The Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, has said that the adoption of continuity in governance by his Bayelsa State counterpart, Douye Diri, has enhanced the development of the state.
Bala spoke on Tuesday when he inaugurated the Igbogene-Okarki section of the Igbogene-AIT-Elebele Outer Ring Road as part of activities marking Diri’s second year in office.
Bala said that apart from invoking the spirit of continuity in government for the good of Bayelsa, the governor is also fostering unity among the people of the state and Nigerians in general.
He described Diri as a landmark governor who came into office, not as a greenhorn but an experienced public servant.
While commending Diri for not abandoning development projects, the Bauchi governor said, “I think you are a landmark governor, you are a special governor, because you foster peace and unity. You are unifying everybody, you are unifying us, Bayelsans and Nigeria.
“He is not a greenhorn, he came into governance and took it by storm and you can see the spirit of continuity enshrining in Bayelsa. And in terms of peer review, all of us, the second-term governors, and the new ones, are borrowing so much from him.”
Bala urged the governor to continue to work for the progress and development of the state in line with the mandate given to him by the people of the state.
In his remarks, Diri commended his predecessor, Senator Seriake Dickson, for initiating the Igbogene-AIT-Elebele Outer Ring Road.
He reiterated the need for continuity in projects execution and governance, stressing that it was one way of ensuring that state resources were not wasted.
The Bayelsa governor said this was the first time a successor would not abandon development projects started by the previous government in the state.
He said, “That is the beauty of continuity; this is the first time in this state that government is moving from one hand to another and projects started (by previous administration) are being completed and not abandoned.
“My dear people of Bayelsa, that is the only way our resources will not be wasted. As I came in, seeing this very all-important road, and abandoned it and go to construct a new one, the resources that were put in here by my predecessor would have been wasted. So I like to appreciate all of you that put in your best for this road to be completed.”
Copyright PUNCH.
