Sani Haruna
The National Democratic Party (NDP) governorship candidate in Kebbi State, Alhaji Ahmadu Zumaru, has pledged reforms in education, security, agriculture and the judiciary if elected governor in the 2027 general elections.
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Zumaru made the pledge in Birnin Kebbi during a Candidates Engagement Forum organised by the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kebbi State Council, to provide candidates with an opportunity to present their programmes and policy proposals to the electorate.
He said his governorship ambition was driven by the desire to provide people-oriented leadership, tackle corruption and address challenges affecting the state’s development.
The candidate identified education as a major priority, particularly in rural communities affected by insecurity, promising to ensure that children were not deprived of learning opportunities because of school closures.
He said his proposed administration would assess the number of pupils and students in remote communities affected by insecurity and introduce alternative learning arrangements while efforts continued to restore peace and security.
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Zumaru also promised to expand digital learning opportunities and introduce policies to attract highly qualified professionals, including PhD holders, into primary school teaching. He added that teachers’ welfare would be improved to discourage them from leaving the profession.
He further proposed the establishment of an education trust fund committee to assess the challenges facing the sector and recommend appropriate interventions.
On gender inclusion, the NDP candidate pledged to increase the proportion of female teachers to 75 per cent, arguing that women played a significant role in children’s early development and education. He also promised policies to protect women’s political, economic, social and religious rights and promote their participation in public life.
Addressing rural development, Zumaru proposed a joint development programme involving state and local governments, under which local governments would contribute 20 per cent of the funding. He said the arrangement would promote balanced development across local government areas and discourage rural-to-urban migration.
On agriculture, he criticised the untimely distribution of fertiliser and called for farm inputs to be supplied in line with the agricultural calendar to improve productivity.
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Zumaru said Kebbi State had hardworking farmers but required adequate support to enable them to maximise their production potential.
He maintained that timely access to agricultural inputs would help address challenges confronting farmers and strengthen the state’s agricultural sector.