Deconstructing the angst against Shema

Shema came in with unequalled drive to swiftly position the state along the veritable part of immediate infrastructural renewal helped by a deep understanding of where the state was coming from. He wasted no time in offering the state an impressive infrastructural transformation through massive and all-encompassing developmental projects, either completed by his administration or […]

Shema came in with unequalled drive to swiftly position the state along the veritable part of immediate infrastructural renewal helped by a deep understanding of where the state was coming from. He wasted no time in offering the state an impressive infrastructural transformation through massive and all-encompassing developmental projects, either completed by his administration or started by him.
Among the numerous successes of his is the sustenance of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Katsina even when leading personalities of the opposition parties are also sons and daughters of the state. How then can anyone say Governor Shema was working against the PDP which he is very much a part of?
This is the situation with an aspirant Umar Tsauri Abdullahi also known as Tata, who wants the world to believe that Governor Shema was working against the PDP simply because he wants to become Katsina State governor under the PDP platform and to get the ticket by all means necessary. It’s incredible that Tata wants us to believe Shema is working against the party.
Even when many of the governors across the country were angling to upstage senators or to even replace them at the end of their tenure, Governor Shema was not selfish as he allowed other interested aspirants have their way, even though he would have emerged the candidate of the PDP. Yet Tata and his loyalists accuse Shema of selfishness.
Tata had argued that Shema was interested in becoming the Vice President in the re-election bid of President Goodluck Jonathan; can anyone say the governor does not merit becoming one? What does Tata and his loyalists make of the statement by Shema that power belongs to and come from God? What would they have done if tomorrow Barrister Shema was picked by President Jonathan as his running mate for 2015?
Governor Shema has been described as a ‘stingy governor’ since he has refused to open the state’s vault for Katsina politicians, a characteristic he shares with his predecessor, Yar’adua.  Katsina people can’t be hoodwinked by the antics of people like Tata. Courts of law are there for people like Tata to seek redress if they feel aggrieved. One wonders why Tata was accusing Governor Shema of being behind his botched campaign rally (which is illegal as it is not yet time for that) when the security of the state was at stake with the unruly activities of his supporters.
His disguising his campaign with programmes for President Jonathan notwithstanding, it was clear his intention was to polarise the party, thinking such will fetch him the party ticket.
One of the most laughable accusations of Tata is that Governor Shema is planning to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and that he was romancing with scions of the APC in the state. One should ask Tata if all his business acolytes were PDP members and if he has not been having business deals with known and prominent opposition figures?
There is no gain saying that agriculture is the major occupation of the Katsina people and the sector has a pride of place in the Shema administration. This is one state where farming goes on year-round because of the attention the governor pays to irrigation. So, whether it rains or not, farmers have no problem watering their plants. There are several irrigation dams across the state supporting large scale agriculture, one of which is Jibia Dam, which increased yield from 100 hectares of land in 2007 to 3,500 in 2011.
Shema’s supports for the agro-allied industry has led to creation of jobs and add value to agricultural produce. The governor says his plan is to improve governance and service delivery using medium term fiscal and monetary stability approach without excessive short term tightening to achieve more sustainable and balanced approach. So prudent is his management of the state resources that his administration has not borrowed any money whether internally or externally to execute its projects. The successes recorded in the state under Shema may not have being achieved if what Tata wants us to believe is true.
Contrary to the saying that a prophet has no honour in his home, Governor Shema has equally bagged a traditional title of Sarkin Fulani of Katsina I, the first in the history of the emirate, making him one of the councillors of the famous Katsina Emirate Council. He has also been honoured by the Emir of Gusau with similar title of Lamido Fulbe of Gusau, meaning him the leader of Gusau Fulani people. Shema got all these titles from those Emirs and Chiefs because of his tremendous efforts religiously, politically and traditionally.
It is only good that Tata and his ilk should stop their kind of game that has not paid those that played it in the past but rather support the working and performing governor.
Katsina would appreciate the likes of Tata if they spend the money and other resources in their disposal to better the lots of the state and its citizenry. What they are expending the resources on now amounts to waste.
A commentator once said: “There is something most people do not know about Shema. One of his fondest phrases is “thank you”. There is no deed, errand, greeting or gift, however insignificant, Shema would not appreciate. Need one say more?
Abdullahi wrote in from Abuja.