The government of Kano State, northwest Nigeria, has said it would rebuild a monument it demolished at a popular roundabout near the government house at a new location within the metropolis.
Development Diaries had reported that the roundabout, which the administration of Abdullahi Ganduje renovated, was brought down on 14 June, 2023, based on the directive of the incumbent governor, Abba Yusuf.
According to the state government, the structure was pulled down due to religious concerns.
In a statement, acting Press Secretary to the governor of the state, Hisham Habib, said the design was blocking road users’ front view because of its size.
‘Secondly, if you use a drone shot of the aerial view of the monument, you will see a sign of a cross, and in Kano, we are 99.9 percent, if not 100 percent, Muslims. You cannot put a cross sign in front of a government house’, the statement read.
It is understood that the demolished roundabout was worth N160 million.
In other words, the government of Kano State wasted N160 million because it was ‘blocking road users’ front view’ and it had ‘sign of a cross’.
Governor Yusuf, in his acceptance speech as governor, promised to offer dividends of democracy to the people of the state.
‘The completion of abandoned projects, free maternal health care programmes and provision of a conducive atmosphere for the development of businesses in and within the state’, he promised.
However, the pulling down of a structure that gulped N160 million, and planning to re-erect the same structure which is likely to cost more, does not in any way benefit the masses of Kano State.
The governor should be reminded that the people of Kano State are waiting for him to start fulfilling the promises he made to them during his campaign for office.
Government should be a continuum and instead of destroying the legacies of the previous administration or governor, the current governor should build on them for the continuous development of the state.
Development Diaries, therefore, calls on Governor Yusuf to focus on delivering on his campaign promises to the people of Kano State.
Photo source: Imran Mohammad
