Governors shun Northern Governors' meeting

Only five of the 19 governors in the North  attended the  meeting of their  Forum in Kaduna on Thursday.This is an indication that there might be a crack in the fold of the governors after the controversial Nigerian Governors’ Forum election in Abuja.

Those in attendance included Niger  State Governor and Chairman of the Forum, Dr. Babangia Aliyu, Jigawa  State Governor, Sule Lamido, Governor Dankwambo of Gombe State’ and Nasarawa State  Governor, Al-makura.

States that were represented by the deputy governors are Kano,Kwara, Kogi, Borno, Kebbi, Zamfara, Sokoto while other states like Benue, Plateau sent their  Secretaries to State Governments.

Katsina, Yobe and Bauchi shunned the meeting as they neither sent  representatives nor apologies.

Chairman of the Forum had told newsmen in his opening remarks that  governors of  Adamawa and Taraba states sent their apologies for their inability to attend the meeting.

Aliyu, who was expected to read his usual speech declaring the meeting open declined  and instead asked journalists to await the Forum’s communique at the end of the meeting.

Meanwhile,  members of staff of the New Nigerian Newspapers besieged the venue of the governors meeting  protesting the non- payment of their  15 months  salaries.

They urged the governor not to allow the legacy of the late Premier of the defunct Northern Nigeria, late Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna Sokoto to die.

Acting Chairman of NNN Chapel, Amos Mathew, said they had to embark on the protest to demand for their salaries, noting that all the workers do was “to report to work, sign and leave.”

The New Nigerian Newspaper is owned by the Northern State Governments.


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