Instead Of Building Infrastructure, Invest In Human Devt, Ex-NHIS Boss Tells Govt

Former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme, (NHIS), Professor Usman Yusuf, has advised Nigeria government to invest more in human development.

Yusuf gave the advice in his keynote address at the 4th lecture series on Maitama Sule Leadership with the theme: “Re-orientation of the North Signifying the Core Values” that was organised by the Students Wing Coalition of Northern Groups (SW-CNG) Adamawa State Chapter, at the Federal College of Education (FCE) Yola.

He said that the country has enough money to educate every child but the money has been deployed to the fight against banditry and the Boko Haram insurgency.

“Investing on the military and infrastructures will not solve the insecurity challenges bedeviling Nigeria. But if government will invest more on citizens by providing good education and some basic necessities of life, the insecurity will fade away.

“What is the use of flyovers and roads when millions of our children are out of schools and our health system is very poor?

“Most of us went to rural schools in those days but competed with others schools in the world but it is not so today,” he said.

Yusuf added that “everybody needs to be involved so that we use our power which is our PVCs to vote right people in next election because this government and politicians have failed us.”

A Lecturer at the America University of Nigeria (AUN), Dr Ahmadu Shehu, said that the north must go back to its core values if it really wanted to address the insecurity bedeviling the region.

Shehu said that northerners should as a matter urgency put aside tribe, religious and ethnic differences in order to chose the right candidates who would pilot the affairs of the country or the insecurity will continue to thrive because wrong leadership.