I was instrumental in defence minister’s appointment — Kaduna gov

Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani.

Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has said he was instrumental in the appointment of retired General Christopher Musa as Minister of Defence by President Bola Tinubu.

Sani disclosed this during an interview on Trust TV’s Daily Politics on Tuesday, while explaining why he continued to support Tinubu despite criticism.

“The Minister of Defence is from Kaduna, Christopher Musa, and I was instrumental in him getting the ministerial position,” the governor said.

He also cited the appointment of Balarabe Abbas Lawal as Minister of Environment and Shehu Dikko’s leadership of the National Sports Commission as examples of Kaduna State’s representation at the federal level.

Sani said his support for Tinubu was based on the benefits he believed the President had secured for the state rather than personal favours.

“The favour he has done is not to me, it’s to the state. So, for me, my interest is the interest of the state,” he said.

The governor said he approached Tinubu to request two additional federal universities for Kaduna, arguing that the state deserved more higher institutions because of its educational significance in Northern Nigeria.

According to him, the President subsequently approved four university projects for the state.

He listed the Federal University of Applied Sciences in Kachia, the Federal University of Education in Zaria, the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University of Petroleum Resources in Rigachikun, and the conversion of Kaduna Polytechnic into a Federal University of Technology.

Sani also highlighted federal road projects, including the Kaduna-Birnin Gwari road, which he said had been abandoned for about 45 years.

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He said he reminded Tinubu of a campaign promise made in 2022, leading to the approval of the road’s reconstruction.

The governor added that work had begun on the 81-kilometre Zaria-Soba-Pambegua road, which he said had not undergone major reconstruction since it was built in the 1970s.

He also cited the Jama’a-Wai-Jere road as another project approved following his intervention.

On transportation, Sani said he persuaded Tinubu to include Kaduna in the proposed light rail programme alongside Lagos and Kano.

He said funding had been released for a 50-kilometre rail corridor linking Rigachikun and Sabon Tasha, putting the amount at $865m, equivalent to more than N1.2tn.

The governor also said the Federal Government provided an intervention that enabled his administration to increase its planned purchase of compressed natural gas buses from 50 to 100.

“Immediately, he gave us intervention to add 50 more CNG buses instead of 50 to make it 100,” Sani said.

According to him, the 100 buses recorded 5.2 million passenger trips within 18 months and helped commuters save about N5bn in transportation costs.

Sani maintained that the federal appointments, university projects, road construction and transportation initiatives were among the reasons for his continued support for Tinubu, insisting that his priority was to secure development opportunities for the state.