SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY UMARU TANKO AL-MAKURA, GOVERNOR NASARAWA STATE ON THE OCCASSION OF 2014 TRANSPARENCY & ACCOUNTABLITY AWARDS AT SHERATON HOTEL AND TOWERS ABUJA, SATURDAY 21ST FEBRUARY 2015

     GOVERNMENT OF NASARAWA STATE
SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY UMARU TANKO AL-MAKURA, GOVERNOR NASARAWA STATE ON THE OCCASSION OF 2014 TRANSPARENCY & ACCOUNTABLITY AWARDS AT SHERATON HOTEL AND TOWERS ABUJA, SATURDAY 21ST FEBRUARY 2015.

It is a great honour to be recognized by the Foundation for Transparency and Accountability.
I hold this award in the highest esteem because prior to my nomination on the pages of the Newspaper, I have never heard of nor met any official of the Foundation for Transparency & Accountability.
I wish to take this opportunity today to salute the noble spirit and deep sense of patriotism which spurred the Foundation for Transparency& Accountability to initiate this Award scheme.
This award is credible because it is based upon clearly established criteria which measure the degree to which recipients have been able to promote transparency and accountability in the discharge of their duties.
I am humbled to be so recognized by the Foundation for Transparency & Accountability for my effort at instituting financial discipline in the governance of Nasarawa State
When I entered public life I knew I did not want to be just another typical politician but someone facing very stringent and hard-to-attain values and standards, hence I took that as a challenge from the word go.
As governor whose responsibility has to do with holding and dispensing public resources in trust, I have never been interested in sugar coating the challenges we face in Nasarawa State, nor in accepting that the political will for achieving great progress through prudent management was not available.
It has always been my firm belief even before I became Governor that a disciplined and transparent leader can effectively manage and utilize the little at his disposal to achieve a lot
I came into office with the conviction that the people of Nasarawa State deserve better than what they were getting, which is why we developed a strong program of transparency & accountability so the people can see exactly what the government is doing and how they can hold all of us accountable .
This is the reason behind the Executive Bill which we sent to the Nasarawa State House of Assembly for Fiscal Responsibility and the domestication of the Federal Public Procurement Law in Nasarawa State.
For far too long government has served the interests of self-serving politicians only interested in enriching themselves, their allies, or just acquiring power. My only interest is
serving the people, and serving them with a level of openness to where they can hold not just myself, but their entire government accountable.
(And of course the people themselves “extempo!”)
I owe the successes we have achieved in the last three and a half years to the great people of Nasarawa state, who have sacrificed so much and stood behind me in these trying times, when government had to impose some stringent cost-saving measures
Together as one people we have resisted the move to incite disunity, political violence, and the pressure to prevent us from doing what is right for all of Nasarawa State. And today the results are evident for all to see
This fuels my resolve to continue the great work we are doing for a more prosperous and better life for the people that have entrusted us with running the state.
I take the office I hold and the trust of the public very seriously, which is why over the last four years we achieved the modest changes not just in transparency, but in many other sectors such as development, Youth Empowerment, health, and education etc!
Again I reiterate the great achievements that have been made in Nasarawa over the last three and a half years are not of my doing, but only because of the great people of the State.
This administration is now known for purposeful leadership that is anchored on the sacred principles of honesty, transparency, accountability and above all, the fear of God.
We have also endeavored to create a culture of transparency at all levels including the political arena where we conducted a free and fair elections in which out of 13 LGA my APC had 9 against PDPs 4 inspite of the fact that the fashion then was for the ruling party to “WIN” all the elections in al the LGAs including councilors
With the democratization of LGA councils, government ensured that they key into its values of accountability, transparency and good governance.
As a result, I am happy to say that Transparency International has ranked Nasarawa State among the first three states in the country with high fiscal discipline over a year ago.
Nigeria is a young democracy. We are currently enjoying our longest period of consistent democratic rule and I have much hope for the future of our nation and, of course, Nasarawa State.
I do, however, believe that in order for us to grow as a people, we must grow first beyond religious, tribal, or even political party differences and work with each other and implement thoughtful ideas that transcend greed, avarice and winner takes all mentality because the mandate of a public officer is over and above these primordial sentiments. This is also enshrined in the oath of office.
It is my job as Governor to make decisions that serve the interests of all people, regardless of party colour, region, ethnic group, or religion. And this is why I have made re-establishing and protecting the peace the highest priority in my next term.

It has been a great honour to serve as Governor of Nasarawa State, and God wiling my administration will strive to do even more in the areas of Transparency, Accountability, discipline, values and ethical reorientation and of course adherence to the rule of law.

Once again, I’d like to express my deepest gratitude for this award. Thank you all.