The governor of Niger State, Mohammed Bago, has vowed to implement his government’s executive order reserving all local government secretary positions for women as he bids to ramp up their participation in the affairs of the state.

Speaking to correspondents after joining his Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) to visit President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Tuesday, he affirmed his administration’s resolve to promote affirmative action in the state.

He said the executive order he signed would also ensure that all local government vice chairmen in the state would be women to go beyond the recommended 35 per cent.

Governor Bago said: “First and foremost, we have issued an executive order to change all the secretaries of the local government councils to be female, that we’re going to implement in the next local government council. It is compulsory that at least all the vice chairmen of local government will come out as female. That is one.

“Secondly, I have just made five appointments and I promise that the next one will be female. So, you should be watching out for that. So, we are not going to even stick to 35 per cent, we will have 50-50 if needs arise,”

Bago linked the insecurity in the state to the struggle by non-state actors to control the rich mineral resources, assuring that his administration would do everything necessary to harness the natural endowment in the interest of the people.

The governor said that a working relationship had already been established with security agencies in an effort to restore peace to all parts of the state to revive agriculture, which is the mainstay of the people.

Bago stated: “We are endowed as a state with a lot of mineral deposits and is not only related to the insecurity issues. Most of the places where you see this banditry are places where you have lithium or gold. So, a lot of these activities are kind of associated with why the banditry is springing up.

“However, yes, we will harness our mineral potential. We don’t intend to come to Abuja every month to collect FAAC or JACK or whatever you call it. As a state, we have to put all the things in order so that we can harness these potentials.

“Now the state also has an SPV – the State Mining Corporation – where we’re hoping to have an MOU or synergy with other mining companies so that we can harness that potential and I assure you that next year we will come out tops.

“If you’ll agree with me Niger State has a lot of ungoverned spaces and we are agrarian and in our strength is agriculture. So, we intend to cultivate most of your ungoverned land.

“We have a lot of water across the state. We want to encourage our irrigation farming and that is why we are collaborating with Mr. President, to ensure that the agric potential of Niger State is tapped very well. So, we will harness them.

“However, in the interim, we were working with security agencies in making sure that we curb this menace and by the grace of God we will come out on top.”

On addressing the out-of-school-children menace, the governor said: “It is still associated with this insecurity, and we are bringing technology to learn.

“Thank God for COVID-19, meetings can be held, you know, virtually. So, we will deploy learning facilities to areas that are mostly affected so that we can put students back into schools. So, I agree that a lot of these out of school children will be enrolled back to school.” (Nigerian Tribune)