Five Ways Compassion, Justice Drive Uba Sani’s Governance

Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State

By Nasir Dambatta

In Africa’s political landscape, leadership is often measured by infrastructure, megaprojects, or rhetoric. Yet Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State has gone a notch further by quietly building a legacy grounded in something far rarer: compassion combined with justice. Some three years into his administration, the results are tangible, measurable, and transforming lives — a model reminiscent of African leaders like Paul Kagame, who mainstreamed mental health and social services in post-genocide Rwanda, or Julius Nyerere, whose governance prioritised human welfare over personal power.

The first way compassion and justice intersect in Uba Sani’s governance is through historic mental health reform. On September 18, 2025, Governor Sani signed into law the Kaduna State Mental Health Law, formally repealing the colonial-era Lunacy Act of 1958, a law that had stood unchallenged for 66 years. This legislation ended entrenched discrimination against people living with mental health conditions and established a rights-based framework that integrated care into all primary and general hospitals. The law also created the Kaduna State Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Agency (KADSAMHSA), trained and graduated 100 clinicians under the WHO mhGAP programme, and provided community-based care to over 20,000 clients in its first year. Like Rwanda’s visionary reforms, Kaduna’s legislation signals that governance can protect dignity while enacting systemic change.

The second expression of this compassionate justice is seen in emergency healthcare that saves lives, not just policy points. In October 2025, Governor Sani launched the Kaduna State Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System (KADSEMSAS), a fully coordinated network covering all 23 Local Government Areas. Equipped with ambulances for maternal, accident, neonatal, and critical emergencies, supported by a central dispatch system and a toll-free emergency line, the initiative ensures free emergency care for the first 48 hours for pregnant women, children, and accident victims. For a state of over 8 million people, this system converts bureaucratic plans into tangible, life-saving action — echoing the approach of leaders like Thomas Sankara, who prioritized accessible healthcare as a fundamental right.

The third way this governance philosophy manifests is through post-conflict rehabilitation and social healing. Kaduna’s post-conflict rehabilitation initiatives illustrate another dimension of Uba Sani’s compassionate leadership. Through the Qatar Sanabil Project, his administration has delivered new homes, schools, clinics, and community facilities for victims of prolonged banditry and displacement. The 2026 budget framework enabled the reopening of 535 schools, returning over 300,000 out-of-school children to classrooms, the construction of 736 new classrooms, renovation of 1,220 others, and the training of 33,000 teachers. This mirrors recovery strategies in post-conflict African nations like Sierra Leone and Liberia, where restoring shelter, education, and community infrastructure was central to peace and social cohesion.

The fourth pillar lies in economic empowerment that turns vulnerability into productivity. Governor Sani’s compassion also takes the form of economic empowerment. Vulnerable groups, including those recovering from substance abuse, have access to vocational and literacy centres in Rigachikun and two satellite campuses, equipping thousands for meaningful work. Partnerships with global tech leaders such as Microsoft and Google provide pathways into digital and entrepreneurial ecosystems, while infrastructure projects like the remodeled Panteka Market support over 38,000 artisans in skills-to-market value chains. As with Sankara’s policies in Burkina Faso, this approach reframes empathy not as charity, but as productive inclusion, turning rehabilitation into independence and social contribution.

The fifth and final way compassion is institutionalised is through justice for workers and retirees.In 2025, ₦6.678 billion in pension entitlements and benefits were paid to retirees and families of deceased workers, bringing the total under his administration to ₦13.5 billion, benefiting 661 individuals. Simultaneously, the state implemented CONMESS and CONHESS salary structures for health workers, expanded health insurance for vulnerable households with a ₦1 billion allocation, and dedicated over 15% of the budget to health — surpassing the Abuja Declaration benchmark. This commitment mirrors the philosophy of leaders like Seretse Khama of Botswana, whose long-term focus on public service welfare strengthened societal stability and trust in governance.

Taken together, these five pillars — mental health reform, emergency healthcare, community rehabilitation, skills and economic empowerment, and justice for workers — define a governance model where compassion is measurable and justice is operationalized. Uba Sani’s approach demonstrates that African leadership can balance power with conscience, results with empathy, and policy with morality. Where communities were once silent, voices are now heard; where exclusion prevailed, inclusion is institutionalised; where dignity was absent, it is being restored — one law, one service, one life at a time.

Governor Uba Sani shows that empathy paired with justice and backed by measurable action is not weakness, but the ultimate strength of governance. His legacy is already being written in laws repealed, lives saved, schools reopened, skills delivered, and retirees honoured. In a continent that continues to grapple with leadership challenges, Kaduna under Uba Sani offers a rare, concrete example: that moral governance — compassionate, just, and measured — is both possible and transformative.

*Dambatta is Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Print Media