Even though you started wrongly, by allowing yourself and your government to be misled, dominated and surrounded by individuals who are intellectually deficient, politically worthless and morally bankrupt, the fact that something can still be done to remedy the damages that have been done to your battered image and nose-diving popularity, and boost your chances of not only returning to Lugard House but winning the forthcoming governorship election by a wide margin is a sure possibility if you are ready to do everything it takes to win over the hearts and love of Kogites.
Kogi is a civil service state with well over ninety percent of its workers employed and under the payroll of either the state or local government councils. Virtually every family in the state today has one or two persons currently working as a state/local government worker. Majority of these workers are not only the bread winners of their immediate families, some members of their extended families also looks up to them for feeding, school fees, hospital bills and other utility bills. Therefore, the easiest way to earn the confidence, love and respect of the people of the state is through prompt payment of salaries and pension allowances, and the fastest way to incur their wrath is by nonpayment.
Even some of your bootlickers and strong supporters agree that your government have not done so well as far as payment of salaries and pensions are concerned. To this end, many of the workers in the state bear grudges against you for your failure to make payment of salaries and pension a priority for a larger part of your administration. Although your government is beginning to make laudable efforts at putting smiles on the faces of Kogi workers lately, through the payment of a few arrears of salary, the pain the workers have been made to endure and subjected during the unnecessary lengthy screening exercise remains fresh in their minds and will require more and a sustained culture of prompt salary payment for the sad memories and emotional torture to gradually heal and vanish.
The actions, inactions and activities of many of your appointees who obviously have had nothing tangible to add to your government but goes about harassing and intimidating people with thugs and security agents, thereby making many more enemies for you and your government on a daily basis is what you must look into and bring to a halt by showing the troublemakers who are a glaring liability to your success the exit door, if you really desire to return to power in January next year, especially now that the November governorship election inch closer. One thing many of your opponents will use in campaigning against you is your inability to carry out an aggressive infrastructural development or have in place cogent projects to show and justify your close to four year stay in office. To this end, your government needs to go beyond merely flagging off projects to aggressively mobilizing contractors back to site, with the aim of completing projects that would have direct impacts on the people.
Water supply still remains a major challenge even within the state capital, women and children treks long distances in search of water that is not even hygienic, Ebiraland is not also left out of this suffering. I am fully aware of the laudable strides your government is making in the health sector, but you have left out the health personnel. All the efforts you are making at ensuring a better healthcare delivery system for Kogites would end in a fiasco if the welfare of health workers is not prioritized and the issue of under-staffing looked into.
It is said that there is no permanent enemy or friend in politics, but permanent interest. The prevailing political atmosphere in the state where mutual suspicion, hatred, acrimony and animosity have become the order of the day is capable of preventing your reelection if not adequately handled, remedied and managed with maturity.
The tension between you and the state Deputy governor, Hon. Simon Achuba is a political own-goal that you have scored against yourself. That you allowed the situation to escalate to this level depicts that many of your advisors and people around you are mere sycophants who do not have the mental capacity to admonish you that the best strategy that would ensure you make it back to Lugard House is to make peace and keep as many people as possible into your fold.
Sadly, you have failed to use the opportunity of the occasion of Senator Dino Melaye’s late mother’s burial ceremony to reach out and possibly reconcile with him, this further exposed how politically empty and dumb your strategists are. Believe me; you need a personality like Dino Melaye more than he needs you.
It is said that charity begins at home. It’s only a foolish people who goes into a ‘battle’ with a divided house and expect to end up victorious. Regardless of what the sycophants around you are telling you, your success or failure of your reelection bid as governor of our dear state begins with how you are able to galvanize the support and command the respect and loyalty of your own people in Ebiraland. Your should understand that your reelection is not a ‘battle’ for you alone, but a collective ‘project’ that must have the blessing of majority of Anebira at home and abroad. To this end, you must find a way to reconcile with personalities and politicians who have been able to win the sympathy and love of Anebira in the recent past, such as Senator Abdulsalam Ohiare, Senator Salau Ogembe, Natasha Akpoti and the likes. This is the time for you to swallow your pride and needless ego, close ranks and extend a sincere hand of fellowship to all Anebira in the interest of Ebiraland.
Truth is, if you lose and fail to secure a second term in the forthcoming governorship election then we have all failed.
#LetCommonSensePrevail
– Hussain Obaro
oseniobaro@yahoo.com
