On September 22, Dr. Ibrahim Shehu Shema, a former governor of Katsina State, clocks 67 years of age. Born on the stated date in 1957 in Dutsin-Ma, Dutsin-Ma native authorities space of Katsina State, he had his main schooling on the Nassarawa Major Faculty, Katsina, between 1964 and 1971 and thereafter proceeded to Authorities Secondary Faculty, Kafanchan in 1972, for his secondary college schooling, which he accomplished in 1976.
Upon the completion of his Worldwide Joint Matriculation Board (IJMB) examination on the School of Arts, Science and Know-how in Zaria in 1980, he enrolled on the Ahmadu Bello College (ABU), Zaria the place he earned the diploma of Bachelor in Legislation in 1983. His name to bar adopted instantly after he accomplished the necessary Legislation Faculty Programme in 1984.
His perception in private growth by means of schooling noticed him additional enrolling for and acquiring two Grasp levels from ABU, Zaria. The primary is Grasp in Enterprise Administration (1998) and the second is Grasp in Worldwide Affairs and Diplomacy (1999). He’s an undisputed architect of contemporary Katsina State on account of large human and bodily infrastructural growth executed by his administration.
The Channels Tv presenter, Nneota Obase Ogbe, in December 2023, throughout an interview with Shema for the station programme, Information Night time, requested, “Some individuals referred to you as a stingy governor?” Shema responded, “a stingy governor? Why wouldn’t I be stingy with public funds for my administration to report landmark achievements? You possibly can’t be sharing public funds and report significant achievements? “
Really, Dr. Shema, as a governor between 2007 and 2015, could also be stated to have been stingy with public funds. He was loathed by many political elite within the state for his refusal to be “beneficiant” with public funds. Nonetheless, there isn’t any Katsina State indigene, together with his detractors, who can deny the truth that his administration executed laudable tasks akin to the development of over 3,000km roads, 361 clinics in 361 political wards, constructed 250-bed orthopaedic hospital, 86 main well being centres (PHCs), Umaru Musa Yar’Adua College, over 200 new secondary faculties, 100 ALLO mannequin faculties to assist Almanjiri schooling, constructed ICT and Enterprise Institute, established Youths Craft Village, constructed 35,000-seat capability Olympic measurement stadium, new Authorities Home, Katsina Metropolis Mall, Dubai Worldwide Market, supplied over 3,500 housing models throughout the state.
Shema’s monetary self-discipline additionally enabled his administration to construct over 100 semi-urban water schemes, procured and distributed 340 Messi Ferguson tractors at discounted value to farmers, established Songhai agricultural tasks in three senatorial districts of the state. He additionally purchased over 100 autos for the Katsina State Transport Firm, procured street making tools, and dualised township roads of Daura, Mani, Malumfashi, Kankia, Funtua, Dutsin-ma, amongst different quite a few street tasks.
Shema’s frugality made it attainable for his administration to not solely pay civil servants’ salaries between Twenty second-Twenty fourth of each month with out proudly owning any month all through his eight years as governor, he additionally left over N14 billion within the coffers of the state and native governments. He didn’t borrow funds from any supply. Therefore, he left a debt-free state. So for anybody conversant with the political trajectory of Katsina State, it won’t be far-fetched to find that the grouse of some individuals within the state with Shema, was premised on his fashion to channel public assets for public course, reasonably than opened it up for sharing amongst a couple of political elite by being beneficiant with the general public funds.
Nonetheless, Shema’s title is a toast and darling of individuals on the decrease ladder of the society, even within the distant space of the state. They all the time bear in mind him for making schooling free for his or her youngsters, together with sponsorship of lots of their youngsters to check overseas. He made fertilisers out there to farmers on the price lower than N1,900 all through his tenure in workplace, supplied rural ambulance well being service scheme for the agricultural dwellers for gratis to any of them. He nipped within the bud any safety problem and thus made the agricultural areas protected for farmers.Katsina State is an agrarian society with very low internally generated income. Additionally, being a civil service state, the principle income is the month-to-month allocation from the federation account. In such a state with large month-to-month wage invoice of the civil servants, it is going to be troublesome for any significant infrastructural growth to happen underneath any governor besides the one that is able to be stingy with public funds.
The tone of being stingy with public funds within the state was laid by Shema’s father, mentor and chief, the late Umaru Musa Yar’adua (Katsina State governor between 1999 – 2007). It sounds amusing seeing a number of the elite together with his aides who instantly turned Yar’Adua’s apostles, utilizing his title in demise to write down ebook and for political marketing campaign, eulogising the late former governor and President of Nigeria. Nonetheless, to state the reality, many Katsina State elite hated Yar’Adua merely attributable to his stinginess with public funds. Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s title resonates extra and louder among the many poor, whose coverage of his authorities remodeled their communities.The attributes of being stingy with public funds by Yar’Adua when he was a governor made the political class and a few of his aides to normally gang as much as sabotage his political actions.
It was not a simple journey for him to win his re-election as a governor in 2003. Within the election the place the opposition occasion, ANPP gained two out of the three senatorial seats within the state. In the direction of the tip of his second time period within the workplace earlier than he was chosen because the Peoples Democratic Celebration (PDP) presidential candidate, a few of his aides began to desert him to pitch their tent towards Yar’Adua political curiosity. It was a sudden flip of occasion of his emergence as PDP presidential flag bearer and his election because the president of Nigeria, which made lots of them to shortly make a U-turn to assist him.
Yar’Adua, an apostle of transparency, honesty, and integrity, by means of prudent administration of assets, laid a strong basis for the fashionable Katsina State. He was abused, accused and hated by the political elite in collaboration with a few of his aides attributable to his refusal to make public funds out there for sharing.
Subsequently, it’s not stunning that Shema who adopted the footsteps of Yar’Adua as a governor, turned despised and envious by some political elite for his refusal to open the general public treasury for sharing, and likewise attributable to his intimidating report of his achievements. Nonetheless, his best property are the mass populace of the individuals, whose youngsters his administration sponsored to be skilled overseas to turn out to be medical doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, radiologists, dentists, engineers, pharmacists and many others; individuals who instantly turned homeowners by means of his administration mass housing tasks of constructing greater than 3,500 housing models throughout the state together with the FCT, Abuja. Additionally, the dad and mom whose youngsters loved free schooling, together with cost of WAEC, NECO and NABTEB examination charges by the federal government.
The checklist additionally consists of pregnant ladies and accident victims who loved free medical care in all of the state-owned hospitals.
Shema, a cosmopolitan and ingenious politician is a category on his personal. He does issues with precision and contact of excellence, and no marvel no matter he touches turn out to be gold. Within the college of political mentorship of the late Yar’Adua, Shema stands out as essentially the most enduring legacy of service to the humanity. In my relationship of over 20 years with him, his ardour and dedication to a progressive society is known. He prioritise widespread good over private advantages. I might recalled vividly in 2015 after he accomplished his second time period in workplace as a governor and succeeded by Aminu Bello Masari in an election gained by the then opposition occasion, All Progressives Congress (APC), he advised me and all of the individuals round him to not do something to undermine the success of the brand new administration within the state. In accordance with him, politics apart, the progress and growth of the state is expensive to him and this may solely be achieved if the brand new administration is allowed to pay attention.
He appointed me as his spokesperson and head of his media crew when he left workplace in 2015. Instantly the brand new administration took over within the state and began hauling stones at him, though he was not in Nigeria then, however his associates and supporters have been feeding him with the information of the flip of occasion within the state, reasonably than urge them to react, he’ll persuade them to not do something that may have an effect on the progress of the state. Every time he obtained such information, he would put a name by means of to me with an attraction by no means to do something on his behalf that will distract the brand new administration. He held the idea that the success of Governor Masari administration is the success of Katsina State which issues to him.
In one in every of our discussions, he particularly advised me the necessity for us to not undermine the brand new administration within the curiosity of the state. He holds the idea that the politics that won’t serve the curiosity of the individuals shouldn’t be practised. Whether or not that’s the norm in Nigeria or not will probably be a matter for an additional day. On this current dispensation, he has spoken to me time with out quantity about Katsina State and Nigeria, on the necessity to give most assist for the success of the administration of Governor Umar Dikko Radda and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He emphasised that the duo are leaders who imply effectively in offering good governance for the populace. In accordance with him, though the current scenario is hard and difficult, it will be non permanent as a result of sincerity, dedication and dedication of the leaders I earlier talked about.
He’s a well-cultured and polished politician. Within the eight years of his travails of persecution, abuses, malicious allegations and insults, he remained calm and well mannered to others. There isn’t any any insulting, abusive or derogatory assertion towards his detractors that may be attributed to him. To keep up this place assiduously, he gave me a standing instruction to not react to subject on his behalf regardless of how extremely provocative with out discussing the matter with him. This I’ve saved religiously with only one exception, and the exception is my annual tribute on his birthday, which I normally do with out him having an inkling into my writing till when it’s revealed.
As a lawyer, Shema had no downside navigating the terrain of authorized follow, particularly within the space of worldwide legislation, which he selected to concentrate on.
One can say unequivocally that the profitable final result of the authorized problem mounted towards Boeing Seattle, Washington: the US producer of the Nigerian Airways’ aircraft that crashed in Kaduna in 1995 was a lot to the credit score of his authorized follow. Because of this, Dr. Shema and his US companions, the Legislation Places of work of Sterns and Walker, have been capable of compel Lloyds of London to pay compensation, working into thousands and thousands of naira to victims and dependents of passengers of the ill-fated flight.
As well as, Shema has dealt with quite a few different company and aviation circumstances in Cameroon, France, United Kingdom (UK), United States of America (USA), Saudi Arabia, and others.
As an expert authorized practitioner, Shema can also be a member and fellow of a number of distinguished skilled our bodies together with the Nigerian Bar Affiliation (NBA), Worldwide Bar Affiliation (IBA), American Bar Affiliation, Worldwide Institute of Arbitrators, Worldwide Dispute Decision Institute and Centre for America and Worldwide Legislation, to say just some. He’s as effectively a Notary Public of the Supreme Court docket of Nigeria.
Past his distinguished authorized follow, his sojourn within the enterprise world can also be no much less spectacular. He was at totally different instances the managing director of Solidary Holdings Ltd, Kaduna, Instruments Manufacturing Firm Restricted, Lagos, He served because the chairman of Nigeria Airspace Administration Company (NAMA), he’s additionally on the board of different corporations.
Comfortable birthday to my Oga (grasp), mentor, exemplary chief, and first-rate administrator.
Oluwabusola is head of media crew of former Governor Ibrahim Shehu Shema.
