By Adam Muhammad Gusau
The abject poverty which for long handcuffed almost two third of the populace of Zamfara State has been crystal clear the reason the rate of streets and house to house begging kept accruing to the extent that 8 out of almost every 15 people are compelled to beg for their inability to afford even two square meals a day if not with the intervention of Senator Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar, the situation would have been more deteriorated, our correspondent MUHAMMAD ADAM takes a look on how Senator Abdul’aziz Yari fetched the sum of over 2.45m not only to his constituents but entire people in Zamfara state out of hunger:
Majority of those in the unwanted exercise due to their poor economic position that ranked them into extreme destitute classes are orphans (who lost their parents either taken by natural deaths or the appalling banditry killings) and less privileged, found it necessary to to stretch their begging hands for survival even despite uncertainties in acquiring the leftovers from the households who had already been ravaged by the current economic situation.
It is in this light, Senator Abdulaziz Yari was spurred up to periodically engages his wealth in effort to alleviate hardship among the teeming helpless orphans and less privileged persons in the state under programmes initiated by Senator Yari, thousands of orphans, other destitutes and poor farmers had received assistance that reduced their hunger and made them comfortable.
During the commencement of the palliating programmes, it is recorded that, smiles have been deposited on the faces of over 657,000 extremely poor people across the state not minding their religious or political status, this had eventually changed the narration of the situation as foodstuffs marketers in the state had been forced to subsidized their stocks.
Initially, the programme started by making offer of such gestures only during Ramadan and Sallah festivities, later, was extended to each quarter of the year. To this period, the circulation of foodstuffs provided by Senator Yari has become a threatening development to the business communities as the size of demands of grains under their business domains had become very low.
The purchasing size of foodstuffs in the markets had drastically been forced to shrunk by two obvious reasons which comprised availability of assorted grains been distributed for free to the large number of the needy households by the Senator across the state, and the inability of buyers to purchase the foodstuffs in the markets due to the limping economy of the state and nation at large that created hike in prices of commodities and great lacuna within the enterprising environments.
The distribution Committee under the Chairmanship of Lawal M. Liman had established Contact Committees under the 147 wards across the 14 local government areas of the state whose duty was to amongst others, x-ray and capture the data of the economic status of each household that deserves to be assisted under a particular ward.
The foodstuffs distribution which had commenced in 2019 after Senator Yari left the power as Governor of Zamfara State, 170,000 trucks of assorted grains were distributed to orphans and the needy classes across the 14 local government areas of the state during the 2019 Ramadan and Sallah festivities aimed to put smiles on their faces with a view to gain sense of belonging in the society.
During the maiden distribution, Lawal M. Liman who is the Chairman of the main distribution Committee, had on behalf of Senator Yari, announced that, the number of beneficiaries would gradually keep increasing, as well as the review of the time of the exercise which subsequently became quarterly as against annual as it had eventually begun.
Subsequent distributions had witnessed 270,000, 320,000, 349,000, 358,000 and the very recent with 200,000 trucks of maize which was targeted at absolute orphans and vulnerables across the 147 wards of the state which included leaders of the party who sacrificed their chances towards making the APC great and popular in the state.
Initially, the category of beneficiaries was limited to only orphans and less privileged persons, later, the gesture was extended to students of various universities who came from very poor families, as well as the teeming Internally Displaced Persons who are not only begging on streets for survival but were discovered they had their meals alongside their helpless children from scavenging.
According to findings, the Internally Displaced Persons are no longer scavenging for living across the streets of Gusau the state capital, only that handful of them could be seen as they beg for what to eat and or for some money to settle hospital’s charges issued on one or so of their family members.
In a chat with a beneficiary from Shinkafi local government area who identified self as Umaru Adamu Kuzo Shinkafi, prayed that should all well to do politicians, business tycoons and profit-driving organizations and governments of all level would commit their wealth, there would have been no hunger.
Kuzo Shinkafi further narrated that, before the arrival of Senator Yari’s foods and clothes intervention, his entire family had slept with empty stomach times without number, “My great fear in those days, was whether I would lose one or so of my children to criminal activities that would lead to the destruction of the entire family, but Almighty God with his infinite mercy, has sent Senator Yari to come as our saviour.
A widow with 11 orphans, Halima ‘Yar Bukkuyum, told this medium that, “I was only notified that, I should clear a store where to keep foodstuffs provided by Senator Yari, I quickly did so, and not waited longer, there were youths coming in with bags of millet, maize, corn and a 50kg bag of rice on their heads, all for us”.
‘Yar Bukkuyum, while narrating the difficulties they have faced, said they even eat grasses and some varity of leaves developed at nearby farms for survival, “Later, Senator Yari came by himself one day, as I went to bid thank you to him, he ordered the return of all my children back to school with the pledge of taking care of their studies till graduation”.
While recently flagging off the distribution of 76,000 trucks of assorted fertilizer to the 40,000 farmers across the state for the 2024 wet season farming, Lawal M. Liman, who led the ceremony on behalf of Senator Yari, said the number of the targeted beneficiaries was carefully picked and satisfied that, the number if well provided with needed equipments, would produce enough foods even in commercial quantity not only for the state but the zone in general.
Poor farmers were not virtually left behind as they had received Senator Yari’s intervention in form of farm inputs and assorted fertilizer at subsidized prices across the state. As for the fertilizer, it was distributed simoultenously across the 14 local government areas of the state at the cost of twenty thousand naira (N20,000) against up to N45,000 it’s market’s price.
The distribution was celebrated by the teeming farners in the state been it was the only source of fertilizer then alongside other farm inputs which facilitated their works on farms towards achieving the food production in the 2024 wet season as it had witnessed decrease in security challenges in the bushes for farming activities.
Also in a letter dated 9th/09/2024 issued and signed by the Zamfara State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Alhaji Tukur Danfulani which was submitted to the party national Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and made available to newsmen in Gusau, has commended Senator Yari for his incessant distribution of foods to people in need in the state.
The letter reads, “Ahead of the recent #End Bad Governance Protest which was carried out throughout the country, Senator Yari came out to appeal for calm and understanding a measure which help in the protest being largely peaceful in the state.
“Even the recent flood disaster which ravaged hundreds of houses and rendered thousands homeless especially in Gummi, the Distinguished Senator after sending immediate relief package that compromised five trailer loads each of rice, maize and millet as well as 10,000 mattresses and 10,000 blankets and began the reconstruction of over 5,000 houses to resettle the victims.
“Just last week, on the 4th of September, Senator Yari donated 200 trailer loads of maize for free distribution to the needy and less privileged persons across the state so as to reduce the tension caused by the current economic hardship faced by the people.
“It is for these and all the good things Senator Abdulaziz Yari Abubakar is doing to the good people of the state that we will continue to pray for his success and Allah’s guidance and protection”, the letter has added.
In another development, Senator Abdulaziz Yari has expanded the gesture towards the development of education in the state by setting up a Committee under the leadership of Senator Tijjani Yahaya Kaura, who had already embarked upon selecting an indigenous 1,700 students that can not afford access to universities, and who came from extremely poor families aimed to sponsor their studies across the universities in the country till graduation.
The duty of the said Committee is to ensure scouting out indigenous students of Zamfara State with satisfied qualifications but have no financial means of going to university to further their education, under the intervention programme, everything required in the universities including registration fees, accommodations and feeding of the students would be taken care of by Senator Yari throughout their stay in the campuses.
