Former Gombe State Governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo, told outgoing governors to “be prepared for the visits of such institutions like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission ICPC and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU who may ask some questions that need answers.”
Politics Nigeria gathered that Dankwambo, Saraki and others spoke on Sunday, May 14, night at the farewell dinner for outgoing governors held at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.
They spoke to the outgoing governors on how to prepare for life after office.
Saraki, a former governor of Kwara State, urged the 18 outgoing governors to make the necessary adjustments to play their roles in national development.
While commending the outgoing governor for the services rendered to their respective states, Saraki said, “When you are no longer governor, allow your successor to do their work. Go back to your families. I am sure your wives, children and grandchildren are counting the days. You are bracing for a new phase of life, which is completely different. Spend more time with your families. Save your money for hampers and rams because they won’t come as usual.”
The former Senate President also enjoined the newly-elected governors to start planning their exit from day one, even as he harped on the significance of self-challenge for development.
“To our incoming governors, start planning and preparing for governance. Plan your exit from day one and keep challenging yourselves,” Saraki said.
Taking the floor, Dankwambo recalled the difficulty of transiting from office to out of it, narrating how an unnamed former governor, who had a flight to catch to Benin City, kept sitting and sipping coffee in the departure lounge of a Nigerian airport, not knowing that the plane had taken off.
The incident, which drew a thunderous laughter from the audience, according to Dankwambo, happened because the former governor as usual was waiting for his aides to remind him of boarding time.
He urged outgoing governors to bear with the pressure of friction likely to occur between them and their successors.
“You are retiring from work, not life. Avoid meddling in the affairs of your predecessors. As you get older, your health cannot be taken for granted. You have to bear with the pressure,” he said.
Dankwambo also urged the incoming governors to “begin to prepare for retirement as soon as you are sworn in.
