The Yobe State Government has clarified that Governor Mai Mala Buni’s ₦300 million donation to JIBWIS was made in his personal capacity and did not come from state funds.
The clarification followed widespread criticism over the donation to the proposed JIBWIS university in Plateau State.
Buni announced the donation on Sunday at a National Symposium organised by Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatis Sunnah, popularly known as Izala or JIBWIS.
The event, held in Jos, focused on political participation, social justice, national unity and development.
The donation triggered criticism from residents, activists and political opponents who questioned the decision to support a religious university while some schools and healthcare facilities in Yobe remain in poor condition.
Yobe PDP member Umar Yobe accused the governor of committing public funds to the project without consultation.
Healthcare advocate KY Tebo also questioned the state’s priorities, citing the lack of dialysis facilities for residents suffering from kidney-related ailments in Bade and Jakusko Local Government Areas.
Tebo said the criticism was not directed at the proposed university but at the government’s spending priorities.
“It is not because they are against religion or against the proposed university. The question is about priority,” he said.
Education activist Adamu Bello Jana similarly called for greater investment in Yobe’s education sector.
He pointed to the high number of out-of-school children and the poor condition of several public schools across the state.
Amid the backlash, the Director-General of Press and Media Affairs to the governor, Mamman Mohammed, issued a statement on Tuesday explaining the circumstances surrounding the donation.
Mohammed said the donation was announced during the symposium by the Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Kabiru Masari.
According to him, Masari announced a personal ₦300 million donation and another ₦300 million pledge on behalf of Governor Buni for the proposed JIBWIS university.
Mohammed stressed that both donations were personal and were not made on behalf of the Yobe State Government.
“The donations made by Hon. Kabiru Masari on behalf of his humble self, and Governor Buni, were very personal and not on behalf of Yobe State Government,” he said.
He also clarified that Masari had no authority to make financial pledges or decisions on behalf of the Yobe government.
Mohammed described reports suggesting that the ₦300 million would be paid from state funds as “totally false, inaccurate, misleading and a distortion of facts.”
Despite the clarification, concerns over Yobe’s education and healthcare sectors remain.
Critics argue that the controversy highlights the broader debate over government priorities and the need to address the state’s pressing developmental challenges.
