Build institutions beyond elections, Shettima urges leaders

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Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged Nigerian leaders to build institutions and implement policies that will continue to serve the people beyond their tenure in office.

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Shettima, represented by his Special Adviser on Special Duties, Aliyu Modibbo, made the call at the presentation of a book on the life and legacy of Brigadier Musa Usman, pioneer military governor of the former North-Eastern State, on Monday, in Abuja.

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The Vice President said leadership should be measured by the institutions built, lives improved and society strengthened after a leader had left office.

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He said, “We must build beyond the next elections and think beyond political boundaries. Leadership is measured by what continues to serve the people after the leader has left office.”

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Shettima said the presentation of the book was an opportunity to remember a generation of public servants who approached public office as an honourable duty and an opportunity to build institutions and serve the people.

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He commended the authors, Mahmud Jega and Theophilus Aba, for preserving the story and legacy of Musa Usman, whose contributions, he said, remained visible across the North-East.

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According to him, the former North-Eastern State, created in 1967, covered an immense and diverse territory that now comprises six states.

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He said the region’s diversity in ethnic groups, faiths, ecological zones and historical traditions required fair and credible institutions that would give all communities a sense of belonging.

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Shettima said Musa Usman’s legacy was particularly visible in Maiduguri, noting that the Musa Usman Secretariat remained an enduring monument to his administration.

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The Vice President said successive administrations built on the foundations laid by their predecessors, adding that development in the North-East must continue despite the challenges confronting the region.

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He urged leaders to recover the spirit of purposefulness in public service and apply it to contemporary challenges, including reconstruction, agriculture, education, transportation, energy, industrialisation, employment, environmental restoration, peace and security.

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Former National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, said Musa Usman’s contribution to national development remained relevant more than five decades after he served as military governor of the former North-Eastern State.

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Monguno said the territory administered by Musa Usman was vast and diverse, covering what are now Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe states.

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He said the region covered about 289,421 square kilometres and shared an international boundary with Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

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Monguno said Musa Usman assumed office at the age of 27 and inherited a region with limited infrastructure, but devoted his eight-year tenure to transforming it into a centre of national development.

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He said, “The eight years he served as military governor of the North-Eastern State were exemplified by a commitment to duty, a sense of purpose, and a relentlessness, fired by a desire to transform the North-East into one of the nerve centres for national development.”

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Monguno listed several projects associated with Musa Usman’s administration, including the Ashaka Cement Company, Savannah Sugar Factory, North-East College of Arts and Science, Maiduguri Specialist Hospital and the National Kidney Centre.

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He, however, identified the establishment of the Chad Basin Development Authority as one of Musa Usman’s most significant contributions, saying the initiative demonstrated his foresight on irrigation, agriculture, economic development and the future of the Lake Chad Basin.

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According to him, Musa Usman recognised the potential threat to the Lake Chad Basin and the consequences of failing to sustain development initiatives in the region.

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Monguno said subsequent administrations failed to sustain the initiative, creating a vacuum that contributed to the emergence of an ungoverned space in the Chad Basin.

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He said the region subsequently became vulnerable to criminal groups and violent conflict, stressing the need for current leaders to revisit some of the initiatives started by Musa Usman.

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Also speaking, former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babagana Kingibe, described Musa Usman’s leadership style as collegiate, saying he combined vision and intellect with humility.

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Kingibe, who presented the book, said Musa Usman was able to achieve significant development in the former North-Eastern State because he listened to his colleagues and valued their contributions.

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He said, “He had humility to know that he didn’t know everything. He had humility to run a collegiate administration, to debate, to relate to everyone in the government as a colleague, as a friend, and not as some kind of a military czar.”

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Kingibe said the former governor’s approach demonstrated the importance of combining the experience of older people with the knowledge and energy of younger generations in governance.

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He said Musa Usman was only 27 when he became governor but was able to work with experienced civil servants and commissioners to deliver development projects across the region.

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Kingibe also highlighted the contribution of Musa Usman’s wife, Hadja Jummai Usman, describing her as a model of humility and integrity who continued working as a civil servant while her husband served as governor.

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He said the book provided an opportunity for Nigerians to reflect on the country’s development trajectory and draw lessons from the leadership and administrative style of Musa Usman.

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