Governor of Bauchi State and presidential aspirant in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Bala Mohammed, said President Muhammadu Buhari has failed as a president because he surrounds himself with “liars and sycophants”
Mr Mohammed, who was in Katsina Sunday evening to meet with PDP delegates ahead of the party’s presidential primary elections, said Mr Buhari has failed to provide good leadership to Nigerians.
Mr Mohammed said the country is in complete “disarray” because the president lacks the political will to act.
“Katsina is a state that produces good leaders for the country. We know what the late Umaru Musa Yar’adu’a did when he was the president, even this one that is now the president (Mr Buhari) we know that he is surrounded by a bunch of liars and sycophants.
“They tell him lies every day and you know how soldiers are. He doesn’t know how cunning people could be and he barely knows how government works. He doesn’t reach out to the poor in the local areas but he sits there and believes everything they tell him. He thinks everyone is an honest person. But I’m different because I know what governance is… We need someone with the exposure and intelligence to change the situation,” he said.
“The country is in disarray and things are falling apart as if there is no government in place, and this was not how we’re known as Nigerians. There is poverty in the land. People are hungry. The issue of insecurity is always increasing that people can’t go to their farms, children can’t go to school, and people can’t travel to visit their loved ones….just like a folktale setting…..in this Katsina you people are being disturbed by bandits and this is the state of the president. Does this sound like a comedy show to you? Just like the stories in folktales. And it’s as if the security agents don’t even know what they’re doing,” Mr Mohammed said.
We’ve failed as leaders
The Bauchi governor added that leaders in the northern part of the country have failed to protect the common man.
He said the poor people in the rural areas only need to be protected but the leaders couldn’t even guarantee that.
“Our deceitful ways led us into this mess. The common man in the north suffers a lot. If he is travelling, he is not safe, even at home, he is still not safe, people are continually getting lost as if in a dream…..and there is nothing we have done. We have failed woefully as leaders” he said.
How I rebuilt Bauchi
Mr Mohammed also spoke on how he has been making an impact as governor in Bauchi State.
“I brought traditional rulers, teachers and local leaders closer to me because they’re crucial in ensuring the security of lives and property. What I do is to be fair to all irrespective of religious or tribal differences and that has been part of the reasons Bauchi is safe.
“We’ve made giant strides in all sectors, especially the education and health sectors. Primary health centres were built and equipped drugs were given at subsidized rates, local government councils secretariats were also reconstructed while 4,000 were built to ensure school-age students return to school. That’s why I don’t go to Abuja looking for anything because I’ve nothing to get there.” he said.
He is among the 17 contestants for president under the PDP.
Mr Mohammed and former Kwara state governor, Bukola Saraki, were announced as the “consensus candidates” of the North by a former Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Ango Abdullahi, although the three other candidates from the North who are in the race for the PDP ticket immediately rejected the declaration.
The other aspirants from the North are former vice president, Atiku Abubakar; Sokoto Governor Aminu Tambuwal and an economist and businessman, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen.
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