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President Muhammad Buhari has said Kaduna is the melting point of Nigeria’s politics saying it had played and is still playing a significant role in the region as well as Nigeria.
He made this known at the grand finale of the centenary celebration of Kaduna held at Murtala Mohammed Square, Kaduna on Saturday.
Represented by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Alhaji Muhammad Bello, the president remarked that Kaduna is destined to play a significant role in the development of the region.
‘So celebrating the 100 years of its existence as a political capital is by no means a child’s play and am happy this celebration is happening under a progressive government .
According to him, Kaduna is the melting point of the country’s political development as important political decisions have taken place in the state and is still taking place.
‘I have noted with admiration that the state has achieved alot under Governor Nasir Ahmed Elrufai who is a progressive governor as he has started implementing the vision he wants to see the state attain in the next 100 years,’’ he said.
The president once again reiterated the determination of his administration to solve the power problem bedevilling the nation, saying, once this is done, many industries in Kaduna that are in comatose will be back as well as other states in the country.
Earlier, the state governor, Nasir El-rufai remarked that the state occupies an important position in Nigeria, saying, apart from being one of the oldest cities in the country it was the pioneer administrative headquarters in the Northern Nigeria.
To this end, after 100 years of being a state it has become imperative to celebrate the greatness it had attained with the view of laying a solid foundation for the future.
According to the state governor, they have a duty to do so for posterity, pointing out, the centenary celebration will therefore showcase the rich history of Kaduna as well as showcase it’s rich cultural heritage of the region.
Dignitaries such as former vice president, Namadi Sambo, Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno, Governor Aminu Bello Masari, deputy governors of Zamfara, Bauchi, Plateau as well as Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, graced the occasion.
Meanwhile, Secretary to the Kaduna State Government (SSG) Alhaji Lawal Balarabe Abbas, has said about 2,000 horses participated in the just concluded Durbar regarded as the biggest Durbar in modern history as the state centenary celebration kicked off today Saturday.
Speaking in an interview, the SSG who is the chairman of the centenary celebration organising committee, said the centenary activities was a success.
‘We had many horses from all over the region trooping in the state for the epic ceremony. I can tell you no fewer than 3,000 horses came for the Durbar,’’he said.
The Durbar which has been tagged as the biggest Durbar in modern history, according to him, attracted different displays of horses in different regalia showcasing the different cultures of the people of Northern Nigeria.
‘‘On Friday, there was a photo exhibition at the state House which showed different historical pictures that shaped the region in the last one hundred years,’’ he added.
Speaking in the same vein, the state deputy governor, Yusuf Bala Barnabas, said the significance of the exhibition was to look at the leaders of yesterday that had brought us to where we are today, leaders that were devoted to the development of the North, the younger generation do not know about them.
“This is an opportunity for them to come here, because this is going to be a continuous exhibition for one week, for them to come and see how far we have come today.
“Looking at the pictures you can see clearly, see the element of commitment, humility in the leaders, It is also an opportunity to identify those that are associated with events in the country, events that led us to where we are today.
‘‘In the past, we had only three regions, the cost of governance was very low, much lower. We had gone into state creation, even including states that are not viable at huge administrative costs to cater for and leaving very little amount to develop capital projects and so on,” he said.
“I guess this is part of the reason why people said they did better because the cost of governance was relatively low compared to today. You can imagine 36 states, senators, governors, commissioners; look at the retinue of all these and that is why some of us are very cautious about this agitations for more states because it will increase the cost of governance,” Bala Barnana said.
It is recalled that Lord Frederick Lugard established Kaduna in 1917 as the capital of the Northern Protectorate to replace Zungeru. The city was planned carefully, and it quickly became a magnet for all Nigerians, not least the diverse peoples of the vast areas that constitute the north of Nigeria,” Lawal had said.
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