Former UK Prime Minister, Blair visits Gov Sule 

By Danjuma Joseph (LAFIA)

The former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair, was received by the Nasarawa State Governor, Engineer Abdullahi Sule, where the two leaders discussed issues on how the state government will improve on delivering dividends of democracy.

Gov Sule hosted the former UK Prime Minister in Abuja, on Wednesday, where they also discussed ways to assist Nasarawa State harness its potentials especially by attracting investments. 

Gov Sule, while addressing journalists shortly after holding a breakfast meeting, with his visitor, appreciated the former UK Prime Minister for accepting to pay him a visit.

“We are very happy that the former Prime Minister agreed to visit us. We have been working with his team here in Nigeria. He has a team in so many countries around the world,” he stated.

The Governor took advantage of the meeting to inform Mr Blair, about his administration’s policies towards turning around the economic fortunes of Nasarawa State, while also opening up on areas where the government will need assistance from the Tony Blair Institute (TBI).

“When we came in, we came with a document called the Nasarawa Economic Development Strategy, which we believed will help us drive our economic strategy. Nasarawa State has great potentials in mining.  In fact, we are called the Home of Solid Minerals. 

“Why are we coming to you? Two things. One, it will help drive our governance structure. Nasarawa State is a state considered more or less a civil service state. It’s a state that is in a hurry to catch up with global trends. Secondly, you are a global person and you touch everywhere. You can assist us in the area of attracting investors. We are also an oil and gas state now,” he said.

Engineer Sule explained that the Nasarawa State Government is seeking to consolidate on its partnership with the TBI towards improving governance structure and attracting investments. 

 “He has been doing a lot and his team has been doing a lot to assist us in that. He just came to discuss further in those areas,” the Governor added.

On his part, Tony Blair, who thanked the Governor for hosting him, and also commended the governor for his leadership qualities and for what he is bringing to the table for the state.

“I am a great admirer of what he is trying to do. Obviously there is huge potentials in the state. There are many great things happening and can happen there. 

“Mine is to work with governments round the world and help them deliver. Since what you will find about governments the toughest thing is getting the job done. It’s a great pleasure to be with him, to exchange views and we look forward to working with his team,” he stated.

“You may have grand schemes and ideas and at the end, as a politician you got to make things work. We focus much on how we can help governments deliver. We built over the years some connectivity right around the world and it helps. 

“Today, with many countries and states, the biggest thing is to ensure that people understand what is available in their country, in their state, how they can build the right partnerships,” he stated.