Tinubu And The Normalisation of Impact In Kebbi

By Musa Ibrahim

It is always a thing of pride for one’s state to host the President of the nation. There is a certain electricity that fills the air; a certain collective lift in spirit, pomp and pageantry. The cheering faces of the hundreds who lined the streets leading to the Ahmadu Bello International Airport said only one thing: the President is indeed welcomed to Kebbi State as he traverses to Argungu to grace the ancient Argungu Fishing Festival.

The diversity of the crowd coupled with the visible enthusiasm about them showed it was not rented excitement. This was the genuine pride of a people conscious of their history and confident of their present. For Argungu is not merely a festival; it is heritage, identity, and economic symbolism rolled into one. And for the President to honour that heritage with his presence carries both symbolic and practical weight.

But beyond the glitz and pizzazz of the fishing festival where the President commended the return of peace in the state, the visit assumed a more consequential character, draped in impact and echoing the loud statement of governance, and a validation of performance.

That performance came in the form of completed landmark infrastructure projects lined up for the president to commission. So, the president’s visit went beyond just the allure of culture, it became about the visible imprint of leadership.

The first of the projects to be commissioned was the State Secretariat Complex, aptly named the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Secretariat Complex. The completion of the state secretariat is indeed a monumental achievement. For years, workers in Birnin-Kebbi have worked in surroundings unbefitting of the services they render. Therefore, the construction of a secretariat to serve as the engine room of administration is beyond symbolic.

The secretariat is where policy is translated into paperwork and paperwork into public service delivery. So, for our State to erect a modern complex of that magnitude speaks to institutional strengthening; to governance structuring; and, the centralisation of service.

The President then went on to commission the Birnin Kebbi Central Motor Park. For us, this motor parks is not an ordinary transport terminal, it carries a significant that extends to the wider economic story. This is because, motor parks are arteries of commerce. They connect farmers to markets, traders to customers, and rural dwellers to urban opportunities. A well-designed central motor park reduces chaos, enhances security, and dignifies movement.

From motor park, the president’s commissioning train moved to the city of Birnin-Kebbi where the newly dualised three-lane carriageway along Emir Haruna Road, and other constructed township road networks within the metropolis were commissioned. As we know, roads are the most basic indices of governance. And while these never go beyond the promise stage in many places, here in Kebbi state, they stand in constructed in asphalt and concrete. As we know, dualisation reduces congestion, lowers accident rates, and signals forward planning.

Also commissioned was the Kauran Gwandu College of Nursing and Midwifery Science, Ambursa, as well as the dualised Old Argungu By-Pass. Again, we know that healthcare training institutions are long-term investments. They address manpower gaps before they become emergencies. A College of Nursing and Midwifery does more than graduate professionals; it strengthens primary healthcare delivery across communities. The construction of the college is a direct response to the sorry state Gov. Nasir met healthcare in Kebbi state, especially as it affect maternal and child health.

A visibly impressed Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared that he was not surprised at the excellent showing of Nasir Idris. That statement was more than a polite compliment, it was an endorsement of sustainable development and it suggested that performance has become predictable in Kebbi. The president confirmed that excellence, rather than mediocrity, has become the default expectation in Kebbi state.

Indeed, the people of Kebbi State are no longer surprised by the number of new projects. Governor Nasir has, since assuming office, surprised the people one time too many with impactful projects, including such projects that eluded successive governments. There was a time when certain infrastructural aspirations were considered too ambitious or too expensive, even too complicated. Today, they stand completed.

As the saying goes, a masquerade that comes out every day begins to lose its fear factor. In this case, the Governor has visited the people with too many surprises that they no longer find any of his impactful projects surprising. The extraordinary has gradually become ordinary and the people have been made better for it.

And that as far as I’m concerned, is the highest compliment any administration can earn. It’s not everyday that when citizens begin to expect good governance as routine, but that’s the general expectation in Kebbi state.

The people have come to expect good things from Governor Nasir. This point can never be overemphasised. Before this run of commissioning performed by the president, past efforts at repositioning education have included massive renovation of primary and secondary schools, recruitment of qualified teachers to address manpower deficits, and the reactivation of boarding facilities in strategic locations to improve access for rural children. Education, long neglected in the state is being treated as the foundation it truly is with over 200 primary and secondary schools across the state either renovated or constructed. This is not surprising considering the governor’s history as a teacher.

In healthcare, beyond the College of Nursing and Midwifery, the administration has undertaken upgrades of general hospitals, improved supply chains for essential drugs, and invested in primary healthcare centres across local government areas. The thinking is that, whereas tertiary hospitals are important, healthcare truly begins at the grassroots.

In agriculture, which is the lifeblood of the economy of the state, the administration has sustained input support programmes for farmers which includes the procurement and distribution of fertilisers and farm inputs to thousands of farmers; expanded irrigation initiatives, and strengthened partnerships aimed at boosting rice production and other staple crops. The reputation of Kebbi state as an agricultural powerhouse is being consolidated.

Then, there’s the payment of outstanding gratuities and pensions owed to retirees amongst several welfare packages extended to the state’s workforce. It is on record that Kebbi was among the first to start paying the new minimum wage.

Security, too, has witnessed deliberate engagement. The President’s public commendation of the return of peace did not emerge from thin air. It reflects coordinated efforts between state authorities and federal security agencies. Governor Nasir has been frank about the improving face of the security situation and It’s cheering to hear the president commend the efforts of everyone involved.

There is also a political subtext to all of this. When a President travels to a state and commissions multiple projects in one outing, it signals synergy between federal and state leadership. It projects unity of purpose and in the Nigerian political climate, often defined by friction, such harmony is noteworthy.

However, it would be simplistic to attribute Kebbi state’s current trajectory solely to ceremonial moments. The Argungu festival provided the stage. The projects provided the substance, but the deeper story lies in consistency.

The one lesson from Birnin-Kebbi is that governance must move beyond groundbreaking ceremonies and ribbon-cutting photo opportunities. It must be felt in daily life and exemplified in shorter travel times, in better hospital services, in classrooms with roofs that do not leak, in salaries paid without drama. The measure of any administration is not necessarily the weight of razzmatazz at commissioning events, but the number of lives that would be improved. On that score, the emerging narrative in Kebbi is one of steady consolidation.

Of course, challenges remain. No state is immune to economic headwinds, inflationary pressures, or revenue constraints. But the question is not whether challenges exist. The question is whether leadership responds with resignation or resolve. The evidence so far, in Kebbi suggests dogged resolve.

Indeed, as all things, president Tinubu’s visit may eventually fade from the news cycle, as such visits often do. The colourful images from Argungu will give way to other headlines. But the roads, the secretariat, the motor park, the college, will remain, continue to serve and be cherished by posterity.

And perhaps that is the enduring takeaway. That message that leadership is not merely about what we do today, but more about how all the infrastructure and policy is remembered by posterity.

To us in Kebbi state, Gov. Nasir Idris is a gift that keeps on giving. His consistent performance is no longer some sort of a spectacle, it has become culture. And with it, comes a steadily evolving landscape where promises have found their true form and the people can’t but be better for it.

Ibrahim writes from Birnin Kebbi