By Fanisi Babatunde, PhD.
At the onset of Senator Sunday Steve Karimi’s emergence as the Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District, I was among those who doubted the viability of his candidacy. My skepticism was not born out of malice but from a deep-seated belief that politics in Nigeria often promises much and delivers little. Karimi, though experienced, did not immediately strike me as a disruptive force capable of overturning the long-standing narrative of neglect in Kogi West. But two years into his tenure, I must admit with measured humility that I was wrong. What began as what I assumed would be a “half dose” of political delivery has, in practice, proven to be a potent, full-strength intervention in nearly every facet of life across Kogi West.
From rural wards to urban centers, Senator Karimi has proven to be an active and intentional representative, redefining legislative performance through sheer visibility, practical engagement, and remarkable reach. What makes his story compelling is not merely the scale of his projects but their thoughtful distribution. Virtually every political ward in Kogi West has felt the impact of his intervention whether through potable water provision, critical infrastructure, religious facility support, security installations, educational investment, or economic empowerment schemes. His approach has been largely devoid of noise, with little or no media grandstanding, yet the ripple effect is impossible to ignore.
Perhaps the most groundbreaking of his interventions is the establishment and funding of the Nigerian Army Security Forward Operating Base in Egbe, an urban town in Yagba west LGA, an area often troubled by insecurity and trans-border banditry due to its proximity to Kwara and Ekiti States, Karimi’s donation of a well-furnished military base—with solar lighting, internet-enabled command structures (via Starlink), perimeter fencing, boreholes, residential quarters, and two brand new operational vehicles demonstrates uncommon foresight and patriotism. The entire facility, built with funds reportedly running into several hundreds of millions of naira, if not a billion stands not just as a military post but as a monument to grassroots protection and leadership responsibility. Senator Karimi also extended his security-focused efforts beyond Egbe with a significant but less-publicized donation toward establishing a security outpost in the Kabba-Bunu axis by the Kabba Bunu LGA Chairman, near the growing Kogi State University along Okene road. This strategic move addresses emerging security concerns in surrounding communities like Gbeleko, Okedayo, Kakun, Egbeda, which are witnessing increased student population and commercial activity. His foresight in enhancing safety in this educational corridor demonstrates a proactive commitment to protecting both the campus and adjoining communities.
In the education sector, his initiatives are equally impactful. He launched a yearly N100 million bursary for indigent students in Kogi West, an effort that will total N400 million across his term. This was followed by an announcement of a much broader N300 million scholarship program that covers students across all three senatorial districts of Kogi State. He also announced plans to establish and equip two state-of-the-art Computer-Based Testing centres, including one in Yagba West, that will be fitted with over 250 computers and internet facilities to bridge the technological gap in rural education. Additionally, he has taken up school renovations, such as the complete remodeling of Government Secondary School in Kotonkarfe and also announced plans to build a 1,000-seater hall at the National Open University (Isanlu Study Centre), with many of these projects funded outside of government allocations.
Karimi has also addressed longstanding infrastructural neglect. His intervention in rebuilding the collapsed Pakuta bridge in Ijumu to the tune of 17 Million Naira, which links multiple farming communities, revived economic activities in areas previously cut off. He personally funded emergency repairs on the Kabba-Ilorin and Bunu-Iluke-Budon roads before officially assuming office, later pushing for their inclusion in federal infrastructure budgets. As we speak, some of this roads have been included in the budget with some already being scratched. His constituency has also seen over 140 water projects which includes 75 newly constructed solar-powered boreholes and 60 rehabilitated ones spanning Lokoja, Kabba-Bunu, Kogi-Kotonkarfe, Ijumu, Mopa-Amuro, Yagba East, and Yagba West, collectively valued at more than N1.2 billion. Streetlights, transformers, and feeder road rehabilitations have become standard fare, not campaign bait.
In terms of religious and cultural support, Senator Karimi has made deliberate efforts to invest in the moral and social fabrics of his communities. He donated N11 million to the Anglican Diocese Nursing School and the Cathedral Church in Iyara, supported mosques and churches across Kogi West, and contributed to the renovation of the Egbe palace, home to one of the region’s revered traditional stools. His holiday relief initiatives, distributed without partisan or religious bias, include truckloads of rice, semovita, and palliatives to churches, mosques, palaces, market women, and vulnerable homes. These gestures are not only acts of charity but tools of social cohesion and inclusive governance.
He has also sponsored several strategic legislative bills and motions at the National Assembly. Among them are amendments to the CBN Act, reform of dishonored cheque laws, and motions advocating for the full rehabilitation of domestic refineries. His push for establishing two federal universities with one in Egbe and another in Kabba further strengthens his legislative vision for academic expansion in underserved areas. Yet, if there is an area where more robust attention is needed, it is in the realm of human capital development through federal appointments and employment. While his handlers opined that he has facilitated placements into federal agencies like FERMA and some other places, the volume of beneficiaries remains modest compared to the employment needs within his Senatorial District. Given his growing political capital, Senator Karimi can and arguably should intensify lobbying efforts to secure more federal jobs and career-defining appointments for young professionals and graduates across Kogi West.
It will interest you to know that in early 2025, Senator Karimi funded a multi-million-naira entrepreneurship and skills acquisition program for youths across Kogi West. The initiative trained participants who are mainly students from all seven LGAs in areas like fashion apparel making, catering, paint production, telecoms engineering and beauty shaping. Though low-key in publicity, the program empowered many with practical skills, fostering self-reliance and addressing youth unemployment in the district.
Still, when evaluated comprehensively, Karimi’s performance defies the skepticism that once clouded his candidacy. His brand of politics isn’t flamboyant or loud. it is precise, people-centered, and relentlessly practical. Though a section holds the view of him being prideful but his modest humility has been demonstrated by his refusal to stamp his name flamboyantly on public projects or weaponize constituency interventions for political gain, has earned him uncommon respect from me. For those of us who doubted, the evidence is now visible as some roads are being made motorable, communities that had no water now drink from clean boreholes, students who once saw education as an elite privilege now access to bursaries and digital CBT centers will soon be delivered; and soldiers who lacked a base now operate from a fully equipped security post in Egbe.
At a time when Nigerians crave leaders who serve with “Modest” integrity and deliver with action, Senator Sunday Steve Karimi is quietly building a legacy of one ward, one project, one act of service at a time. A half dose, we feared; a full dose, we have received.
Thank you so far: Distinguished Senator Sunday Steve Karimi [DSSK].
– Fanisi Babatunde, Ph.D, Researcher, Lecturer, Policy Analyst and Development Enthusiasts writes from Kogi State, North Central, Nigeria.
