DAILY TRUST, Friday, October 16, 2020 43 Like us on follow us on Twitter: Facebook.com/dailytrust @daily_trust Co-created content FOCUS ON KATSINA EVERY FRIDAY were buried among civilians and public places with innocent lives lost. Mr Aregbesola said most of the challenges have been reversed, adding that though bandits now operate like shadows, they have no strength to operate like before. He assured that the federal government is concern over the harrowing pains that the people in the state are going through, particularly in the North West. The Minister revealed that President Muhammad Buhari had again given them the matching order to do whatever is necessary to put an end to the activities of the criminals in the North West Zone. He therefore restated the need for support from the participants at the stakeholders meeting, while commending Governor Aminu Masari for the support to security agencies operating in the state. In his remarks, the Minister of police Affairs Alhaji, Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi explained that as those in charge of security architecture, it was necessary to interact with various stakeholders to find the way forward to achieve the desired objective of fighting crimes and criminality in the country. Alhaji Dingyadi explained that the meeting was coming at the time when police in Nigeria are being faced with challenging questions of unprofessional misconduct that are not in tune with the principle of democratic governance. The Minister therefore said that the Ministry of police Affairs hope to collaborate with all stakeholders to ensure that a good conflict resolution mechanism was put forward to bring about peace and tranquility among various people in Nigeria. explained that the stakeholders’ meeting was aimed towards finding solutions to armed banditry and other forms of organized crimes in the state. He noted that armed conflicts were not peculiar to Katsina as they have now devastated most parts of the globe, adding that about 17 countries were going through one form of conflict or the other, leaving thousands of people dead and a large number of internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). He said by the United Nations High Refugees account, there are 45.7 million internally Displaced Persons-IDPs scattered around the world at the year 2019. The Minister noted that banditry is another security problem in Africa, stressing that bandits have continued to ravage the horn of Africa, East and Central Africa and the Trans-Saharan trade routes from Niger Republic all the way to Libya. Bandits, he said have taken over part of Chad and around the Lake Chad and they have significant presence in Southern Africa. He said insurgency, armed banditry, cattle rustling, cyber-crime , kidnapping for ransome, farmers- herders clashes, vandalism of critical national assets, oil and petroleum products theft , car snatchings, ritual killings , extreme domestic violence, road accidents, natural disasters including drought and fire incidents, epidemics such as cholera, lassa fever, AIDS, Covid-19 are all issues affecting Nigerians in recent times. Before the coming of President Muhammad Buhari’s administration, there was general insecurity such as armed insurgencies, terrorism, and armed conflicts where explosive devices From right, Governor Masari, Minister of Interior, Aregbesola and Minister for police Affairs, Dingyadi, during a townhall meeting on security yesterday in Katsina. G government, through the office of special Adviser to the governor on security matters, had organized a 2-day workshop on security awareness for local government administrators, traditional leaders as well as ulamas. Masari said the stakeholders’ engagement meeting was therefore an addition to the efforts being made by Katsina state government toward find solutions to the problems of insecurity in the state. The governor then charged the participants of the meeting to brainstorm and assess the current security situation in the state with the view to feeding the organizers with the right information with which to return to Abuja for necessary action. In his keynote remarks, the Minister Interior, AbdulRa’uf Aregbesola overnor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina state, has reiterated his administration’s commitment towards containing banditry and other organized crimes in the state, saying the APC-led government in the state would continue to give security the priority it deserves. The Governor made the commitment Thursday while delivering his address at a stakeholders’ engagement on internal security and conflict resolution held in Katsina. The event, which took place at Banquet Hall of Presidential lodge at government house Katsina was organized by the federal ministry of Interior in collaboration with federal ministry of police Affairs. The governor said only at the beginning of this week, the state of Katsina expends N7.3 billion on higher education Katsina records modest achievements under Ministry for Local Govt – Commissioner as perimeter fences at different tertiary institutions. Other areas according to the SA was payment of scholarship to Katsina indigenes; accreditation expenses for the tertiary institutions; sponsorship and educational assistance as well as donations to institutions and organizations. Ruwan Godiya said the sum of over N1.04 billion was expended at the Umaru Musa Yar’adua University; N98.6 million was on the execution of projects at the Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic and renovation and construction of various new structures at Dr Yusuf Bala Usman College, Daura. At Isah Kaita College of Education, the SA said his department had constructed and furnished a 1000 bed space capacity female hostel, four laboratories and renovated two burnt female hostels including other services such as consultancy amongst others to the tune of over N443.5 million. On donations to institutions and organizations, Ruwan Godiya explained that, over N314.6 million was spent to procure 250 hp desktop computers, construction of NOUN study centre, development of Al-Hikimah university, Ilorin and furniture to other private institutions. Amongst the achievements, Gwajo-Gwajo, said was the construction, upgrade and repairs of 157 kilometre length of rural feeder roads in 29 communities across the state. Others were the purchase and distribution of drugs to Primary Healthcare facilities across the state as well as sinking of 1,000 number of boreholes and construction of nine earth dams in the rural communities of the state. The Katsina state commissioner for local government and chieftaincy affairs, Rt Hon. Ya’u Umar GwajoGwajo, has explained that the state has recorded modest achievements over the last five years under his ministry. The commissioner made the remark yesterday while briefing members of the press at the government house, Katsina, on the score-card of the Masari administration through the ministry. “You will agree with me that local government, being a grassroot tier of government, has a very important role to play in the socio-economic wellbeing of the vast majority of our citizens,” he said. The Commissioner said a lot has been achieved particularly in the area of health, education, agriculture, water supply and development of infrastructure for the benefit of the people across the 34 LGAs of the state. “In the area of education, for example, in addition to the payment of salaries and allowances to over 22,000 SUBEB staff, more than N5bn was earmarked for improvement of facilities at the basic education level,” he said. Governor Masari delivers his address during a townhall meeting on security yesterday in Katsina. Katsina State government has expended the sum of over N7.3 billion in the development of tertiary education in the last five years of the present administration in the state. The Special Adviser (SA) on Higher Education to the governor, Dr Bishir Ruwan Godiya, disclosed this while briefing pressmen on the achievements of Masari administration in the area of higher education. He said the amount was spent on both construction and repairs of infrastructure such as lecture halls, class rooms, laboratories, auditoriums, staff quarters as well Katsina State Commissioner for Local Govt, Hon Gwajo-Gwajo, addresses members of press yesterday