The frenzy towards the 2019 Kogi state governorship election is on the high as differing political interest groups prepare to seek the peoples mandate in the November 2019 governorship elections.
It is, however, incontrovertible that the people of Kogi state and the entire Nigeria have seen what the current Governor Yahaya Bello has done with the mandate that was handed to him on a platter of gold four years ago when the real winner of the election, Prince Abubakar Audu passed away in the middle of the polling process.
The ruling party – the All Progressives Congress (APC) – inexplicably chose Bello as replacement even when he never stood for the election in a quagmire that still baffles the nation. Bello had everything probably going for him. He is young and from one of the ethnic groups that had not tasted power in the state prior to his emergence, and much hope was bestowed on him to steer the state to greater heights. Bello is also fairly educated being a chartered accountant.
But no sooner did Bello assume office than Kogi citizens started shedding tears. The anguish and misery Bello unleashed on the hapless citizens were unimaginable. Kogi state plunged into deplorable poverty compounded by the Governor’s deliberate refusal to pay workers salary for nearly 17 months. Bello was not moved by the cries of the people neither was he perturbed by the protests by prominent Kogi citizens to address the deplorable situation of workers in the state.
Even when he got bailouts running into billions from the Federal Government between 2016 and 2017 including the Paris funds, Governor Bello rather diverted the funds to mundane projects hardly beneficial to that state. It is on record that Bello has acquired choice property in Nigeria and abroad while Kogi citizens wail and gnash their teeth in utter despair.
All the pleas from citizens fell on deaf ears and Bello without conscience embarked on terror tactics to intimidate and hound opposition elements, who advised him to channel the resources of the state to critical sector and transform the potentially rich state for the benefit of all.
Today, Kogi is wretched, infrastructure is down, health institutions are in shambles, the roads are in bad shape, the educational institutions are moribund and industries have collapsed.
The Governor became even more disappointing when he exhibited lack of creativity to tap into the investment potentials of the state and also showed his poor vision in building the requisite policy framework to generate IGI in the state.
The grim consequences of this failure of governance came with concomitant rise in violent criminality and other social vices spurred by poverty and spiraling low quality of life. Today, Kogi is one of the fastest deteriorating states of the Federation.
But a couple of months to the Kogi Governorship election, the Kogi Governor and his cohorts in the ruling party both at the national and state levels want to pull a fast one on Kogites, by rushing to pay some months salaries to buy the conscience of the people.
Bello and his gang of rapacious wolves took too long to feel the pulse of the people who have become so embittered by his reckless attitude to governance and are waiting patiently to show them the way out during the election in November. His unimaginative efforts to hoodwink the people is already the subject of discussion in all quarters in the state but the governor is in for a shocker.
However, nothing appears more disturbing to the people of Kogi than the recent show of solidarity to Governor Bello ahead of the election by the revered and influential National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Jagaban of Borgu.
Tinubu to the chagrin of Kogi people was captured on pictures depicting the 4+4 sign with Bello, to usher in Bello’s campaign for a second term in office. This was heart-breaking for Kogi citizens and a warning that the APC leadership is now confirmed desperate to impose Bello on Kogi citizens despite his numerous failures.
First, the APC allegedly manipulated the party primaries and handed over the party’s ticket to the governor over more diligent and better candidates and secondly, the APC’s selection of Bello is an indication that the party is insensitive to the yearnings of the Kogi people.
We are compelled to ask Tinubu on what bases is he showing support for Bello and wants him to return as governor, when all the indicators point to negativity and underdevelopment in Kogi state.
Tinubu is showing support to Bello, who failed abysmally in Kogi, but the same Tinubu worked hard to ensure that the highly performing former Lagos State Governor, Akinwumi Ambode, was denied a second term ticket.
This is textbook hypocrisy and it is a vicious attempt to strangulate the state and channel its resources to serve nefarious interests. We have difficulty understanding this type of double standard from Tinubu but we have a message for the Jagaban and all those encouraging Bello to remain in power to continue pillaging the state resources. They have failed.
We are aware of the grand plots being hatched by the APC leadership to collaborate with compromised officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to rig the elections for Bello. But we want to allert the people of Kogi state of these plots and the need for them to stand and reclaim their beloved state from the claws of a network of unconscionable vultures who are set to devour the state.
That is why the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and its Governorship candidate in the coming election in Kogi, Sheikh Ibrahim Jubril and his running mate Durojaiye Hassan want to lead this challenge to retake Kogi and redirect its destiny.
Our intentions as we seek the mandate of Kogi people are clear. We represent the new thinking in Kogi and we have masterfully orchestrated ideals and programmes in our manifesto, which is very discernible. We believe in revamping our industries and creating new ones, we will reorganize the agriculture sector and improve it to generate IGR.
We in APGA want to change the orientation of dependency on Federal allocation of wealth since it has been warned that in few years to come, oil may no longer be relevant. We have a strategy to refocus our education to produce sellable skills and functional knowledge. Our tourism potentials in Kogi are enormous and it requires prompt attention which we have as a priority. Our quest for economic revival include bringing foreign direct investment and boosting capital inflows.
Therefore, in the heat of these campaigns we call on the people of Kogi state not be cowed by Governor Bello and his fraudulent tricks. Kogi people are diligent, dedicated, United and above all fearless. So, no form of intimidation, harassment and terrorism employed by Bello and his acolytes will change the mind of Kogi people who have unanimously passed a vote of no confidence on Bello and are ready to vote him out in November.
It’s our wish to also advise Tinubu to withdraw the support he is giving to Bello or face the wrath of the people. No sacrifice is too much and no price is too high for the people of Kogi to pay to reclaim their state because it is an honor to do so.
APGA says give us your mandate and see us turn potentials into actual wealth.
– Durojaiye Hassan
Deputy Governorship Candidate of APGA,
Kogi State
