“Buhari Has Already Won 2019 Election” – Gov. Abubakar Boasts
Loading ...By Uchechukwu Ugboaja, Abuja
The Governor Abubakar Bello of Niger state may have given indication of what to happen come 2019, when he declared before the members of the press that President Buhari’s reelection is already a done deal. In his exact words, the governor stated emphatically that, “If you’re talking of 2019, the President is delivered already, he has won the elections, there is no vacancy because President Buhari’s reelection is a done deal, we will give him block votes in Niger state.”
Although the purpose of his visit to the FCT was to discuss some issues which has to do with the recurring boundary dispute between Niger state and the FCT. According to him, “we came to discuss issues surrounding boundary issues which we have been having for a long time now, and I think it is time to address it once and for all. We had a very good meeting and hopefully the matter will be resolved very soon.”
When asked about the insecurity within the Northern region, recently occasioned by banditry and kidnapping, the governor said, “We are doing a lot in this area which we cannot disclose here but we are on top of it, because it was quite challenging but thank God we have been able to bring it to the barest minimum, but overall the security situation in Niger state is calm now.”
The FCT Minister, Alhaji Mohammad Bello appreciating his guest, reminded that a substantial part of the FCT was carved out from Niger state, thus the need for this meeting between both executives. “We discussed the issue of the boundary which there is an already existing boundary committee of both state(s) and we emphasised the need for the committee to conclude its work in earnest.
“We also discussed the need to handle environmental issues with a view to mitigate pollution especially in the villages and cities around the boundary area and we also touched on how to improve our roads because of the population of civil servants who live and work between both cities,” he said.
“More importantly we discussed the progress in the ongoing exercise of the Federal Ministry of Finance to ensure that residents within the boundary city or towns that are working in the FCT pay their taxes, particularly those that are on salaries to the respective states where they are resident which is the position of the law, because that revenue if paid to the relevant local council such funds will be used to carryout government activities in their domain rather than always depend on the federal government.
