When will this incessant vilification of Doma stop?

Since its creation 16 years ago, the state has both been fortunate and unfortunate to be saddled with leaders. Among those the state has had is Alhaji Aliyu Akwe Doma, politician from Doma who fought through thick and thin to make the creation of the state a reality. It is a well known fact that […]

Since its creation 16 years ago, the state has both been fortunate and unfortunate to be saddled with leaders. Among those the state has had is Alhaji Aliyu Akwe Doma, politician from Doma who fought through thick and thin to make the creation of the state a reality.

It is a well known fact that Doma in conjunction of like-minded indigenes of the state ran punishing schedules, sacrificing time, energy and money to ensure that Nasarawa State was created out of the old Plateau State in 1996. His houses both in Doma and Jos became abode for agitators for the creation of the state. The announcement of the creation of the state was announced by the late General Sani Abacha on 1st October, 1996, with this humble writer been one of the pioneer local government chairmen in the then new Nasarawa State.

But either through sheer mischief or outright hatred, some misguided elements have elected to distort Doma’s role in the political evolution of the state. These arm-chair critics masquerading as writers recently went to press with uncharitable articles demonising the personality of Doma, all in an attempt to paint him black in the eyes of unsuspecting members of the public.

His tenure as governor from 2007 to 2011 was described as lacklustre. Most of the publications, especially the one by Muazu Abari contained baseless allegations laced with barefaced vendetta.

Anytime nitwits in the garb of political jobbers pick a pen to engage in their lucrative pastime of lampooning Doma, we concede to them the right to make ends meet. Or to put it more appropriately, to justify the crumbs, they pick from the table of their paymasters.

For him to remain relevant and useful to the shrinking colony of political paper weights in the politics of Nasarawa State, they must continue to bash Doma without let or hindrance.

According to a wise saying, a river whose sources are well known cannot, even in its cascading avalanche, sweep away the discerning. Abari in one of his recent write-ups on the anniversary of Nasarawa State in his characteristic manner descended on Doma, saying that the former governor disappointed the people of the state who looked up to him to “supersede the achievements of his predecessor” when he assumed office as governor in 2007.  According to the writer, “the administration (of Doma) not only failed woefully to even sustain the vision of his predecessor but ended up as the worst administration ever produced by the people of Nasarawa”.

The author of that piece did not stop there as he went ahead to accuse Doma of: arbitrary seizure of farmlands from the people of Doma; failure of his 13-point agenda in the areas of provision of water, which he said led to the proliferation of “mairuwa”. Abari even went to the ridiculous extent of attributing students’ massive failure in national examinations to the failure of Doma’s administration.

It is said that the roots of evil are three: arrogance, envy and greed. Arrogance prevented Satan from bowing to Adam; envy led Cane to kill Abel and greed took Adam out of Paradise. In the same vein, it is the combination of arrogance, envy and greed that has beclouded Abari and his fast vanishing tribe of myopic critics from seeing any redeeming feature in what Aliyu Doma’s administration achieved between 2007 and 2011.

For the avoidance of doubt, it is necessary at this juncture to lay bare in a nut shell Doma’s positive sides when he presided over the affairs of the state as its chief executive.  With his 13-point agenda, Doma launched the famous Badakoshi Scheme through which he revolutionalized agriculture; his administration constructed 500 housing units for civil servants complete with infrastructures (for N1.2bn); provided 5,000 motorcycles for civil servants on hire-purchase (N4.4bn); payment of retirement and death benefits to civil servants and payment of severance package to political office holders—chairmen and councillors—during Abdullahi Adamu’s administration (N1.25bn).

With this breathtaking scorecard, which is verifiable, it is only unrepentant enemies of progress that will say Doma did not do anything for the state.

Not to worry, his traducers may scoff, let them be. Sceptics have a right to argue. What is however incontestable is that between 2007 and 2011, Doma sacrificed a lot in furthering the development of the state.

Adamu Oyanki, Secretary of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) sent in this piece from Lafia, Nasarawa State