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| Young Prince Audu |
Prince Abubakar Audu (born
1947) was twice the Governor of Nigeria's Kogi state. His first tenure was from
January 1992 until November 1993 and the second from 29 May 1999 to 29 May
2003. He reportedly died due to an heart attack shortly after the announcement
of the election results on the 22nd November, 2015, while seeking re-election
on the platform of Nigeria's ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Early Life & Education
Prince Abubakar Audu, first
Executive Governor of Kogi State was born on 27 October 1947, to the family of
his Royal Highness, the late Pa Audu Oyidi, Orego Atta of Igala Land and the
paramount ruler of Ogbonicha-Alloma in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
He started his education at
the then N.A. Junior Primary School, Alloma, and later N.A Senior School Ankpa,
from where he proceeded to Dennis Memorial Grammar School, Onitsha. He later
transferred to the Jos Commercial College where he obtained both the GCE O and
A level.
Proffessional Carreer
After a stint as a bank
worker, Prince Audu later proceeded to London from 1975-1978 where he studied
banking and personnel management, obtaining professional qualification as a
certified secretary, and as a Fellow of the Association of International
Accountants of London, as well as fellowship of the Chartered Institute of
Industrial Administration of Nigeria.
Audu's banking career lasted
for a total of 25 years, which he spent with First Bank - formerly known and
Standard Bank. Here, he served in various capacities at management level until
1991. He also made history as the bank's first training officer of African
descent and also as one of the first black senior management staff of Standard
Chartered Bank in London and New York.
In 1991, he was appointed
Executive Director of FSB International Bank PLC.
Political and Public Service
Audu's sojourn into public
service began in 1986 when we has appointed as Commissioner for Finance and
Economic Planning in the Old Benue state. He served in this capacity until 1988
when the cabinet was dissolved. He then returned to Fist Bank of Nigeria PLC as
a General Manager.
In August 1991, Kogi state
was created from parts of the old benue and Kwara states. This coincided with
one of Nigeria's many previous encounters with democracy, and Audu, being part
of those who had advocated for the creation of the state and a notable son of
the soil, was invited to contest for governorship. He contested on the platform
of the National Republican Convention (NRC) and won the election held in
November, 1991. He was subsequently sworn in as the first executive governor of
Kogi state in January 1992.
In 1998, democracy was again
re-introduced and Audu, now with the All Nigeria People's Party (ANPP), was
elected again with over 700,000 votes while his opponent hardly recorded 50% of
the vote cast. He was sworn in on 29 May 1999 as the 2nd Executive Governor of
Kogi State.
Major Achievements
Infrastructure
His socio-economic
contribution in the state is to date a point of reference to the generality of
the people and many aspiring leaders. Some of his major achievements during his
brief first term of office include the establishment of three different housing
schemes for public officers consisting of over 1,500 housing units in Lokoja,
the transformation of Lokoja township with asphalt roads, street lights,
aesthetic roundabouts, the construction of inter-township and rural roads, over
75 electrification schemes and 50 water projects.
Other include the founding of
Kogi State Polytechnic, the establishment of a television station, radio
station (both AM and FM), a state newspaper and the transformation of the
colonial residence of Lord Lugard into an Ultra Modern Government House
Complex, the construction of office blocks for ministries as the new state had
no office accommodation, the construction of shopping arcade complex to enhance
commercial activities, among others.
Abuja State Liaison Office,
Sports Complex and Confluence Beach Hotel
He also pioneered the
construction of the first ultra modern state liaison office in Abuja. His
administration also built an ultra modern stadium and a five star hotel in
Lokoja, the Confluence Beach Hotel.
Obajana Cement Factory
He also took steps to woo
prospective investors to harness the numerous solid mineral potentials in the
State. The big prize was the establishment of Obajana Cement Factory. The
project, which was on going before he left office, attracted the support of the
United State Government. During the visit of former President Bill Clinton to
Nigeria, the State Government signed the agreement with the US Trade
Development Agency (TDA) for a grant to finalize the feasibility work on the
project. The cement project is now operational.
Establishment of the Kogi
State University, Anyigba.
The establishment of a state
university, Kogi State University Anyigba, is another testimony to the vision
and resourcefulness. The foundation stone was laid on 30 November 1999, when
former President Olusegun Obasanjo, visited the state. About a year later, the
President returned to Anyigba during a state visit to commission the University
complex. According to a report of a visitation panel to the university from the
Nigeria University Commission, the institution was then described as the
fastest growing university in the country. The university received tremendous
international support, which included an affiliation programme to Morgan State
University Baltimore. Also, seven visiting professors from various universities
in the United States were at the university to review its curriculum and align
it with their own universities and prepare the students for exchange programme
to give the university an international acceptability.
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| Late Prince Audu and his third wife |
Prince Audu completed several
landmark projects within four years. They include: 250 units Housing Estate, a
Sport Complex, a Specialist Eye Hospital and 25 other medical Institutions.
Others are: a Special Government Girls Secondary School on student exchange
programme, 350 borehole schemes, 300 kilometers of township roads, the
procurement of 100 transit buses and completion of 40 rural electrification
projects.
He was also named the best
governor in the 1999-2003 dispensation, despite being a governor on the
platform of the opposition, the ANPP.
Corruption Allegations
When Prince Audu left office
in 2003, he was charged by Nigeria's anti-corruption agency, the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), with corruption. This case has been on for
twelve years and many say it was coined as an attempt by the then ruling PDP to
smear Audu's image, especially in light of the achievements recorded during his
tenure.
He has responded to these
allegations, stating that while he was governor, the state received less than
N400million as monthly allocation, and that it would have been impossible to
embezzle the N12 billion that the agency claims he did when he received less
than N19 billion in total, yet embarked on many projects.
The Agency has also changed
the figure he allegedly embezzled over the years; previously, they stated N1
billion, later N4 billion, and now, N12 billion. Audu has also described the
EFCC case as being politically motivated.
Source-www.wikipediaonline.com
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