Senator Dino Melaye has urged Governor Yahaya Bello to become a born again, repent of his sins, return Kogi money and pay salaries and pensions, adding that he (Bello) must reconcile and work with the party.
“It is not too late for him (Bello) to become a born again, especially in this period of Ramadan. All I am saying is that he should become a born again, repent from his sins, return Kogi money and pay salaries and pensions. He must reconcile and work with the party,” Dino said.
On the genesis of their feud, having been political soul mates, Dino said he supported Bello initially as an advocate of generational change.
“I believed that he would take issues that concern our state very seriously, govern with the fear of God and sincerity of purpose. I also wanted power to shift to the minorities in Kogi State. These were my genuine reasons for supporting Bello ab-initio.
“I did not start fighting Bello until after one year in office, because I felt one year was enough to assess him. I drew the conclusion that he is not only promoting bad governance in the state but he is an enemy of the people. His actions and inactions portray myopism, intellectual stagnancy and total confusion.
“Bello is a very fortunate young man who got the first bailout, got the second bailout, the first trench of Paris Club refund, and recently, he got the second trench of the Paris Club. President Muhammadu Buhari said the bailouts should be used to augment and offset salary arrears and pensions, but unfortunately, Bello has refused to pay salaries for over 15 months, and in an unjust society, silent is a crime,” Dino said.
On whether he had reached out to the governor to ensure judicious use of bailout funds, Dino said when Bello was one week in office he went to his office in Lokoja and advised him on a number of things, but because he is a desperado, he felt the only way to build his own political structure is to jettison those who worked for the party.
“There are people who worked for this party in the state, but all of them have been abandoned and he imported and appointed criminally-minded persons into positions of authority in Kogi State. I have no personal grudge against Bello, I have no personal hatred for him, all I’m saying is that our people deserve better treatment, all I’m saying is that he should pay salaries and pensions, all I’m saying is that we need development in Kogi State. We have not been fortunate. Instead of listening to my agitations and cries, they want to kill me.
“I survived the first assassination attempt masterminded by the state government through the caretaker chairman of my local government. A prima facie case has been established against this person and he has already been arraigned before a competent court of law, but to show that Bello and the state government is part of it, this person is still sitting as the caretaker chairman despite the fact that he is undergoing criminal trial. Evidence has been found against him, guns found in his house and car, a local government ambulance in his custody was found with five guns. Confessions have been made by some of the gang members that attacked me, yet Bello kept this person in office.
“Surprisingly, I got the second assassination attempt from this same person, but I want to say that no amount of assassination attempt, no amount of intimidation, propaganda and name calling will deter me from championing the course of the Kogi people,” Melaye said.
Describing the move to recall him as a huge joke, Melaye said: “A man who does not know that double registration is an offence will not as well know what it takes to recall a senator. He is shooting the moon and boxing the sky.”
Credit: Daily Trust
