"Pregnant Women Told to Bring Fuel and Water to Hospitals": Group Tackles PDP Governor

• Arewa Youths for Democracy and Development (AYDD) has accused Zamfara state governor, Dauda Lawal, of driving the state into “tragic regression”
• In a statement released in Gusau, AYDD cited worsening insecurity, collapsing education and healthcare systems, and lack of youth empowerment as evidence of failure
• The group also warned of a civic mobilisation ahead of 2027 to demand accountability and reverse the state’s decline

Gusau, Zamfara state - A prominent Northern youth group has accused Governor Dauda Lawal of plunging Zamfara state into a “tragic regression,” claiming the state has lost six years of progress barely one year into his administration.

The Arewa Youths for Democracy and Development (AYDD), in a strongly worded statement issued on Sunday, July 20, in Gusau, said the optimism that accompanied Lawal’s election in May 2023 has faded into disappointment and frustration among residents.

“What we see is not governance, but a tragic abdication of responsibility,” said Comrade Ibrahim Danladi Gwaska, AYDD president. “Zamfara has effectively gone six years backward under Governor Dauda Lawal.”

Insecurity: We live in fear in Zamfara, group alleges

The group criticised what it described as the worsening insecurity in Zamfara. According to Gwaska, the state government has failed to curb rampant bandit attacks, especially in Maru, Zurmi, Anka, Shinkafi, and Tsafe local government areas.

“Governor Lawal promised to end the bloodshed, but our people are still being killed, kidnapped and displaced daily,” Gwaska lamented. “Instead of action, we get silence while rural Zamfara burns.”

The youth leader said villages have become ghost towns as residents flee recurring violence.

The group also raised concerns over what it called a collapse of basic education infrastructure across the state.

“Primary and secondary schools in places like Bakura and Bungudu have no chairs, no roofs, and in many cases, no chalk,” Gwaska said.

“Teachers are unpaid, and children sit on bare floors.”

The group criticised the government’s alleged focus on international conferences over actual delivery, describing it as “performative leadership.”

Pregnant women buy fuel for hospitals, group alleges

AYDD further accused the Lawal-led government of allowing Zamfara’s health system to deteriorate to dangerous levels.

“There are hospitals where women in labour are told to bring their own water and fuel. Clinics have no drugs, no electricity, and no trained personnel,” the statement noted.

Gwaska added that while ordinary citizens suffer, top government officials continue to seek medical attention abroad.

The group said youth unemployment and drug abuse are rising rapidly in the state due to the absence of government-led empowerment or training initiatives.

“There is no youth programme, no small business fund, no innovation hub. It’s as if the young people were forgotten immediately after the election,” Gwaska said.

He further cited the alleged abandonment of key road projects started by the previous administration as another sign of failure.

“These roads connected farming communities to markets. Now they are impassable, transport fares have doubled, and the economy is shrinking,” Gwaska added.

AYDD also raised red flags over transparency and accountability in the current administration, accusing it of opaque budget implementation and questionable contract awards.

“Governor Lawal branded himself a World Bank technocrat, but nothing has changed,” Gwaska said. “IGR is low, and we don’t know how funds are spent.”

Lawmakers, others asked to hold Zamfara gov accountable

Calling on the state House of Assembly, traditional leaders and civil society groups to hold the governor accountable, AYDD urged immediate action to prevent further decline.

“Zamfara people are not asking for miracles. We just want a government that listens, acts, and delivers. If Governor Lawal cannot do the job, he should admit it,” the group warned.

AYDD also announced plans to mobilise residents across Zamfara ahead of the 2027 general elections, aiming to build a “broad-based civic movement for change.”

Matawalle slams Gov Dauda Lawal’s midterm performance

In a related development, former Zamfara governor Bello Matawalle accused Governor Lawal of mismanagement, exaggerating achievements, and taking credit for projects initiated by past administrations.

In a strong statement, Matawalle’s team criticised the current administration’s handling of infrastructure, education, healthcare, and security, among others.

They also alleged that Governor Lawal inflated revenue figures and neglected critical humanitarian and water supply issues across the state

Source: Legit.ng