• Super Admin
• 06 Mar, 2026

Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has cautioned journalists against what he described as the activities of "latter-day activists" whom he accused of undermining Nigeria's democracy whenever government policies do not favour them. The governor gave the warning on Thursday while hosting journalists to a Ramadan Iftar (breaking of fast) at the Sir Kashim Ibrahim House in Kaduna. Speaking during the gathering, Sani noted that journalists played a vital role during Nigeria's pro-democracy struggle and urged them to remain vigilant against individuals he described as anti-democratic actors. He recalled that during the fight for democratic governance in Nigeria, civil rights activists depended heavily on journalists to amplify their cause. "When we were in the struggle, we the civil rights activists relied mostly on journalists. Most of them lost their freedoms, and some even lost their lives when we were fighting for democracy," he said. According to the governor, the role played by the media remains central to sustaining democratic governance in the country. "You cannot talk about democracy today without the contribution of journalists. So, you have to be vigilant about these category of politicians who are conflict merchants," he added. Sani alleged that some politicians, whom he referred to as "emergency activists," focus less on addressing critical development issues affecting Nigerians and instead exploit ethnic and religious divisions for political advantage. He said matters such as healthcare, education, human capital development, infrastructure, unemployment and poverty should dominate political discourse, rather than divisive narratives. "When campaigns begin, they will focus on these issues instead of matters that affect all Nigerians irrespective of ethno-religious affiliations," he said. The governor also questioned the democratic credentials of some individuals he accused of suddenly positioning themselves as defenders of democracy despite their alleged past alliances with military rulers. "When we were fighting for democracy, they were partnering with military dictators, today, from nowhere, they are trying to teach us democracy," he said. He urged journalists to hold such politicians accountable by carefully scrutinising their past records and public conduct. "What do they know about fundamental human rights? What do they know about freedom, the rule of law, equality and justice?" the governor asked. Sani also used the opportunity to highlight some of the achievements of his administration since assuming office. According to him, prior to his administration, about 12 local government areas in Kaduna State had not recorded a single kilometre of road construction in a decade. He said his government has since extended development projects to all the 23 local government areas of the state over the past two and a half years as part of efforts to ensure equitable development. The governor further disclosed that when he took office, only five out of the state's 32 secondary healthcare centres were fully functional. "Today, we are renovating, equipping and remodelling 15 out of the 32 secondary healthcare centres," he said. On education, Sani revealed that Kaduna State previously had about 580,000 out-of-school children, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics. He said government interventions have reduced the figure to about 182,000. To further tackle the challenge, the governor said the state government is partnering with development organisations including the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, the Islamic Development Bank and UNICEF to construct 102 additional schools. He added that Kaduna State has secured about 62.8 million dollars in funding to support programmes aimed at reducing the number of out-of-school children. According to Sani, Kaduna is currently the only sub-national government benefitting from the funding facility due to its commitment to transparent governance. "Our focus is to ensure that no child is left outside the classroom in Kaduna State because we believe education is the greatest leveller," he said. Source: https://naija247news.com/uba-sani-cautions-journalists-against-latter-day-activists/