TheCable

Jibrin Barde, a governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe state is a time bomb waiting to explode.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, Barde, a former chief executive officer (CEO) of Sun Trust Bank, said he decided to run for governor because Gombe is not “developing”.

He said all the “development indices you can think of have collapsed”.

The aspirant said this was unacceptable because the state has received huge funds over time.

“Leadership is about service I decided to look at that opportunity. I am seeking the flag of our party (APC) in Gombe state,” Barde said.

“Why I have decided to this is because we don’t have to sit on the fence any longer. My state consists of about 11 local governments in the north-eastern part of the country and in the last seven years the resources that came our way has been mismanaged. All the development indices you can think of have collapsed.

“Our people have no access to potable drinking water, it doesn’t take the state government [anything] to maintain the dam that was constructed. The Gombe metropolis spends N5 billion annually just to buy water.

“Our education system has completely collapsed. Some of the children do not have classes they study under the trees. The hygiene is below human standard. Our hospitals are just mere mortuaries. This totally unacceptable given the huge amount of funds the state government has received. The state has debt to the excess of N100 billion.

“I was challenged by my 11-year-old daughter who I was taking her to school. She said now that your generation has failed and I look at her and I said ‘what do you mean?’ She said you are going to make my generation fail. It got me thinking.

“I have reached the pinnacle carrier as a banker and it is time to give back to the society and the only way I can do that is to take the position of leadership. We have a clear vision of empowering the youths.

“I want to ensure that governance can be done with a high corporate responsibility. The [PDP] administration is full of deception. It is a time bomb that is waiting to explode. When you have young energetic youth who are actually jobless. It is a fatal ground for a lot of things. We need to harness these resources and that is why I have decided to join the race.”

He said there is no division in the APC as it is normal for its members to disagree.

“I don’t see any crisis in the party, to be honest with you,” the aspirant said.

“Reconciliation does not mean that there is crisis. The party is intact as far as I know. There is no division in the party. Disagreement is allowed. So it is a natural process and it healthy for a democratic process.”