Kano ready to overtake South-West in education

From Edwin Olofu, Kano

Kano state government said plans were in top gear to put the state ahead of the Southwest zone in education within a short time.

Governor Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, who was represented by his deputy, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, made the revelation during a retreat for the state’s political office holders and other top government functionaries at the weekend, in Kaduna.

If the South is travelling, in the education sector, at the rate of 100 kilometres per hour, we’re travelling at the rate of 300 kilometres per hour,” he said.

“This is because we want to catch up with them and overtake them.

“I am happy, without the fear of copious details, to mention few of our achievements at the various sectors of the state economy,” he said.

“Among these is the sponsorship of students for various courses within and outside Nigeria for both graduate and undergraduate courses.

“This programme comprised of over 3,000 external students at the cost of N9, 341,767,370 and other internal students at N3, 445, 460, 813,” he added.

He said additional 2,000 health technology graduates and pharmacists had been trained and given free N50, 000 and a non-interest loan of N100, 000 each to operate chemist’s shops.

The governor said he has built three new cities, with over 3,000 housing units now available for people in the state.

Also reeling out the government’s milestones, the Head of Service the state, Dr. Umar Shehu Minjibir, said Kano ensured its workers receive monthly salaries not later than the 25th of the month.

Other popular policy of the government, he said, includes the “review in pension earning from the hitherto paltry sum of N135 only to an astronomical increase leading to N5, 000 as minimum.”

Minjibir said the state had employed over 10,000 workers and provided vehicle loans to civil servants, including primary school teachers, to the tune of N1 billion.