By Mohammad Lawal Maikudi
As the stage is getting set for a new administration in Katsina State under Dr Dikko Umar Radda, come May 29, there is need to consider some factors in forming a formable team if cabinet members.
Already the governir – elect has produced a working document which he plans to guide his administration in delivering his campaign promises which will propel Katsina State to greatness. He has also set up committees to study and probably improve on the working document.
But having a working document is one thing and working it is another, so Governor – elect Dikko Radda has another big challenge before him to realise his vision of better Katsina State..
He therefore needs a formidable team of cabinet members to work with to ensure the mandate given to him by the Katsina State electorates translates to better life.
There is therefore the need to put these factors into consideration in selecting or choosing his cabinet members.
Competence
The first and probably the most important consideration is competence. This simply means putting appointees in positions they have the capacity to run. Persons that have the educational qualifications and experience should be selected and appointed to man ministries, Department and agencies to help the government. to deliver not only on its promises but the long term vision of Katsina State.
Katsina State has abundant qualified and vibrant personnel to pick from that could run the state effectively with good driver steering the state. So the big challenge is the will to select from the pool by the Governir – elect, which the majority of people in Katsina, who gave him the mandate, believe he can do it as he demonstrated in his earlier engagements
Loyalty
Dr Dikko Radda has to pick members of his cabinet from those who believe in him and are loyal to him and his party. Any person whose loyalty is not guaranteed, and he ought to be compensated for contribution to the success of the party should be addressed through some other means.
Obviously there persons who worked assiduously for the success of the party and may desire to be included, but the general interest of the party and voters must not be compromised.
Geography
Cabinet members should reflect the geography of Katsina State. Efforts should be made to have an inclusive government so that all sections of the state will have. a sense of belonging. There is relative peace and harmony among persons and communities as more than 90% of citizens are Hausa Fulani and adherent of Islam. Efforts should be made to capture representation on local government areas, Federal Constituecies and Senatorial Districts.
The Media
The media is the vehicle through which you carry your messages to the society and receive feedback on your policies and progammes. An informed society is easy to govern while ill informed or uninformed makes things difficult for the government and governed.
So you need a vibrant media that should carry your messages to all segments of the society so that you carry them along in yhe journey of moving Katsina State to the next level.
It gives you an opportunity to generate information on the feeling of the citizens regarding your policies and programmes. Where and when the feedback is favourable, it is reinforced, and adjusted where and when lapses are observed. This makes governance an all citizens business and the gap between the government and the governed is seriously closed.
So Dr Dikko Radda should endevour to have a functional and vibrant media department. Due to Information and Communication Technology, ICT, development, emphasis should be placed on the electronic media, especially radio. Radio is the cheapest medium to reach mass audience within a short time.
It also does not require literacy to reach out to the audience and is economically cheaper.
There is also the need to have a team of powerful new media. It should be noted that the new media has become a force to reckon with in information desimination especially that it attracts a sizable number of our youths who are the building blocks of the society.
The media team should include persons who know Katsina State very well in the area of. geography, culture, economy, politics and tradition. They must understand the manifesto of the party, the vision and mission of the party and government. They should have a clear idea of the policy direction of the government and ensure their activities are connected and coordinated to the cover all actions and activities of the
government.
Awareness and sensitisation on government policies, programmes and challenges are key in development drive.
