By Oyigu Elijah
The people of Kogi state were on Sunday threw into a pool of anxiety following a pandemonium, resulting from purported rumours of the death of Governor Yahaya Bello who was allegedly reported to be absent in most public functions in the last few days. No thanks to the governor’s media handlers.
Indeed, it was another black Sunday of confusion to most Kogites as phone calls started rolling in aimed at either breaking the news or confirming the authenticity of the news as to ascertaining the actual welfare and the well-about of the governor.
However, it is worthy of note to sound that, the People of Kogi state have the constitutional right to be told of the where-about of their governor at any point in time.
Though, Death knows no age, but no one, I repeat, no rational and self conscious human being should for any reason wishes his fellow human being dead regardless of political, regional and religious inclinations, let alone wishing a young man of 41 years dead at such a prime stage of his life’s sojourn.
However, what made some sympathizers who ordinarily did not believe in the rumours to think otherwise was the manner the News of Late Prince Abubakar Audu was broken and how those who were in charge of his media then debunked the news. Needless to recall that, the November 22 bad news also happened on a Sunday.
At the point of writing this piece, apart from a few people working closely with the governor, Kogites were still in the oblivion of the where-about of the governor as the emotional ridden approaches employed by Bello’s Media handlers have not been able to clear the fog in the air.
In a statement issued by the Governor’s Director General of Media, Mr. Kinsley Fanwo, yesterday which I read more than five times, there was no substance contained in it to tell Kogites where their governor is. The statement only targeted perceived political opponents and those he described as rumormongers.
This was further exacerbated by the statement issued on Monday by Chief of Staff to the governor, Mr Edward Onoja who gave a plethora of explanation of all Governor Bello’s political involvements in the last two years and concluded that, the governor needed rest.
Mr Onoja’s statement, had some pictures of Governor Bello who was seen wearing a Polo Top on a Jean Trouser with a background that looked like a foreign land.
Onoja’s Statement did not also tell Kogites of their governor’s where-about, the location of the photographs as well as the date it was taken, making a concerned Kogites who commented on the post to describe the piece as more of fiction than fact.
Perhaps, Mr Onoja’s claims that Governor Bello needed rest, putting into cognizance the herculean tasks involved in politicking especially for President Muhammed Buhari during 2015 general elections and also for his primary elections which saw him touring round the 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi state may be true but the Executive organ of government should have proposed ‘The Rest Outing’ to the state legislature for approval as it is done in a decent and organized crime.
Governor Bello should have emulated President Buhari who asked and got the nod of the Senate before he proceeded for a 10 days leave a few months ago during which Professor Osinbajo was made the acting president. This, I believed, never happened considering the case under review.
While we are ardently praying for God’s protection and guidance over the life of the governor, Mr Bello’s handlers should be told that, taking the people for granted through improper dissemination and hoarding of information is one of the greatest mistakes in leadership.
Governor Bello is first of all a human being before he became the governor and therefore, he deserves to take out time to rest and even go on holiday for days when necessary but such moves should devoid of any form of opacity.
Kogites may not want to have a repeat of what happened during the reigns of Late President Yar’adua during which those in his kitchen cabinet concealed the actual state of his health to the people of Nigeria and kept the whole nation in the dark.
In a similar development, when it was first reported that the Wife of Former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mrs Patience Jonathan was admitted in a hospital abroad, the then presidency denied the reports and claimed that, the president’s wife only traveled out to rest but after a few weeks during a thanksgiving service organized in her stead, the outspoken Mama Peace said, she was dead for days before God brought her back to life like Lazarus, in the Bible.
May it be known to our brothers and sisters in public service, that whoever has the privilege to be in public service has automatically become public property and should surrender his or her activities to the transparent lens of the people.
However, communication flow and appropriate dissemination of information are onerous tasks confronting information managers because in such a digital world as ours it is often time horrible to hoard information.
When you fail to tell the people of what they should rightly hear, they will tell themselves of what they feel they should have heard.
To this end, we appeal to the media handlers of Governor Bello to stop being emotional and taking issues too personal in reporting the activities of this administration but they should rather brace up in the humble spirit of purveyors of information that they are.
Since Kogites are demanding to hearing the golden voice of their governor, it is suffice it that, Governor Bello should talk to his people either through Skype, if he is truly not in Nigeria or should call for a press briefing and address the people of the state.
This rumour which we all believe not to be true should not be allowed to stay longer than this because, when a rumour is allowed to linger than expected it becomes news.
There should be a substance filled press release to douse the rancorous tensions in the state and return the state back to its peaceful trajectory.
Long Live Kogi State
Long Live Nigeria.
Oyigu Elijah, a Journalist, Wrote in From Abuja.
