King Darius: The Reign of the Architect
As everything is set for Lt. Col Kefas Agbu (Rtd) to take over the helm of affairs in Taraba from Architect Darius Dickson Ishaku (DDI) who piloted the affairs of the state from 2015 till now, one cannot help but assess how Taraba state faired under DDI.
When DDI came in 2015, Taraba State was in a lethargic state considering the untimely plane crash which incapacitated former Governor Danbaba Danfulani Suntai. We know all how the coffer of the state was looted between 2012 and 2015. In fact, rumors have it that everything down to the curtains in government houses was taken. The coming of DDI elated a level of hope in some of us. Personally, I was optimistic that he would perform considering his profile as an architect.
Moreover, we all gave the man a benefit of doubt when he asked us to give him peace and he would give us development.
Eight years have come and gone. Darius can and will be remembered for what he has done and what he didn't do. So I will start my assessment of DDI's tenure by listing the things he has done.
No matter how one tries to trivialize some of the projects by DDI, he will be remembered for some of them because of their significance and relevance. One has to give it to Darius for providing water within the state capital. The introduction of the 5.3 million water reservoir would have been a massive legacy had it been he completed it.
The flyover which is fondly referred to as 'center table' by some of us is another significant project by DDI. The flyover when put side by side with the dualized Jalingo main road, has changed the face of the state capital to a large extent.
Reviving the Highland Tea is another remarkable project by Governor DDI. At least that project has provided over a thousand employment opportunities.
Not to forget some of the rural roads initiated by DDI. The Yorro-Pantisawa, Tsukondi-Wukari, and Mararaba-Baissa are some of the rural road projects. Unfortunately, he still couldn't finish them.
He made tangible strides in the area of employment. Over 4500 people were employed in the state civil service. This is no mean feat.
The DDI gardens is another good initiative.
Now, the things that DDI didn't do outnumber the things he did. He would have left a better legacy if reverse was the case.
Despite asking for peace from the people of the state so that he could give the people development, he didn't honor his end of the agreement. One would say that the state was plagued with a lot of insecurities during his time, thus, there is little he can do in terms of development. This argument would have made sense but the fact that he (DDI) was the Chief Security of the State for 8 years and yet couldn't do anything meaningful to improve security, nulls that argument.
Hence, he will be remembered for not improving the security and peace in the state. On the contrary, things got worse under him. If anything, fingers are being pointed at him for instigating some of the crises rocking some localities.
It was under DDI's watch that the states of some infrastructures in Jalingo became worse. Notable among which are the Jolly Nyame Stadium and Taraba Motel. That of the latter is so bad that the rooms are now being rented out to individuals. The cassava processing plant built by DDS has become moribund.
Even though he was able to employ over 3000 people into the state civil service, the welfare of civil servants in the state didn't improve. Retirees and pensioners are owed backlogs of pensions and gratuities.
DDI will be remembered for initiating the Cucumber GreenHouse - a project that failed even before it began. He will be remembered for hurriedly wasting over 2 billion Naira of the state’s funds on a 'luxury' fruit that is not marketable in the state and most parts of the country.
Above all, Governor Darius Dickson Ishaku will be remembered for not living up to expectations despite having the potential and people’s support. Perhaps things would have ended well for him but the presence of social media has made information travel faster such that Tarabans saw what other governors were doing in their states. Some of these governors became a standard in assessing DDI’s performance.
Take for instance Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa and Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe. These two governors outperformed DDI despite being in their first tenures.
I hope DDI's 'legacy' will be an eye-opener to Kefas Agbu. He should always remember how his predecessor's antecedents almost ruined his chances at the March 18 gubernatorial election. 2027 is not far in the grand scheme of politics. Political warlords have started strategizing for the 2027 elections and as such he should do the needful so that he will earn the trust and support of the people. He doesn't have any time to waste.
