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Opinion

Beyond Politics: How the Kano State Government Is Turning Federal Partnership Into Tangible Economic Gains for Ordinary Citizens

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1 month ago

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Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya

When Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf made the bold and courageous decision to align Kano State with the Federal Government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the critics were loud, the cynics were louder, and the doubters were everywhere. They called it political betrayal. They called it opportunism. Some called it the ultimate act of ingratitude toward a man who had invested years, resources, and political capital in building the career of the Kano governor. What they failed to see, or perhaps refused to acknowledge, was the singular and unwavering motivation behind that decision: the welfare of the ordinary men and women of Kano State, the market trader in Kurmi, the widowed mother in Dawakin Tofa, the unemployed graduate in Gwale, and the small business owner struggling to keep his shop open in Farm Centre.
In less than a year of active federal alignment, Kano State has gone from being a politically isolated outlier to becoming one of the most strategically positioned states in the entire federation. Federal presence, federal investment, and federal goodwill are flowing into Kano with a consistency and velocity that was simply impossible under the previous arrangement, where governance was dictated not by the needs of the people, but by the personal wishes of a political godfather seated comfortably in Abuja. For too long, Kano, a state that by every measure of population, commerce, history, and strategic importance deserves to sit at the very centre of Nigeria’s development conversation, was standing at the margins, watching other states benefit from federal partnerships while its own people paid the price of political stubbornness.
The clearest and most visible evidence of this transformation is the forthcoming flag off of the Energise Commercialisation Now initiative, a landmark federal programme spearheaded by the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology under the Honourable Minister, Dr. Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, SAN, scheduled to hold in Kano from April 23 to 25, 2026. The programme, designed to mobilise innovation, attract investment, and accelerate industrial production across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, has chosen Kano as the venue for its national launch and North West zonal deployment. That choice is not accidental. It is not logistical. It is a deliberate federal acknowledgement of Kano’s strategic importance as the commercial and industrial heartbeat of Northern Nigeria, and a direct reward for Governor Yusuf’s visionary and courageous leadership.
The Energise Commercialisation Now initiative represents a structured national platform to identify commercially viable innovations, connect them with investors and manufacturers, and scale them into enterprises that create jobs and generate wealth. For a state like Kano, with its rich history of commerce, its dense network of small and medium enterprises, its vibrant informal economy, and its large population of young, talented, and ambitious people, this programme is not merely a federal event passing through. It is a genuine economic opportunity of generational significance.
More significantly, the programme will be flagged off by no less a personality than Her Excellency Senator Oluremi Tinubu, CON, the First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the personal champion of the ECoN initiative. Her presence in Kano is a statement of the highest order. In Nigerian political culture, when the First Lady travels to a state to commission a programme, it is not a routine governmental act. It is a personal signal from the Presidency itself. It is Aso Rock saying, in the clearest possible terms, that Kano is seen, Kano is valued, Kano is a priority, and Kano will not be left behind in Nigeria’s march toward industrial and economic transformation.
For Governor Yusuf, whose critics questioned whether his alignment with the APC and the Tinubu administration would translate into anything concrete for his people, Senator Oluremi Tinubu’s visit to Kano on April 23 is the most powerful possible answer. It says that the partnership is real, the commitment is genuine, and the dividends are already arriving.
But beyond the symbolism and the political significance, what does all of this mean for the ordinary Kano citizen?
It means that the innovator in Fagge, the young entrepreneur in Tarauni, the female small business owner in Nasarawa, and the graduate sitting at home in Ungogo and all other localities in Kano now have a real, structured, and government-backed platform to showcase their ideas, access funding, connect with investors, and build enterprises that can employ others. It means that Kano’s universities, polytechnics, and research institutions, which for years have produced brilliant graduates and groundbreaking research that never left the laboratory, will now have a direct pipeline to the market. It means that the textile artisan in Kofar Mata, the leather craftsman in Yan Kaba, and the food processing entrepreneur in Dorayi can look at this programme and see themselves as legitimate participants in Nigeria’s industrial future.
This is precisely the promise of Governor Yusuf’s Kano First Agenda, an agenda that places the prosperity of Kano people above every political consideration, above every personal loyalty, and above every partisan calculation. When the governor stood before his people and declared that Kano would come first in every decision his administration makes, he was not making a campaign promise. He was entering into a sacred covenant with millions of people who had entrusted him with the highest office in the state.
Every decision his administration has taken since then, including the historic and difficult decision to align with the centre, has been guided by that covenant. The governor has consistently and publicly maintained that he answers to the people of Kano, not to any individual, not to any movement, and not to any political structure whose primary interest is the perpetuation of personal power rather than the advancement of public good. Kano State, he insists, is no longer remotely controlled. The elected chief executive is fully in charge, and fully accountable to the people alone.
The results of this philosophy are not abstract. They are measurable, verifiable, and visible to anyone willing to look beyond the noise of political controversy.
A N1.477 trillion budget for 2026, the largest in Kano’s history, with 68 percent allocated to capital projects. Over N334 million disbursed to 6,680 women across all 44 local government areas of the state, each receiving a monthly stipend of N50,000 to grow their businesses and support their families. More than N800 million invested in youth empowerment programmes benefiting over 5,300 young people. Kano ranking first in Nigeria’s 2025 NECO results, a historic educational achievement that signals a transformation in the state’s human capital investment. A health sector receiving N212.2 billion, with hospitals upgraded, the Abba Care Scheme launched, and healthcare access expanded across the state. An infrastructure allocation of N346.2 billion, covering urban roads, solar streetlights, housing development, and market renovation across all 44 local government areas.
These are not political talking points. These are not figures conjured for a press conference. These are the measurable, auditable, and undeniable fruits of purposeful, people-centred governance under a leader who understands that the ultimate test of political courage is not the decision itself, but what that decision delivers to the people it was made for.
As Kano prepares to host the First Lady of Nigeria and welcome the nation’s attention on April 23, one truth stands clear, unambiguous, and beyond reasonable dispute: Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf did not align with the centre for himself. He did not do it for political survival. He did not do it for personal gain. He did it for Kano. He did it for the market trader, the young graduate, the nursing mother, the struggling entrepreneur, and every ordinary citizen who deserves a government that fights for them at every level of power.

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Opinion

The Politics of Promises Kept: Analyzing the People-Centered Governance Style of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf

Published

7 hours ago

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May 30, 2026

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By Mohammed Babagana Abubakar
The Unifier Project Coordinator Kano State

Political analyst Larry Sabato once observed that politics is a good deal like religion in that everyone should have some, but it should be the right kind. For many years in Nigeria’s most populous commercial nerve center, the dominant style of politics was deeply transactional defined by entrenched godfatherism, conditional patronage, and a persistent gulf between campaign promises and governmental action.

However, as the administration of marks its third anniversary, Kano State is witnessing a profound philosophical shift in governance. The celebrations currently unfolding across the state’s 44 Local Government Areas are not merely acknowledgments of completed infrastructure projects, they are endorsements of a distinct people-centered leadership model that prioritizes human development over political theatrics.

To analyze the politics of promises kept under Governor Yusuf is to understand how deliberate populist policies, fiscal discipline, and strategic political courage can converge to redefine the relationship between government and the governed.

At the heart of people centered governance lies a simple principle, public resources must produce maximum public value. In a state as demographically significant and economically dynamic as Kano, governance cannot remain an elite driven exercise detached from grassroots realities.

Governor Yusuf’s governing philosophy popularly known as the Gida Gida administration has gained traction because it redirected state priorities from prestige driven spending toward human capital development. When a government consistently aligns public expenditure with the immediate concerns of ordinary citizens, political legitimacy is no longer enforced through patronage, it is naturally earned through trust and visible impact.

One defining characteristic of visionary leadership is the willingness to adequately fund public commitments. Nowhere is this more evident than in Kano’s education sector. By declaring a State of Emergency on education and allocating approximately 31 percent of the state budget to the sector surpassing the UNESCO benchmark the administration transformed education policy from campaign rhetoric into measurable institutional action.

Comprehensive renovation and upgrading of public primary and secondary school classrooms across the state.

Recruitment, regularization, and strategic deployment of qualified teachers to improve classroom to teacher ratios.

Revival of foreign postgraduate scholarship schemes for outstanding graduates, opening global academic opportunities for talented but vulnerable students.

These interventions reflect a long term investment strategy aimed at repositioning education as the foundation of sustainable economic and social advancement

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In healthcare delivery, the administration abandoned the traditional overconcentration on metropolitan tertiary facilities. Instead, it prioritized the revitalization and equipping of Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) in rural and underserved communities.

This decentralized healthcare strategy directly addresses maternal and infant mortality rates at the grassroots level, where healthcare vulnerability is often most severe.

Beyond healthcare, the administration has also extended its reform agenda into the justice sector. Through legal and institutional reforms, the government has sought to expand access to legal aid services, strengthen pro bono legal networks, and accelerate the handling of prolonged detention cases. These reforms reinforce a broader philosophy that justice should not be determined by wealth, social status, or political influence.

A critical examination of Governor Yusuf’s leadership style reveals a government that is both adaptive and politically independent. Over the last three years, the Governor has consistently demonstrated that he views his electoral mandate as one entrusted directly by the people not as a proxy arrangement controlled by political godfathers.

His administrative choices have frequently emphasized competence, institutional effectiveness, and public accountability over narrow political loyalty.

Equally significant is the administration’s pragmatic approach to national political engagement. Strategic collaboration with federal institutions and broader national governance structures reflects a sophisticated understanding of Kano’s economic and geopolitical importance within Nigeria and the wider West African sub region.

As the Governor himself has repeatedly emphasized, Kano is too strategically important to isolate itself from national opportunities. By maintaining constructive engagement with the center, the administration has created a more stable environment for commerce, infrastructure development, investment attraction, and security coordination.

Ultimately, leadership is validated not by political slogans but by the economic realities experienced by ordinary citizens.

Under Governor Yusuf’s administration, Kano State’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) reportedly rose from earlier baselines of approximately ₦37 to ₦40 billion to over ₦100 billion by the close of the 2025 fiscal year. Significantly, this growth was achieved not through excessive taxation of petty traders and small-scale market operators, but through tighter fiscal controls, improved revenue administration, and the systematic elimination of financial leakages.

The expansion in state revenue has directly supported a welfare centered governance agenda:

The administration has maintained consistent and uninterrupted salary payments, helping to sustain purchasing power and stabilize household incomes across the state.

Thousands of retirees have benefited from aggressive interventions aimed at clearing long-standing pension and gratuity backlogs. For many households, these payments have represented both economic relief and the restoration of dignity after years of uncertainty.

In the final analysis, the politics of promises kept represents one of the highest forms of democratic legitimacy. Political power becomes meaningful only when it is deliberately used to confront the fundamental realities of human existence poverty, illiteracy, disease, unemployment, and structural exclusion.

As the third-anniversary activities continue to showcase the administration’s achievements, the celebrations across Kano are not merely orchestrated political ceremonies. They reflect the sentiments of a population that increasingly feels recognized, included, and valued within the governance process.

Through a combination of fiscal courage, administrative humility, strategic foresight, and grassroots engagement, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf has demonstrated that when leaders protect the mandate of the people, the people, in turn, protect the legacy of leadership.

Kano State appears firmly positioned on a path toward sustainable development, and its future remains exceptionally promising.

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Opinion

Abba Kabir’s 3 Years Beyond Road Projects

Published

8 hours ago

on

May 30, 2026

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Sufyan Lawal Kabo (Sefjamil)
sefjamil3@gmail.com

Some governments build roads, renovate schools and commission projects. Others go beyond physical development to rebuild public confidence, restore institutional trust and reconnect governance with ordinary citizens.

That is the deeper story gradually unfolding in Kano under Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.

Three years ago, many expected another routine administration. What emerged instead was a government whose speed, visibility and emotional connection with the people have continued to redefine political expectations across Kano.

Today, the discussion is no longer whether Abba Kabir Yusuf is working. The real conversation is how far Kano may go if this pace continues beyond 2027.

Because beyond roads and contracts, Kano is witnessing something deeper. The state is gradually witnessing the return of public belief in governance.

Before 2023, many citizens had psychologically disconnected from governance. Pensioners protested repeatedly over unpaid entitlements. Foreign scholarship students cried publicly over abandonment. Young people increasingly believed politics only served a privileged few. But gradually, the atmosphere changed.

Governance stopped being something citizens merely heard on radio. It became something physically visible.

The administration aggressively launched major road and urban renewal projects including interventions around Tal’udu, Dan Agundi, Lodge Road, Court Road and several township roads across Kano metropolis.

Yet politically, the most important thing was not merely the projects themselves. It was the speed, visibility and energy behind them.

For many citizens, the government projected urgency and seriousness from the very beginning.

The foreign scholarship programme became one of the strongest emotional symbols of the administration. Under the previous administrations, Kano foreign students in countries including India and Uganda repeatedly cried out over unpaid tuition fees and near academic collapse. Several parents and advocacy groups publicly accused the government of neglecting the students.

Upon assumption of office, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf approved billions of naira to settle outstanding liabilities and restore over 1000 Kano students back to classrooms abroad.

For many affected families, the intervention was not merely educational. It was emotional rescue.

In interviews aired by Freedom Radio Kano and other local stations between late 2023 and early 2024, several students narrated how they had nearly abandoned their academic dreams before the intervention arrived. One beneficiary in India reportedly described the intervention as “the difference between disgrace and dignity.”

Politically, the move projected the administration as a government willing to confront inherited crises directly instead of merely offering excuses.

Abba’s administration also declared a state of emergency in education and initiated massive school renovation exercises across the state.

Thousands of students benefited from NECO registration support, while recruitment processes for teachers and investments in learning infrastructure expanded. But beyond statistics, the interventions carried deeper political meaning.The government projected education as a pathway for poor children to compete again.

Within public discussions, many citizens increasingly interpreted the reforms as attempts to restore Kano’s historic educational reputation in Northern Nigeria.

Perhaps the most emotionally sensitive intervention involved pensioners. For years before 2023, retired civil servants repeatedly protested over unpaid gratuities and pension arrears. Elderly pensioners were frequently seen struggling through verification exercises while many openly lamented hardship and neglect. Several pensioners reportedly died while waiting for entitlements.

The issue became more than an administrative problem. It became a moral issue. Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s administration later announced multiple releases running into tens of billions of naira for settlement of pension backlogs and gratuities inherited from previous administrations. Thousands of retirees reportedly benefited through various payment phases coordinated by the Kano State Pension Trustees.

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What changed public perception most were the emotional reactions from beneficiaries themselves. Elderly pensioners openly praised the governor in interviews across Kano media platforms after receiving payments many had lost hope of ever seeing.

The Kano Internal Revenue Service also intensified reforms around revenue collection, compliance and digital restructuring.

Economic observers increasingly linked improved revenue confidence not only to enforcement, but to growing public belief that government activities were becoming visible again. The logic became simple: Visibility created confidence. Confidence encouraged cooperation.

Citizens are more willing to support government financially when they believe governance itself is functioning.

Another remarkable development is Kano’s gradually changing political atmosphere. For years, Kano politics was dominated by rivalries and factional tensions involving major actors such as Senator Barau I. Jibrin, Senator Kawu Sumaila, Hon. Kabiru Alhassan Rurum and others across APC and NNPP blocs. Yet recent years increasingly witnessed conversations around reconciliation, engagement and political coexistence.

The growing understanding between Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and some APC interests attracted national attention because many observers previously considered such political softening impossible. That perception of political maturity carries major implications for stability, governance and investor confidence in Kano.

Because Kano is not just another state politically. It is one of the major political nerve centres in Northern Nigeria.

Beyond the emotional and political dimensions of the administration, the scale of physical and institutional development witnessed across Kano within the last three years has equally remained difficult to ignore.

From massive road construction and urban renewal projects to aggressive interventions in education, healthcare, agriculture, water resources, youth empowerment, transportation, sanitation, civil service reform, pension settlement, housing, security support and revenue generation, the administration projected unusual speed and visibility across virtually all sectors of governance.

In education alone, foreign scholarship restoration, school rehabilitation, teacher recruitment and examination support programmes changed public conversations around learning and opportunity. In healthcare, general hospitals, primary healthcare centres and medical support services witnessed renewed government attention. In agriculture, farmers benefited from inputs, support initiatives and renewed emphasis on food production across rural communities.

In infrastructure, major roads, drainage systems and metropolitan renewal projects transformed several strategic parts of Kano. In social welfare, pension payments and salary interventions restored confidence among retired and serving workers. In governance and revenue administration, institutional reforms and digital restructuring strengthened public confidence in government functionality.

Even in political management, Kano began gradually witnessing a calmer atmosphere after years of intense rivalries and factional conflicts. Altogether, the administration created the impression of a government determined not merely to govern Kano, but to aggressively reposition the state socially, politically, economically and psychologically for a much bigger future.

Perhaps the most powerful thing about the present administration is this:
√ Kano has started believing again.
√ Young people increasingly believe government can still respond to ordinary citizens.
√ Pensioners increasingly believe retirement may no longer mean abandonment.
√ Students increasingly believe poverty may not permanently destroy educational dreams.
√ All sectors are properly working again after long period of neglect by previous administration.
√ And politically, that may become the administration’s greatest legacy.

Because roads may eventually deteriorate and buildings may require reconstruction. But once a government restores public belief in governance itself, it changes the psychology of society permanently.

That is why Kano today appears to be witnessing something bigger than physical development alone. It is witnessing political reawakening, emotional reconstruction and the gradual return of civic confidence. That is why the real question in Kano today is no longer whether Abba Kabir Yusuf is working. The real question is this: if three years could produce this level of political energy, visibility and public confidence, what exactly may Kano become if this momentum continues into the future?

Sufyan writes from Abuja

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Opinion

Three Years Of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf:Restoring Confidence Through People Centred Governance

Published

8 hours ago

on

May 30, 2026

By

 

 

By Tijjani Sarki
Good Governance Advocate and Public Policy Analyst

Leadership earns its true value when it restores public confidence, inspires hope, and remains connected to the everyday realities of the people. As the administration of His Excellency, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, marks three years in office, Kano State stands at an important moment of reflection on a journey defined by resilience, grassroots engagement, and renewed commitment to social development.

For many citizens, the emergence of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf represented more than political change, it symbolized the return of inclusive governance and people-oriented leadership. Despite the economic and political challenges facing the nation, the administration has continued to demonstrate commitment toward improving education, healthcare, infrastructure, and social welfare across the state.

Particularly commendable is the renewed attention given to public education through school rehabilitation, scholarship support, and investment in learning facilities. Equally significant are efforts toward reviving abandoned projects and strengthening public service delivery in ways that directly affect ordinary citizens.

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Politically, the administration has also shown stability and resilience amid intense opposition and legal distractions. Yet, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf continues to maintain strong grassroots connection, especially among young people and supporters who see the government as reflective of their aspirations for fairness, development, and responsive leadership.
Like every administration, challenges remain. Economic hardship, unemployment, and growing public expectations continue to demand greater commitment and innovative solutions. Nevertheless, constructive engagement and collective responsibility remain essential in sustaining progress and ensuring that governance continues to serve the interests of the people.

As Kano gradually approaches another political phase, the priority should remain the consolidation of developmental gains, strengthening of institutions, and promotion of policies capable of improving the living standards of citizens across the state.

At this significant milestone, it is important to appreciate the efforts made so far in promoting people-centered governance and restoring confidence in public leadership. While history will continue to judge every administration by its impact, the commitment to public engagement and social development shown within these three years deserves recognition.

I congratulate His Excellency, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, on this three-year anniversary in office and pray that Almighty Allah grants him wisdom, strength, good health, and greater success in his continued service to the people of Kano State.

Tijjani Sarki
Zawaciki, Kano State
May 29, 2026

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