A historic moment beckons on Kogi as we approach the governorship
elections. Our state stands poised delicately between breakthrough and
breakdown, between the catharsis of renewal and the tragedy of
hopelessness. Millions of Kogites would be choosing renewal and hope,
banishing fear and embracing the future.
A vast number of Kogites seem to be in agreement that the time has
come to urgently steer the ship of state away from its rudderless and
stunted direction of the last 16 years.
The ‘power shift’ slogan of the Kogi West & Central connected with the
mood of the moment is symbolic of regions in need of redemption— a
state at the mercy of buccaneers and visionless leaders. The ‘power
shift’ slogan is spreading like wild bush fire in the harmattan. We
hope the outcome of the APC’s primary elections confirm Victor Hugo’s
saying that “all the world is not so powerful (as to alter) an idea
whose time has come.”
The stakes for power shift are really high, the Enesi from Ihima,
Nasir from Lokoja, Kuti from Bassa and Aledare from Iyara are tired of
being spectators in their own affairs. While I also believe that power
shift will play a critical role in repositioning our state from its
present state to a more prosperous one, it will be myopic of any
Kogite to think that good governance can only be birth from the east.
My honest view is that power is not going to shift anytime soon & Our
state will not be saved from the rapacious leadership that has been
the bane of our underdevelopment if the central and west cannot in
unison adopt a consensus candidate. The governship elections is going
to be a watershed because for the first time, the votes of Kogites
will count, That will be the enduring change we all desire. A change
where the votes of the oppressed people count.
Kogi west and central can longer afford to sit on the fence but the
real ‘power shift’ we seek will not come unless we are ready to make
sacrifices.
– Balogun Emmanuel Funsho is an indigene of Kabba; he writes from
University Of Ilorin, Ilorin. He can be reached on 07034444976 or
irule9ja@gmail.com
