The greatest threat to the future of Kogi East is not merely the scarcity of resources. It is the slow corrosion of political character by the tyranny of hunger. A hungry society becomes fertile ground for political foxes. Where survival eclipses principle, cunning begins to masquerade as wisdom, opportunism as strategy, and silence as loyalty. Hunger does not merely empty stomachs; it empties convictions. It transforms citizens into spectators and leaders into merchants of desperation.
Political foxes do not emerge in prosperous societies where institutions are strong and opportunities are widely shared. They thrive where unemployment is chronic, where young people see politics as the only ladder to relevance, and where public office is mistaken for the sole gateway to economic survival. In such an environment, allegiance is no longer anchored in ideology or competence. It is auctioned to the highest bidder. Politics becomes a marketplace, and conscience becomes a commodity.
This is the quiet tragedy confronting Kogi East. Too many gifted young men and women now measure political success by proximity to power rather than the capacity to transform society. The struggle is no longer about ideas but access. Those who should be the conscience of the people often become the loudest defenders of a broken order because economic hardship has reduced dissent to a luxury. When daily bread depends on political patronage, truth becomes expensive.
Yet a society cannot consume its future and expect to inherit prosperity. The fox is an ingenious creature, but it does not cultivate the vineyard it plunders. It survives by exploiting the labour of others. Likewise, political opportunism may secure temporary advantage, but it cannot build enduring institutions, attract investment, educate children, modernise agriculture, or create sustainable wealth. A region cannot outsmart poverty through manipulation. It can overcome it only through visionary leadership, productive enterprise, accountable governance, and an informed citizenry.
The burden therefore rests not only on those who govern but also on those who are governed. Citizens must refuse to exchange their future for fleeting favours. Young people must rediscover the dignity of enterprise, learning, and innovation. Traditional rulers, religious leaders, civil society, and the intellectual community must nurture a political culture where integrity commands greater respect than patronage. Development begins when character becomes more valuable than connection.
Kogi East stands at a defining moment. It can continue to nourish political foxes with the harvest of hunger, or it can cultivate a generation of visionary leaders whose legitimacy rests on service rather than manipulation. History teaches that no people rise by celebrating cunning. They rise by honouring competence, rewarding integrity, and defending the common good.
Until hunger is confronted with genuine economic opportunity and principled leadership, political foxes will continue to multiply. But when dignity replaces dependency and purpose triumphs over desperation, the vineyard of Kogi East will no longer belong to the foxes. It will belong to the people.
– Inah Boniface Ocholi writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
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