Regional Editor, Olawale Rasheed, examines the many economic strategies of the the Kano State governor, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, in the fight against insurgency in the state.Kano politics is a turbulent one with rich history of actors who also made it to the national stage. A mixture of conflicting forces and camps complicates governance in the state, making the job one for the tough-hearted rather than the meek. Hence, Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso faces daunting modernisation and developmental challenges.The circumstances of the governor's return to office demanded a measure of harsh conduct to take full reign of state apparatus. With a defeated predecessor who was in power for eight years, survival instincts call for surgical operations. When the conflictive politics of the state is added to the equation, no new governor can survive by retaining the inherited staus quo. In this particular case, the predecessor had been a real foe who indeed probed and attempted to indict the incumbent.The early part of Kwankwaso's conduct in office can therefore be judged from the perspective of a new entrant into the den of opposition who must ensure proper house-cleansing before resting. What is more, no endangered governor can deliver on developmental targets. Thus, most tactical leaders ensure their personal security to empower them to attend to crucial state assignments. In the same line, the turbulence of Kano politics compels fundamental turnaround of government machinery with a view to set in motion the new agenda.Expectedly, such conduct will draw the ire of the ousted caucus with labels and multiple accusations. If the new force succumbs to the pressure, then the old forces will retain their influence and strategically hold the new- comers by the jugular. The problem is that while a political neophyte may make that mistake, no veteran like the governor can commit such a political suicide. This is the dilemma of Kano politics, a setting in which a new governor is introducing a new order and where the old forces are constantly making a show.The reality of the state is that the governor inherited multiple insurgencies of which the Boko Haram sect is only one. The main insurgency which breeds and expands the network of Boko Haram is extreme poverty and extensive underdevelopment. The rating of Kano on all indexes was abysmal and the situation was a source of shame and concern to many prominent sons of the state. This explains the partnership between the African richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and the Central Bank governor, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, with the governor to find a lasting solution to this menace.The governor's original strategy was a targeted empowerment programme focusing on the women folk, believeing that mothers are in a stronger position to tame the spreading almajiri problem. During his electioneering the women issue was top on the agenda, a matter that is now fully supported by the state government and the business mogul, Dangote. Kano, under the former Defence Minister, remains the only state where indigenes directly donate huge fund into government programme because of the trust they have in the governor.In his effort to complement the Kano State government in boosting agriculture and women and youth empowerment, Dangote donated the sum of N600 million to the state government, explaining that the aim of making the donation was to contribute his quota towards the development of the women empowerment initiative of the Kwankwaso-led administration and for agricultural development in the state. The Central Bank governor, Sanusi, said that he identified himself with the well conceived initiatives of the Kano State government in the development of the state, especially in the areas of education, youth and women empowerment, as well as for the development of agriculture. The director of Ford Foundation, Dr Odiambo Odago, also praised the governor for initiating the empowerment programme, adding that, if the programme and the resources are judiciously sustained, they will be of great benefits, not only to the beneficiaries, but to the state at large.Still focusing on tackling poverty to tame insurgency, the governor unveiled his poverty eradication scheme/feeding and rehabilitation of primary schools with issuing a five million cheque to each of the 44 local government areas of the state. Kwankwaso said the scheme would empower 44,000 women selected from all local government areas of the state. He said the women would be trained, especially on poultry production where after graduation, each woman would go home with 11,000 naira and a supply of some quantity of day-old chicks.According to the governor, the main aim of his administration is to create more job opportunities among the people through various initiatives to be conducted by the Community Reorientation Committees (CRCs).About the feeding exercise, Kwankwaso maintained that the state government would feed pupils on Mondays and Tuesdays, while local government councils would feed them on Wednesdays and Thursdays and Fridays for the concerned individuals willing to support the government. The state needs the support of all its wealthy citizens to tackle the deepening poverty crisis in the state, the governor noted.While fighting insurgency through economic means, the governor also started a revolution which no governor in the federation has attempted. The heart of government is the State Executive Council (SEC) where critical decisions are taken. A surprising decision was that the minutes of the weekly meetings containing approvals and decisions of government are regularly posted on facebook with an interactive opportunity with the public. This is a novel way of enforcing transparency in governmental activities as decisions of government are available for the citizens to access.The governor's dilemma may actually be how to push for a reorientation of the public about government and its operations. While he is saving fund for development, many are on his neck for not oiling the system. When he is monitoring the public bureaucracy for efficiency, he was accused of high handedness. When he appointed technocrats into government, political jobbers are not impressed. Innovations capable of transforming Kano into a modern developed economic and social hub of the North can never be achieved with subsisting attitudes and orientation.The governor's modernisation project is however attracting the support and material backing of the state's prominent citizens. While it is not clear whether economic means can defeat armed insurgency, the current effort of the state government is seen by many observers as capable of laying a solid foundation for a sustainable development of this great state.
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