Gov Sule Mandates ExCo to Finish Projects Before New Administration in 2027
Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has read the riot act to members of his State Executive Council, charging them to channel all energies towards completing ongoing projects across the state rather than embarking on fresh initiatives, even as he warned sternly that his administration would not leave a legacy of uncompleted or unpaid contracts for the incoming government ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking at the first Executive Council meeting of the year on Monday at the Government House in Lafia, the governor, whose tenure faces the crunch of time with 2026 being the last full calendar year before electoral activities dominate, declared:
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“I want us to focus and concentrate on completion rather than new projects. Everyday I see new requests especially from the Ministry of Works about new projects, including the Ministry of Education, NUDA. I want us to give jobs. I don’t want us as an administration to leave an outstanding job to the next administration.” He emphasised the urgency, adding, “Please, I would like a situation where all the jobs we are giving will be completed by us, so that when we are handing over, we are handing over completed jobs, not just completed but paid. So that when we are handing over, we are not leaving either the payment of the job or the completion of the job to another administration.”
Against the backdrop of emerging political distractions, including the All Progressives Congress (APC) timetable for congresses and the Independent National Electoral Commission’s election schedule, Governor Sule set a clear tone for his administration’s push towards 2027, urging his commissioners to prioritise closure over expansion in what he described as the administration’s most productive year yet.
“This is the year that we have to make that decision because this is the full year that we have. Next year we don’t have a full year to operate. That is the reason why I call on you that please, let us focus, if you already have so many jobs out there, let’s go there and complete them before we start asking for additional jobs,” he charged, while outlining an ambitious commissioning calendar that underscores his commitment to tangible deliverables.
The meeting, attended by the Secretary to the State Government, Labaran Shuaibu Magaji, SAN, commissioners, and the Managing Director/CEO of the Nasarawa State Investment Development Agency (NASIDA), Ibrahim Abdullahi, heard the governor project March 2026 as the launch month for the state’s lithium plant by Vice President Kashim Shettima, hailing it as a pivotal milestone in harnessing Nasarawa’s solid mineral wealth for economic leapfrogging.
Infrastructure and economic projects dominated the governor’s roadmap, with the Keffi flyover slated for October-November commissioning, the Akwanga underpass, dualisation, and bypass targeted for June or July, and markets in Awe, Wamba, Nasarawa, Toto, and Doma local government areas set for April-May unveilings, alongside rural roads in Akwanga, Wamba, Nasarawa Eggon, Karu, and Lafia between June and August.
The dual flyover in Mararaba is pencilled for December this year or January 2027, while the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations University of Leadership will break ground between July and August, with full operations by November following a global alliance visit in October.
Beyond these, Governor Sule updated on mega-investments, spotlighting the 10,000-hectare Squire cassava value chain city in Kokona Local Government Area for commissioning this year, the advancing JJ Group cashew value chain project on another 10,000 hectares with Indian investors already inspecting sites alongside the Commissioner for Agriculture, and directing NASIDA’s MD to team up with the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice to safeguard the state government’s 30 per cent equity in the Brekete Family housing estate in Karu.
“It is very important that we have it in such a way that the state government is not shortchanged… Let us do something that is just and fair as we are taking that 30 per cent,” he instructed, stressing legal and community safeguards to avoid future disputes.
On the political front, the governor commended security agencies and community leaders for sustaining Nasarawa’s reputation as one of Nigeria’s most peaceful states, while hailing last Thursday’s successful solidarity rally by ExCo members as “one of the most successful rallies we have had,” which has paved the way for a renewed hope event on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in attendance. Acknowledging the APC congress timetable and INEC’s election calendar, he cautioned:
“While not taking you away from your daily activities, it is important for you to have an idea about what is being done so that you are totally in the picture… But it is very, very important that we do not allow all these activities to distract us from what we are doing everyday.”
Institutionally, he announced the handover of the Nasarawa State Infectious Diseases Centre, Lafia, to the Federal University Teaching Hospital, Lafia, including all assets and liabilities, and previewed Nasarawa State University, Keffi’s silver jubilee in April, featuring a combined convocation with high-profile guests like Tanzania’s President as special guest of honour, Education Minister for the jubilee lecture, and Kenyan lawyer Professor Lumumba for the convocation address, thanks to Vice Chancellor and Council Chairman Professor Attahiru Jega’s diplomatic outreach in Tanzania.
Reiterating his directive especially to the Ministries of Works, Trade and Industry, and Rural Development, Governor Sule left no doubt about his administration’s endgame: delivery, completion, and accountability.
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