The National Coordinator of the Ane-Igala Socio-Cultural Development Association (AISCDA), Chief Akwu Umar Goodman, has issued a statement declaring that the Igala people’s ambition to produce Kogi State’s next governor in 2027 is “non-negotiable,” while firmly denying the existence of any political pact with the Okun ethnic bloc over the race.
In the statement on Sunday, Goodman distinguished between the cultural ties shared by the Igala, Okun, and Ebira peoples and the separate question of political ambition, insisting that no agreement exists committing any group to surrender or exchange its governorship aspirations. “There is no political agreement, arrangement, or pact between the Igala and Okun blocs or any tribe,” he said, describing 2027 as “a defining moment for the Igala people” following what he called years of political marginalization.
Goodman stressed that the position was not a rejection of Igala’s cultural relationship with the Okun people, nor a declaration of hostility, but an assertion of what he termed the Igala people’s “equity, justice, and legitimate right” to contest for the state’s highest office. He argued that culture and politics should be treated as separate spheres, with cultural unity coexisting alongside distinct political interests.
The AISCDA coordinator also pushed back on any suggestion that the 2027 governorship seat is automatically reserved for a particular zone, calling such claims neither politically established nor democratic. He noted that every Kogi resident holds a constitutional right to contest for governor regardless of ethnicity, and that the Ebira and Okun peoples remain equally free to pursue the office. Ultimately, he said, electoral outcomes would be determined by “numbers, organization, persuasion, and the ability to win the majority of votes.”
Citing the Accord Party’s recent victory in Osun State as evidence that a relatively unknown political platform can win with sufficient grassroots determination, Goodman urged the Igala people to organize independently of any single political party. He challenged parties operating in the region to name a completed, verifiable project delivered to Igala land over the past decade, stating he had yet to see one.
The statement further criticized what Goodman described as a pattern of the Igala being treated as a reliable voting bloc without receiving corresponding political dividends, calling for votes to translate into “representation, development, opportunities, and political relevance.”
Goodman also addressed unconfirmed reports of a proposed ward creation or alteration exercise in Kogi State that allegedly excludes areas in Kogi East, describing the claims as speculative and unsubstantiated pending an official position from relevant authorities. He urged caution on the matter while calling on the Igala people to remain “vigilant, politically conscious, and strategically organized” ahead of the 2027 poll.
The statement did not name a preferred political party or candidate for the Igala governorship bid, with Goodman saying only that a strategy for the election “has already been evolved.”
