FULL LIST OF COMMISSIONERS WITH THEIR PORTFOLIO

We Must Not Betray the Trust of Our People

His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Umaru Fintiri,

Governor of Adamawa State, on the Occasion of the Swearing-in Ceremony of New Commissioners and Members of the Adamawa State Executive Council.

Yola.

Thursday, 10th – August,2023

Protocol,

I wish to welcome you all to this function. It is yet another milestone in our journey to consolidate the gains of good governance in Adamawa State.

Friends, families, supporters and indeed all citizens of the Adamawa State, as we traversed the nooks and crannies of the State, canvassing for your support during our campaigns, we appreciate the more, the potentials that abound in the State. More importantly, the human capacity that we are blessed with. This has increasingly imposed on us the difficult task of choosing among the too many, the right hands to populate our fresh air team with. With the successful screening of our nominees as Commissioners Designate by the Adamawa State House of Assembly and their subsequent oath-taking today, we have completed a major part of of this task and a substantial part of our team formation.

Our first term has laid the foundation for the development of the State. We have prosecuted appreciably the 11-Point Agenda with the required vigour. This has earned us the commendation of the world and the trust of our people. We were able to achieve that much with a team and I appreciate every member of that team.

This second term is a consolidation phase aimed at building on the foundations already laid. It is against this background that the 11-Point Agenda has been recalibrated and rechristened - the 8-Point Agenda. The team we are building now must have the courage, determination and intellect to consolidate our gains and build a sustainable future for our people and our dear State. For me as always, the hallmark of good governance is service to the people where trust is sacred. We must not betray that trust.

To the commissioners who have just been sworn -in, I congratulate and welcome you to the Adamawa State Executive Council. I have worked with some of you who were part of the last Council. I must tell you that the new charge is to double every bit of what was deployed in the last administration. To those of you who are coming in fresh, I want to tell you that the stakes now, more than ever before are higher and we cannot afford to fail our people.

You are indeed coming in at the most turbulent moment in the history of the State and the nation at large. The challenges are indeed enormous so are our collective strengths. I urge all of you to come on board with the desirable winning attitude, ingenuity and deep insight in handling every situation. Our “can do” attitude will certainly subdue every challenge.

Having been chosen, from amongst millions of good hands and brains which Adamawa State has in reckless abundance, you must therefore be committed and fair in the discharge of your duties. You must eschew corruption and corrupt tendencies. I must caution early that the call that you just answered is a call to service. It isn’t a call to riches. If all you desire is riches, you are in the wrong place and my free counsel to you is to voluntarily ship out before I ship you out.

The new Council is tied to value addition. You must at all times be in a position to add value to the art of governance in the State. You will be the most watched and scrutinised commissioners in the recent history of Adamawa State. We are setting up a Governance Delivery Machinery with key performance indicators that will periodically be used to measure you. We are not taking anything less than the best. If at any point your performance is found to be below our standard “best” in the exercise of your duties, I will not hesitate to replace you with the other available competent hands.

Individually, we must be prepared to ask critical questions on what impact we seek to make in our roles as senior government appointees. You should be aware that you have not been appointed to represent the interests of individuals or clans. You must therefore spend your waking hours thinking about the entire State as a single constituency; made up of men and women who yearn for better opportunities to advance themselves economically and socially.

Do not betray the trust of our people who have remained patient and loyal to our course. We are here to work for the whole state and anyone who entertains any doubts about that may have found himself in the wrong room. The New Adamawa State we are inventing shall be one where the interests of the whole State supersede the selfishness of any individual or entity.

The responsibilities are huge; you can neither afford to delay nor fail. Resources are limited, I must admit but you must be prepared to make the most of whatever is available to you to drive the outcomes that we seek. Excuses shall not be tolerated and you must be willing at all times to demonstrate that you deserve to remain in this great team. You shall be judged strictly on the basis of what you are bringing to the table, how you are contributing to improving the material conditions of our people. I do not expect you to achieve everything in one day but there must be a daily commitment to fulfilling the promises that got us elected.

I have stayed long enough here to know that the job you are about to take is not an easy one; you will be misrepresented, attempts would be made to sabotage your best efforts and there would be that tiny but powerful minority who would be prepared to do everything to see that you fail. Your only job therefore is to see that you don’t fail. Face the job squarely and you have me at your back.

I pray that you receive the guidance, wisdom and courage you need to do what is right at all times. Never relent and do not forget that our people trust us and Nigerians in general are building their expectations around us. We must never betray them.

Once again, I congratulate you, your families and well wishers, many of whom are here today. As they celebrate you today, what you need from them more than ever before aren’t their praises, they are their prayers. I enjoin them to allow you work unhindered.

Thank you and God bless.