An achiever of note in the political and economic arenas, Alhaji (Dr.) Adamu Bello Dan-Iyan Adamawa CFR, FCIB, is former Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources & Rural Development during the Olusegun Obasanjo regime. In this interview with BLESSING UKEMENA and KEHINDE IBITEYE, he speaks on Jonathan’s governance style, aspiration to PDP national chairmanship, shares insights into his accomplishments in various career fields and gives significant perspectives on governance. Excerpts:
On The State Of Insecurity
It is most unfortunate that we have this situation in the country. I urge us all to be very security conscious of our environment and also educate others around us on the importance of peace. We must preach to each other about harmony because nobody gains by inflicting pain on others or bringing a state of insecurity to any part of the country. What is the benefit of killing anybody? In Islam, the Holy Prophet said to his Uncle who he referred to as Father that, “Ask for peace and good health before you ask for anything else”. So in Islam, peace is very important, even more than anything else.
We should all seek peace. It is really sad that we are going through this security issues in Nigeria.
On President Jonathan’s Governance Style
The President had started a very open system; you can see him doing what we call the Presidential chat started by President Obasanjo. It is quite open; he has taken some good and bold decisions. If he can insist on transparency in terms of resource management, then he will be the president to be remembered. He should focus on not doing too many things at a time. He should pick what he can do and finish it. The bane of the system is that we sometimes get too emotional; everybody needs something in this country. If we can address this then we are on the right course. He has a good team working with him, first class individuals. The potentials are enormous.
On Political Influences
Right from back in the days as a banker in Habib Bank, I worked very closely with General Shehu Musa Ya’ardua, who the then Chairman of Habib bank. He was always interacting with all those political players who worked with him or came to seek his support or his compatriots like Chief Tony Aneni, Ango Abdullahi, Atiku Abubakar, Patrick Bonokwo, Kingibe and some others. They were all part of the Yar’ardua team and because of my being close to Yar’ardua, I became politically involved but not in the main field. I remember Babagana Kigibe asked me to write the economic policy of PF and at the end of it accessed to be the best policy of political parties. So I have always been politically involved but not at the forefront.
On The PDP Chairmanship
I am interested in that position. I have been prompted by those who feel that I can do a good job and fit very well into that role. I have also been faced with certain number of people that are also interested in that position. Some are close friends, younger brothers, elder brothers and such. I think that I am in a position to do a good job of it. I will not fight anyone but always keep in mind that I am there. My record as the minister is there as proof of what I am capable of. I brought all the farmers in the country under one umbrella. I think that is the kind of merger that the party needs. I make myself available not for any selfish reason but to strengthen the party. If I am invited by the senior party officials to serve, I will be very willing and will work to make the PDP an all inclusive party.
Why NNDC Is In Doldrums
The NNDC is still in existence. They still have their Headquarters’ in Kaduna but the economy has changed. NNDC has served its purpose in developing industries in the north; it is still quite active in doing that but with the expansion of the economy and the coming up of new financial institutions, the role on the NNDC diminished. These other institutions can give out more money even faster than the NNDC. Also the form of expertise in terms of advice and administration in the NNDC is not as that in the new institutions. I think the NNDC should have adopted new methods rather than focus on their original mandate. It evolved a bit in the past like when I joined them in 1978. I was trained with a view to operate as a Merchant banker. Since then so many banks have sprung up and so the financial aspect of the NNDC became less significant.
Why He Was Longest Serving Minister Under Obasanjo
It is hard to say what exactly distinguished me but I think the then president and I understood each other in terms of what we wanted for the agricultural sector and we were quite successful. It is on record that the agricultural sector grew from about 3 per cent to 8 per cent by the time we left office. We did a lot of things in terms of sensitization and bringing foreign partners into the sector.? We introduced this FADAMA Project you hear about. The World Bank had earlier disengaged from the sector but we brought them back. Governance is a continuum, you just do your own part and when others come in after you they do theirs.
Personality And Performance As Minister?
Obviously the person is very important but it is honesty of purpose that really counts. At the early stage as a minister, I had some misunderstanding with President Obasanjo but since it was borne out of sincere positions we soon both realized it was due to a communication gap. At a time we became very close and in conjunction with my Ministers of State and the staff of the ministry. I know that there is a lot untapped resources in the civil service. There are well trained, intelligent people in the service.
Sometimes, new government officers come in and we do not utilize them – rather preferring to bring in foreign consultants. That is where I differ. The civil service must be utilized in moving the ministry and the country forward. A major achievement during my tenure was my being able to bring all the farmers’ associations in the country under one umbrella, the Farmers Association of Nigeria. I had the support of many notable Nigerians as well. It was one of the things that facilitated my continuation as Minister after the first tenure.
On Agriculture
Things are not the same as they used to be. Economic structures are now different. Agriculture is a very important sector, even now 40 per cent of the GDP comes from agriculture. It employs over 60 per cent of labour. So agriculture is still very strong but not as in the past. Now we get a lot of royalties and benefits from the oil sector, we would not want that to stop. If anything the revenue from oil can be used to develop the agric sector. If the sector is mechanized then one person can do the job of six people while the others go into processing. If you get 500 million worth of raw agric produce, then you add value to it by processing it, packaging it, you will increase its worth to 1.5 trillion. That is how you can develop agriculture. This is what happened in Brazil. So the revenue from oil will simply be used to improve on the agric sector.
The Ministerial Mergers
It was a tough one because there were two ministries; that is the Ministry of Rural Development and Water Resources and the Ministry of Agriculture, with two permanent secretaries. Both very powerful women who went on to become head of the civil service. When you work with people with sincerity of purpose and respect, you will find treasures within the civil service. Good people that can contribute meaningfully. I had the support of my ministers of state and it turned out to be a success.