By: Odeh Favour Adiya
The governorship candidates of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) across the seven Northwest states have pledged to implement a regional minimum wage of ₦110,000 and establish 21 specialist hospitals if elected in the 2027 general elections.
The commitments were contained in a joint regional agenda tagged the “Northwest ADC Governorship Candidates’ Compact 2027–2031,” signed on Wednesday at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.
Speaking on behalf of the candidates after reading the communiqué, former Attorney General of the Federation, Minister of Justice, and Kebbi State ADC governorship candidate, Abubakar Malami, SAN, stated that the group adopted a regional covenant focused on security, development, and shared prosperity.
Reading the joint declaration, Malami addressed the people of the zone directly on the security and economic crises plaguing the region.
He stated, “We, the Governorship Candidates of the African Democratic Congress for Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara States, having this day adopted and signed the Northwest ADC Governorship Candidates’ Compact 2027–2031, address this declaration directly to the people of the Northwest as our Regional Covenant for Security, Development and Shared Prosperity.
“Our region is crisis-ridden. Over 16,000 lives have been lost on account of insecurity between June 2023 and August 2026, and more than 1,583 kidnapping incidents since January 2023 have taken over 10,000 of our people from their homes and farms. Tens of thousands of households have been displaced, and more than 533,000 hectares of farmland in Zamfara and Katsina alone now lie abandoned.
Our region also accounts for 45 percent of Nigeria’s out-of-school children.
“Insecurity has emptied our farms, and those empty farms have brought hunger, driven our children out of the classroom, and have denied them the education the region requires to dry up the recruitment pool for future banditry, kidnappings, and all associated crimes.
Our commitment is to reorient governance to respond effectively and efficiently to break this vicious cycle of crisis, and restore peace, security, and normalcy to our region.”
The candidates pledged to base their regional cooperation on people-centred governance, declaring emergencies on insecurity and education while establishing a Northwest Regional Security Coordination Centre and deploying technology-driven surveillance, including drones, across the 21 senatorial districts.
On agricultural productivity and land security, the communique read in part, “We will ensure more land is safely farmed, and our food security is strengthened through protected agricultural corridors, formalised livestock production, agro-processing, a regional grain reserve and irrigation facilitation.”
Addressing economic concerns and governance autonomy, Malami emphasized that while each state will retain its constitutional authority, joint action remains necessary for regional issues.
He stated, “We commit that we will implement a minimum wage of ₦110,000 for workers across all seven states of the Northwest when elected.
We will not surrender the constitutional authority of our individual states, nor dissolve the distinct priorities of Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara. Each of us will remain answerable for our own budgets, procurement, civil service, state education and health systems, land administration, internally generated revenue, state agriculture and infrastructure within our borders.
“But where our people’s problems cross our borders, we commit to govern together to resolve them. We will coordinate our security architecture. We will hold ourselves to common standards. We will pool investment where pooling multiplies impact. We will open cross-border trade, share data, build joint infrastructure and speak with one voice in advocacy for our region.”
Criticising the current administration’s allocation management, the candidates alleged that over ₦8.33 trillion received in federal allocations by the states and local governments between June 2023 and August 2026 had failed to improve living conditions. They accused current state governors of living in luxury, spending on extravagant government houses, exotic cars, and private jets while citizens wallow in poverty.
Speaking on federal economic policy and the fuel subsidy, Malami stated, “Our States and Local Government Areas have received over ₦8.33 trillion in federal allocations between June 2023 and August 2026, and yet these revenues have not translated into accessible transport, affordable food and healthcare, functioning schools, and improved living conditions for our people. Individually and collectively, we will take deliberate measures to reverse this unacceptable reality and ensure that public resources deliver measurable improvements in the lives of our citizens. This is why we commit to reform with responsibility, relief with accountability, and growth our citizens can feel.”
He continued, “The removal of fuel subsidy by the APC-led Federal Government has pushed the masses of our zone into abject poverty. Households that had hitherto lived on the fringe of hardship now live in abject penury, and the supposed gains claimed for the removal of subsidy have brought no positive impact to their daily lives.
“We, the ADC Governorship Candidates of the seven Northwest States, hereby declare our total support for the promise made by the ADC Presidential Candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, to restore the subsidy as one of the immediate steps to halt the further slide of our people into abject poverty.”
Outlining specific sector plans for social investments and infrastructure, the text detailed commitments to education, healthcare, and critical regional links.
The communique noted, “On Education and Human Capital, we shall declare an emergency on education, secure full UBEC access, integrate Almajiri and Tsangaya children into formal schools, support girls’ school attendance, and build a credible system for teacher recruitment, continuous training, and mopping up out-of-school children.
“We will ensure full access to the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), revitalize primary health care centers, expand midwives, telemedicine and community health insurance deployment. We shall establish one specialist hospital in each senatorial district.
“We shall prioritise regional infrastructure (roads, rail network), independent power generation, solar power for public facilities, water systems, digital backbone and the border and logistics infrastructure our trade depends on.”
The pact signing was directly attended by Malami (Kebbi), Manir Mohammad Dan’iya (Sokoto), Sabo Mohammed Nakudu (Jigawa), and Bilyaminu Yusuf Shinkafi (Zamfara). Other candidates were represented by their deputies, including Aminu Yar’adua Ahmed for Senator Ahmad Babba Kaita (Katsina), Kantiok Irmiya Ishaku for Isa Mohammed Ashiru (Kaduna), and Sabo Mohammed Nakudu representing Ibrahim Ali Amin (Kano).
The North-West geopolitical zone remains one of the country’s most populous regions, facing heavy economic, security, healthcare, and educational burdens. With the Independent National Electoral Commission signaling the official start of the 2027 governorship campaign, regional governance reform and socio-economic restoration are expected to dominate political engagements.
