Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya has called for the full and effective utilisation of the completed Dadin Kowa multi-purpose dam for the benefit of the people of the entire North-East sub-region.
The governor made the call, on Monday, when visited the Minister of Power, Engr Abubakar Aliyu in Abuja saying that, “as you may be aware, the Dadin Kowa multi-purpose dam has been completed and the hydropower section of it, that is generating 40 megawatts of power has been lying idle for quite a while.”
The governor who spoke to journalists after the meeting added that issues relating to the full utilisation of the Dadinkowa multi-purpose plant for the economic development of the state and the North-East sub-region were extensively discussed as well other items of mutual benefit to both the Federal and Gombe State governments.
Inuwa Yahaya expressed confidence that the Minister of Power will expeditiously handle all matters discussed at the meeting so that the people of the state and Nigerians, in general, can begin to reap the full benefit of the facility.
He said that “Power is the key to socio-economic development. We must therefore appreciate the federal government for the efforts put in place to complete the plant, even as we stress the need for its full and effective utilisation for the benefit of all.”
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He further disclosed that his administration is taking advantage of the dam to establish an industrial park within its vicinity in order to reap maximally from the project’s value chain.
In his remarks, The Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar Aliyu said that the Federal Ministry of Power had for long developed an interest in the Dadinkowa Dam due to its capacity to generate electricity and water for agricultural purposes.
The Minister commended Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya for his support towards the completion of the dam and his determination to ensuring that the multi-purpose plant is put into effective use for the benefit of the state and the country.
He assured that the Federal Ministry of Power will look into the issues tabled by the governor with a view to giving them expeditious attention.
The governor also paid a working visit to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in Abuja where he met with the Minister, Babatunde Raji Fashola saying that his reason for the visit was to draw the attention of the minister to the deteriorating condition of some federal roads in Gombe and other five linked states, especially the Bauchi- Gombe, Gombe- Kwami- Dukku- Darazo roads among others.
The governor explained that “I came to see the Honourable Minister specifically with the recent development on the Federal Highways. You know Gombe is at the centre of the North East. All the other five states of the North East are linked with Gombe, meaning we have road links that are federally owned between Gombe and the remaining states.”
He also explained that most of those roads are being threatened by flooding this year and they need urgent attention saying, “I also came here to draw FG’s attention so that these roads will get repaired otherwise all of Gombe State will be cut off and that will be too bad.”
When the Journalists at the occasion asked him how his visit to the Ministry of Works will impact the Gombe 10-Year Development Plan, one of the brilliant ideas he initiated within the two years of his stewardship, he responded swiftly thus: “For any meaningful development to take place, infrastructure is the key.
“And out of all the basic infrastructure, you need the roads, you need the railway lines to connect, you need the airport.
“Virtually every facility need road and this Ministry handles roads; so we need to synergise and work together.”
He added that “We are working to see that what we have is a document is really working in synergy with the federal government on short and long terms.”
On how his government has so far gone on road development in Gombe, especially the Network 11-100, the governor said that although that’s very ambitious, his administration has achieved significant progress.
“We have gone very far. So far within two years, we have worked up to 340 KMs and we have plans to do more because we are doing it in phases.
“Phase one is done and we are starting the second phase. And together with the Rural Development Access Credit and Mobility project of the Ministry of Agriculture, we are going to do a lot in terms of more connectivity using the rural access that is going to serve the rural people,” said Governor Inuwa Yahaya as contained in a statement by Ismaila Uba Misilli Director-General, ( Press Affairs) Government House, Gombe.