Kogi East’s greatest political risk is not that citizens support the wrong leaders, but that loyalty to individual politicians can become more important than the institutions meant to serve them. When political allegiance outweighs accountability, democracy risks becoming a marketplace of favours rather than a mechanism for public progress. The consequence is glaring: some vital citizens defend those in power while the development they elected them to deliver remains secondary.
Patronage thrives where public institutions are weak, economic opportunities scarce and access to essential services uncertain. A medical bill paid by a politician may bring immediate relief, but a functioning healthcare system would serve an entire community without requiring personal connections. A private intervention may solve an individual’s problem; effective governance should prevent thousands from confronting the same problem. The distinction is fundamental: patronage distributes dependence, while sound institutions expand independence.
This is not an argument against political loyalty, nor an indictment of voters struggling to survive. In conditions of economic insecurity, immediate assistance can be a rational choice rather than evidence of political ignorance. Citizens cannot be expected to ignore urgent needs in favour of abstract institutional promises. The deeper failure lies in a political environment where personal generosity can become more visible, and more electorally rewarding, than the systematic delivery of public services.
For Kogi East, the economic implications are considerable. Political energy absorbed by personality contests and factional allegiances is energy diverted from harder questions: how to attract investment, improve infrastructure, strengthen schools, expand healthcare, support agriculture and create productive employment. The region’s human and natural resources offer possibilities, not guarantees. Without consistent policies, transparent spending and competent implementation, potential remains a campaign vocabulary rather than an economic outcome.
The democratic cost is equally serious. When criticism is interpreted as betrayal, elected office begins to resemble personal ownership rather than public responsibility. Supporters become defenders of personalities instead of watchdogs over public resources. Yet a politician’s mandate is not a private possession, and questioning performance is not disloyalty. The right to elect leaders means little without the freedom to scrutinise them, challenge their decisions and demand explanations.
Breaking this cycle requires citizens to change the currency of political evaluation. Instead of judging representatives by access, gifts or proximity to power, voters should examine verifiable achievements, budget allocations, completed projects and measurable improvements in living conditions. Public officials should explain expenditure and implementation; communities should monitor projects beyond election campaigns; and civil society and the media should scrutinise promises against outcomes. Accountability must become routine, not theatrical.
Political parties bear an equal responsibility. Where candidate selection depends excessively on powerful patrons, grassroots participation becomes ceremonial and public choice narrows before voting begins. Credible primaries, transparent procedures and meaningful internal competition would help make representation answerable to constituents rather than merely to influential political networks. Institutional reform will not eliminate patronage overnight, but it can raise the cost of exclusion and strengthen the incentives for performance.
Ultimately, Kogi East does not need citizens who blindly oppose their leaders; it needs citizens whose support is conditional on results. Political loyalty is defensible when earned through service, but dangerous when demanded without accountability. The region’s progress depends on replacing the politics of personal access with the economics of public value. The decisive question is not which politician commands the strongest loyalty, but whether that loyalty produces better lives for the people who confer political power. A democracy matures when leaders understand that citizens are not clients to be retained, but principals to whom public office must answer.
– Inah Boniface Ocholi writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
08152094428 (SMS Only)
