The Director General of Media and Publicity to the Governor of Kogi State, Kingsley Fanwo has expressed “profound gratitude” to the opposition who has made the Governor “more popular through their attacks”.
Addressing journalists in Ado Ekiti ahead of the grand finale of the Fayemi Governorship Campaign Rally, Fanwo said Governor Yahaya Bello has become a national figure to reckon with through his policies and programs aimed at advancing the frontiers of development in Kogi State.
“No Governor has reformed Kogi for development like Governor Yahaya Bello”, he said.
The Governor’s spokesperson highlighted the giant strides of the administration in agriculture, healthcare, civil service reforms and infrastructural development.
According to him, Kogi is building her economy around agriculture through policies and projects that have helped employ thousands of youth and women in the sector.
“The Governor has shown the world how agriculture can be used to reverse the loses incurred as a result of monoproduct economy. From Omi Dam to Osara Green House, we have engaged thousands of our youth in rewarding agriculture.
“Apart from granting loans to farmers, the administration procured machines, seedlings and also cleared parcels of land for farmers.
“Market has also been provided to spur farmers to produce more since they are guaranteed of ready markets. Kogi is the real agricultural hub of Nigeria today.
“The Civil Service Reforms was a big plus to the Administration as it has helped us knock down our wage bills by over 400 million Naira which has been invested in the other sectors.
“There was no way a patriotic leader would have allowed such a humongous fraud in the civil service. The screening was quite tasking on both the government and the civil servants, but it has been worth the while. We have moved to the next stage in the reforms by digitalizing the service. These are the revolutionary policies that are refocusing the civil service in the state towards efficiency.
“Healthcare investments by the GYB administration has been massive. The Honorable Minister for Health, Prof Isaac Adewole said what is happening in Kogi State is unrivaled by any State Government in Nigeria. The Healthcare Plus has brought massive development to our people through improved services at no cost to the beneficiaries and also, massive improvement to our healthcare facilities. Families now enjoy quality healthcare delivery”.
Fanwo said government will continue to prioritize payment of salaries because the workers deserve their wages.
“When government pays salaries, it is not a favour to the workers, but an expression of responsibility by the government. Governor Yahaya Bello will remain committed to this cause.
“The delay in payment of salaries last month was due to the disagreement over remittances by the NNPC. As soon as those disagreements are resolved and allocation is ready, government will pay salaries to workers.
“It is true that the Kogi State Government under the present Governor has grown IGR from a paltry 350 million naira to over a billion Naira monthly; what is generated is still not adequate to pay salaries, hence the partial reliance on allocation. Government is working hard to reduce the reliance over time”.
Fanwo said the biggest achievement of the Governor Bello administration so far has been in the area of security.
According to him, the state was notorious for kidnapping and other violent crimes before the advent of the administration. He said the Governor has been able to change the security architecture of the state, provided over two hundred vehicles through Operation Total Freedom as well as improved intelligence gathering, saying the state is one of the safest in the country today.
Credit: Vanguard
