency, professionalism, and accountability, Nigeria’s housing sector could be on the threshold of a genuine transformation.
For millions of Nigerians who still dream of owning a decent and affordable home, that is a vision worth supportingand one that deserves every opportunity to succeed.
Danyaro is a Media and Public Affairs Analysts based in Abuja.

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WARAKA: The Story of Kano Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC)

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5 days ago

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August 3, 2026

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A Story by Nurse Ekwem Chinwendu Blessing (BNSC, RPHN, RM, RN)

I was out on my routine duty at Murtala Specialist Hospital for my ambulance service when I decided to take a walk to a centre I had heard about from Sir Muhammad Sunusi Specialist Hospital Accident and Emergency Unit. The centre is called WARAKA–SARC — ‘Waraka’ meaning ‘healing’ in the English language. It is housed in the same building with the Kano State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency (KSCHMA), a beautiful block within Murtala Specialist Hospital. The centre comprises three offices and two toilets. Inside, the offices are adorned with colourful posters of alphabets, numbers, GBV survivors support, pathway for initial care after sexual assaults and domestic animals and pets, creating a quiet and therapeutic atmosphere. The staff are warm and friendly.

The centre was sponsored by non-governmental organisation’s (NGOs) and championed by four ministries in the state: the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Women Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and the State Police Force. Unfortunately, the NGOs have since pulled out. WARAKA–SARC attends to cases of sexual assault and gender-based violence for both males and females. I was informed that between 7 and 12 September 2015, training was conducted for doctors, nurses, and counsellors on the management of such cases. Due to the high rate of reported incidents, the NGOs and the four aforementioned ministries pushed for the official opening of the centre.

During my visit, I met several members of staff: a nurse nearing retirement, counsellors, a receptionist, and a volunteer who also serves as the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer. She conducts serological tests such as pregnancy test (serum), HIV, HBsAg, HCV, and VDRL. I had expected to see a doctor trained to assist with forensic examinations, but none was present. I was told that doctors had indeed been trained to provide evidence-based care to clients; however, due to the high demand for medical personnel, they were redeployed to other hospitals and units. Due to that, When a client presents — whether as a case of domestic violence or assault — they are referred to the Gynaecology Emergency Unit, the Gynaecology Ward, the Accident and Emergency Unit, or the Paediatric Unit, depending on the client’s age and the nature of the assault. Following examination, the client returns to WARAKA–SARC for further management, including counselling and serology. On average, the centre sees about fifty clients per week.

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Notwithstanding these challenges, this is the only functioning centre in the state that attends to cases of sexual assault and gender-based violence. I noted that all services rendered to clients are free of charge, and the centre also provides continuous follow-up care.

Based on my observation, WARAKA–SARC is a sensitive and vital centre. I therefore suggest the following measures to improve the care and services provided to clients:

· The deployment of medical personnel — including doctors, nurses, and counselling psychologists — to the centre.

· The four ministries should consistently include the centre in their annual budgets.

· Continuous engagement of staff through training, rural outreach programmes, community sensitisation, and the provision of incentives.

· NGOs should resume and sustain their collaboration with the centre.

· Proper referral pathways for clients to the centre must be established and maintained.

· The Ministry of Justice should make it mandatory for all cases of sexual assault and gender-based violence to pass through WARAKA–SARC before trial. This will enhance the centre’s visibility among individuals and communities.

· Additional centres should be established in strategic local government areas to bring services closer to rural communities far from Kano town, thereby improving access and utilisation.

· Community enlightenment on the importance of the centre and the need to seek help freely when necessary.

· Religious and community leaders should partner with the centre to promote peace and encourage community members to utilise its services.

 

Speak out, get help — end the cycle of violence.

WARAKA SARC: Your path to healing and justice.

Stop GBV. Support survivors. Strengthen justice.

WARAKA SARC: Restoring dignity, rebuilding lives.

Supporting survivors with care, dignity, and compassion.

WARAKA SARC — A Safe Space for Healing.

 

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How Kano Digitized Land Turns N50m to N750m Monthly

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5 days ago

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August 3, 2026

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– Abba Ka Cika Gwarzo…

By Abba Anwar

Land administration, safety and security of land documents are dancing gorgeously to the gallery, as the administration of His Excellency, Executive Governor of Kano State, Abba Kabir Yusuf digitalized and institutionalized land administration and ownership in the last three years.

Study tour to Kano Geographic Information System (KANGIS), by states like Abia, Kaduna, Jigawa, Adamawa, among others is a clear testimony that Kano is making headway with excellent innovations in land administration and management. Analog to digital development.

Before now, KANGIS was a small unit /department under the state Ministry of Land and Physical Planning. But when Governor Yusuf came on board, the agency turned into full-fledged and autonomous agency with the establishment Law. Normal legislative procedures were followed. And now an independent agency. This makes seamless operations possible. With clear mandate and global taste.

Billions of Naira injected in overhauling and modernizing the agency, were recovered within six months of becoming an autonomous agency. With full Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure which turned the face of the agency via digital and GIS infrastructures, pave the way for that.

Employing GIS enterprise, that is modernizing land administration, beginning from land application to the level of acquiring Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) has now become a seamless operation. Where slow operation fades away.

For Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) the agency was generating a maximum of Fifty Million Naira (N50m) monthly. With the new Law in place and dedicated leadership, from His Excellency down to the Director General of the agency, Dr Dalhatu Aliyu Sani, and dedicated staff, KANGIS can now boost of generating a maximum of up to Seven Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N750m) monthly.

Racketeering of land documents by touts and weak minded internal elements, has significantly minimized. A system has now been in place for a land applicant to monitor the movement and progress of his or her application from the comfort of one’s room.

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There is an improved manpower, who are always undergoing training and retraining. To cope with the global best practice. With this and the digitalization of the agency, corruption is being reduced to minimal level in the administration and management of land. So also laziness from the part of the staff, unproductive posture, double allocation and insecured process for land ownership are all shelved aside.

Under the wisdom of His Excellency, the Governor, the agency, KANGIS, works hand in hand with the state ministry for land and physical planning. Unlike in some other states, where such agencies wall out ministries of land. Not only maintaining the two institutions, in Kano, both the agency and the ministry work harmoniously in rancour-free atmosphere.

Though land ministry is the mother ministry, but rivalry between them is significantly at the lowest level. It may interest one to know that all payments of the ministry are paid through KANGIS.

The Director General of KANGIS Dr Sani is a renown scholar of geographic information system of global repute, who was invited by Governor Yusuf from far away Turkey, to come and serve his state. Without hesitation, Dr Sani responded positively to His Excellency’s request. Here he is, Dr Sani brought many strategies and innovations to KANGIS. The political will of the Governor helps much in this development. That has eluded the agency since its creation in 2012.

Understanding the genuine political will and commitment of the Governor towards the spirit development of the agency, the good working relationship between all the political appointees and staff of the agency and the mother ministry, is strengthening day in day out. They all understand what team work is to the development of the state.

Ranging from the Commissioner for Land and Physical Planning, Abudujjabar Muhammad Umar, Adviser to the Governor on Land Matters, Hadiza Gadanya, Director General of KANGIS, Dr Dalhatu Aliyu Sani, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Land Matters, Alhaji Ahmad down to the Senior Special Reporter Nanu Kankarofi, all believe and understand what team work is and what Governor Yusuf wants in reshaping land administration, control and ownership in the state. Kudos to them all.

Another important picture of Governor’s genuine love for a new Kano is his non-interference in KANGIS’s operations and technical decisions. Being an autonomous with competent hand as the Director General, Governor Yusuf believes he puts a square peg in a square hole. At KANGIS and the mother ministry, modernization with global touch is quite visible. It was this visibility, I guessed, that prompted other states to come to Kano and start shopping for ingenious land administration.

I can still remember vividly clear, when the immediate past Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Ahmad Dangiwa visited KANGIS sometime back, he informed the DG that when he returned back to Abuja, he would inform President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to kindly urge other states of the federation to come to Kano and visit KANGIS for them to replicate Kano model of land administration. I don’t know if that really happened.

With the full operation and commitment of KANGIS and Land Ministry, Kano Master Plan of over 30 years is now being undusted and ready to be revisited word by word. This is possible as a result of Governor Yusuf’s political will and commitment.

Anwar writes from Kano
Monday, 3rd August, 2026

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