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JULY 2, 2007 VOL. 21, NO. 12

A Battle Foretold

**Turaki, former governor of Jigawa State.**

The sheer magnitude of debts left by the immediate past administration in Jigawa State sets it on a collision course with the present government
By Suleiman Anyalewechi, Kano
rom May 29, 2007 to date, a common cry of empty treasury has been echoing from virtually all the states of the federation. Newly sworn-in governors have been shouting and complaining of inheriting only “vandalised treasuries” from their predecessors. Even in some states where godsons succeeded their godfathers – who ostensibly planted them to watch their backs – the story has been the same.
Only three weeks ago, most of the affected state chief executives stormed Aso Rock villa to officially lodge complaints with President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua concerning the poor state of their treasuries, as well as the concomitant problems it was posing to them. A bemused President Yar’Adua, The Source authoritatively gathered, was said to have promised the bewildered governors a helping hand in ameliorating the situation.
However, while many of the affected states are only bothered about empty treasuries, some others are burdened by not only empty treasuries, but equally by a huge debt profile capable of stunting development activities for the next four years.
In fact, the Jigawa state case represents a typical example of a state under serious mortgage. The Source’s finding last week revealed that contrary to an earlier estimation, which had put the state’s level of indebtedness at about N51 billion, the state (Jigawa) is actually burdened by an estimated debt of about N137 billion – a situation which appears to have set Governor Sule Lamido on a war path with his predecessor, Alhaji Ibrahim Saminu Turaki. Although the state was said to have been a little indebted before 1999, the largest chunk of the debt is believed to have been incurred between 1999 and 2006, under former Governor Turaki.
As at last week, the state’s huge debt profile has generated enough controversy and misunderstanding between the former government of Turaki, and the new Lamido’s regime, with the latter almost set to carry out an inquest into the activities of his predecessor. The Source gathered that the resolve by Lamido to take a look at the state’s financial records is to ascertain how Jigawa plunged into such a huge debt, without commensurate developmental projects on the ground.
The present row over the state’s level of indebtedness, was notably kick-started on May 29, when former governor, Turaki in his hand-over speech put the state’s debt profile at about N30 billion.
Speaking through his former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and acting Governor, Alhaji Yau Roni, Turaki admitted leaving behind about N28 billion liabilities and contractual obligations, as well as about two billion naira internal debt. He also said that Jigawa state is having about N15.7 million external debt.
Although Governor Lamido in his inaugural speech avoided any comment on not only the state of the treasury, but also the Turaki regimes a source close to the government had then put the level of the state’s indebtedness at about N51 billion, including bank loans and their accumulated interests.
But the state’s debt profile controversy was to climax about three weeks ago when the committee set up by Lamido, immediately after May 29 to ascertain the real state of Jigawa’s indebtedness, submitted its report. The committee which was headed by Alhaji Adamu Waziri Ringim after about two weeks of sitting, put the state’s debt profile at about N137 billion. The committee noted that between 1999 and 2007, Jigawa State received a total revenue of about N232 billion, while at the same time incurring an expenditure of about N365 billion. What this means, according to the committee, was that the Turaki regime incurred an over-expenditure of about N120 billion representing outstanding payments for projects and other dealings with corporate bodies and individuals.
The committee in addition noted that the state is indebted to various banks and financial institutions to the tune of about N13.1 billion, adding that the purported loans were acquired for unspecified and non-existent projects.
Similarly, the Turaki regime, the committee stated collected about one billion naira from the African Development Bank, the World Bank and the International Development Bank for some equally unidentifiable projects.
While receiving the report from the committee, a shocked and confounded Lamido described the situation as intimidating, noting that the report sharply contrasted with the earlier impression given to him to the effect that the state is only indebted to the tune of about N30 billion. According to him, going by the report of the committee, the present level of Jigawa State’s indebtedness is about N240 billion, excluding about N11.1 billion owed various banks.
Governor Lamido, however, quickly reiterated his earlier position of not harbouring the intention of either intimidating or victimising anyone on account of the shocking discoveries. “As I have said earlier, we do not intend to either embarrass or humiliate anybody, because that is beyond us,” Lamido stated.
As would be expected, the report of the Ringim committee penultimate week drew the ire of the Turaki regime, which described it as an attempt to ridicule and embarrass it.
Speaking through the former SSG, the Turaki regime sharply disputed the committee’s figures, describing it as false. According to Roni, the immediate past regime never incurred a debt of about N250billion as being claimed by the committee, noting that the committee is only playing politics with the issue of the state’s indebtedness.
But while Roni was diplomatic in his defence of the Turaki regime, it was not so with the state’s former Commissioner of Finance, Alhaji Lawan Danzomo, who went spiritual, invoking the wrath of Allah on anyone who wants to play politics with the Jigawa State debt profile. According to him, Governor Lamido should have invited external auditors to look into the state of Jigawa finances, with a view to coming up with the correct figure, instead of the present exercise which he said is only meant to discredit the Turaki regime.
Only last week, indications emerged that the Ringim led committee may have been right when it put the State’s total debt profile at about N250 billion. Specifically, the committee had reported a total debt of N13.1 billion owed to several banks operating in the state.
In a development that appears to have lent credence to the committee’s report, a consortium of banks led by Guarantee Trust Bank, were said to have officially written to the state government demanding the payment of about N13.1 billion being owed to them. The letter which was written by the bank Guarantee Trust Bank) on behalf of the other banks, was signed by Mallam Ibrahim Balarabe and Mallam Uba Sani Wudil and addressed to Governor Allahji Lamido. In the letter dated May 31, 2007, the banks claimed that the debt was incurred by the immediate past regime of Turaki through either loans or temporary over-drafts, noting that they would boycott all transactions with the state government if the debt was not settled within a reasonable period of time. The Source gathered that Guarantee Trust Bank is the worst hit by the accumulated debt, being the official banker to the Jigawa State government throughout the tenure of Turaki.
Although believed not to be favourably disposed to probing his predecessor in office before now, The Source gathered that Lamido, worried about the level of the state’s indebtedness as well as its threat to his determination to improve the lot of the people, last week set up a committee to investigate all outstanding contractual liabilities and obligations, with a view to ascertaining their correct amount as well as levels of execution.
Announcing the constitution of the committee, the SSG, Dr. Aminu Abdullahi Taura, said the committee is to be headed by Alhaji Ibrahim Ismaila. Apart from ascertaining the exact worth of all the contractual liabilities, it is to also to “negotiate debts, and advise the government on the need or otherwise for mobilisation and recommend ways of terminating, suspending and or scaling down ongoing projects awarded by the immediate past regime.”
The Source reliably gathered that until last week, Lamido was determined to march on without being distracted by the alleged rot left behind by his predecessor, but the high level of the debts was said to have greatly overwhelmed him, thereby placing a moral burden on him to either stand on the side of the people, or ignore Turaki. Besides, it was gathered that his resolve to get to the roots of the entire matter is to prove to the cynics that there is no iota of politics in the issue of the state’s level of indebtedness, as is being alleged by some elements in the Turaki regime. Specifically, Governor Lamido was said to have been greatly irked by the comments credited to the state’s former Finance Commissioner, Alhaji Danzomo who accused the Lamido regime of trying to use the debt issue to discredit Turaki’s regime.
Although Lamido’s decision to carry out an inquest into the activities of Turaki may appear surprising and shocking to some people, keen watchers of events in the impoverished state over the last eight years would definitely be disappointed if he decides to close his eyes to the manifest filth in the state. For one, apart from the huge debt profile hanging on the neck of the state, there are no visible projects and or programmes on the ground to justify both the money received from the federation account and the loans allegedly acquired between 1999 and 2007.
The Source’s investigations last week revealed that some people who are surprised at Lamido’s resolve to take a peep into the activities of his predecessor are premising their position on an alleged agreement between him and Turaki some months back. Indeed, before the April 14 gubernatorial elections, the rumour mill had been agog that Lamido and Turaki had entered into an agreement, part of which was for Turaki to support the gubernatorial ambition of Lamido, while Lamido is to in return protect Turaki, after taking over.
Before then, however, the same feeling had preceded the formal decamping of Turaki from the ANPP to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) early last year. Many had reasoned that Turaki was joining the PDP to curry the favour of the powers-that-be, and run away from the claws of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The Source was further told that based on this feeling, some believe that it would be morally wrong for Lamido to probe the regime of Turaki, after being helped to power by the same man.
However, The Source’s findings last week revealed that not a few are applauding the courage of Lamido in carrying out an inquest into the activities of the Turaki regime, despite some pockets of opposition from people especially those loyal to the immediate past regime. In an informal discussion with The Source, a Jigawa State elder, who is also a senior palace official in one of the state’s five emirate councils, said that irrespective of whatever deal Lamido must have entered into with Turaki, he (Lamido) owes the people the obligation of not only probing Turaki, but recovering their money from him. “Let me say that I am not bothered about whatever agreement Lamido must have entered or not entered into with not only Turaki, but whoever, my position is that he, Lamido as a good Moslem should remember that the agreement he has with God and the people remains supreme over any agreement with any mortal. So he has to serve the people well. And if serving the people well would mean recovering their looted funds from whoever, let him do so, regardless of whatever agreement with anybody,” said the elder. According to him, posterity would not forgive Lamido should he fail to get Turaki to refund some, if not all the money he looted from the state, noting that no sane person who is sincere and ready to serve the people would ignore the situation left behind by Turaki.
“In short, the truth is that even Turaki’s child would probe him, if he has the fear of God in him,” the elder further stated.
However, while the stage seems set for Lamido to look into the records left behind by his predecessor, another stage also appears set for Turaki and his cohorts, some of who are in the new government, to equally frustrate the move.