18 years after: Jigawa workers still shuttle between Dutse, Kano

Weekly Trust findings reveal that, although accommodation was partially solved by the present administration of Governor Sule Lamido, most of the state civil servants still prefer to live in either Kano or their respective local government areas. It was observed that the daily shuttling by the civil servants is rising despite efforts to address accommodation […]

Weekly Trust findings reveal that, although accommodation was partially solved by the present administration of Governor Sule Lamido, most of the state civil servants still prefer to live in either Kano or their respective local government areas.

It was observed that the daily shuttling by the civil servants is rising despite efforts to address accommodation problem. It was learnt that over 60 per cent of the total workforce including junior workers report to Dutse for work daily.

Although successive administrations have made several efforts particularly to provide accommodation for the workers, it was learnt that they were still shuttling between Dutse and their respective homes.

Parts of the efforts made by the previous governments of the state include the construction of 50 housing units by the Olayinka Sule regime, followed by the 600 housing units built by the first civilian governor of the state, Alhaji Ali Sa’adu Birnin-Kudu. Colonel Raheed Shokoni followed by constructing more 50 housing units for senior workers along Jigawa by-pass.

The administration of Saminu Turaki also constructed the Jinjiri Dutse, Red bricks, Panisau and Yalwawa housing estates. In the same vein, the former governor also decentralized ministries and government parastatals and agencies across the local government areas of the state to persuade the civil servants to remain in the state, but it all ended in vain.

The present administration of Sule Lamido made several efforts to solve the problem, by constructing 500 housing units at Danmasara village for junior staff.  Another 400 housing units were constructed at Fatara Village for interested buyers.

It was learnt that the motive behind the construction of both Danmasara and Fatara housing units was to convince civil servants to reside in the state, it was also learnt that the prices fixed for the houses were beyond the average civil.

In Danmasara, one bedroom stood at N1.2m, two bedroom N1.8m and a three bedroom N3.2m, while at the Fatara housing units the prices of the houses were not fixed by the government.

In addition to these, Weekly Trust learnt that the administration is currently constructing additional 50 housing units for the medium and lower cadre civil servants of the state. The housing would be commissioned this month, according to the General Manager of the state Housing Authority, Alhaji Muhammad Musa Ahmad.

Located at Shuwarin within the state capital, the project comprises of 30 units of two bed rooms and 20 units of three bedrooms respectively. It was learnt that 20 houses out of the 50 units have reached completion level while the remaining 30 have reached 75 per cent level of completion.

Despite what looks like a long term massive housing scheme by successive governments in the state, workers still come to Dutse for work on daily basis from different parts of the states, some come to work two and or three days in a week. And others do stay in the capital only during working days. Even this category, our reporter observed, do leave the state capital early on Friday.

Weekly Trust findings show that this behaviour of the Jigawa civil servants is affecting governance as administrative activities were delayed and or even stopped because of the absence of top government officials at their duty posts.

It is also a common thing in Jigawa State to visit a government office only to be told that one top government official is not on seat because he/she was coming from Kano or his/her respective localities within the state every day.

It is also a tradition in Jigawa State for it workers to resume office late on earlier week days and close early on Friday. This is for the workers who normally come to Dutse during working days. But for those who have developed the habit of going to Dutse every day from Kano and or their respective local government area, they spend hours in their respective offices before they close for the day. It is learnt that such workers do normally report to their various offices from 12am and close around 3pm or at most 4pm daily.

Indigenes of the state attributed the problem to lack of workers’ patriotism and government’s insincerity. According to this group, the problem started when the state was created. They argued that when Dutse Emirate and some other local governments areas around it including Gaya and Takai in the present Kano State were struggling for the creation of Jigawa, other emirates that are presently in Jigawa State were not part of the struggle and instead were fighting for the creation of their own states but they ended up falling into the present Jigawa state. This factor, according to the people, contributed to the present situation of daily shuttling of workers.

Alhaji Ibrahim Jahun said, “the problem would continue if measures were not taken by those concerned. I can count hundreds of civil servants who are not spending their nights in the state capital just because they failed to achieve their struggle to get their own state. Such civil servants would not do anything that would develop the state capital, or the state as a whole.”

Contrary to Ibrahim’s opinion, a top government official, who craved anonymity told Weekly Trust that, the problem has no linkage whatsoever to issue of emirates dichotomy. According to him, it borders on social amenities. He pointed out that when the state was created in 1991, there were no good schools, roads, water, electricity, hospitals and other basic infrastructures.

“It would be difficult for the government to address this problem within a short time because it is not going to be an easy task for the civil servants to relocate their families to Jigawa after spending years in Kano.”

Another top government civil servant told Weekly Trust that, the level of development of the state could not warrant relocation of most of the families of government civil servants of Jigawa State, noting that “The quality of our hospitals, schools and other infrastructures are not enough to convince civil servants to relocate to Dutse now.”

To Muhammad Ibrahim Gumel, high cost of living is major factor behind the daily shuttling of workers. “Anything that you can buy at N50 in Kano, selss from N70 to N78 in Dutse. High cost of living is part of the reasons why some workers preferred to go back to their respective localities from Dutse after spending their working hours in the state capital.”

According to Dr. Kabir Ibrahim, workers who developed the habit of daily journey to Dutse from Kano and or other Local Governments Areas are exposing themselves to emotional and physical stresses. The emotional stress affects the minds of such people, while physical stress affects their physical body system.

He said, emotional stress exposes one to poor productivity, concentration, unfriendly and fatigue and other related emotional disorders. He noted that people with emotional stress could not deliver the best they could when it comes to their work routines.  

For the physical stress, Dr. Ibrahim explained that, it can manifest in so many ways, as according to him it can affect the bones and muscles. It may also leads to pre-disposition to sub-clinic illness such as low immune and early ageing, among other things.

 The State’s Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Aminu Muhammad said the present administration has started putting things in order, as according to him, the number of workers who are spending their nights in either Kano or their various localities has drastically reduced.

He said the present administration has completed Colonel Rahseed Shekoni Specialist Hospital and equipped it with modern facilities, adding that the government has also invited some investors to establish modern shopping centers in the state.

Alhaji Aminu said, “presently, Sahad Stores and Tahir Investment are about to complete their shopping centres in Dutse, the state capital.”