The Director-General, Bureau of Information Services and Grassroots Sensitisation in Kogi State, Mr. Abdulkarim Abdulmalik has outlined reasons why so much hate speeches are directed at the Gov. Yahaya Bello-led administration.
Abdulmalik, who spoke in an interview with The Nation during the extra-ordinary meeting of the National Council on Information in Jos, the Plateau State capital, described those generating the hate speeches as few individuals who are opposed to positive change in the state.
According to Abdulmalik, “The few opposition elements in and outside the state exist simply because Gov Yahaya Bello refused to be pocketed by them.”
He said, “The basic factors that have stood against the development of the state since creation remains that of nepotism, ethnic and religious bigotry, as well as corruption” which was why the governor declared zero tolerance on them.
He said, “In the history of the state, no governor has ever appointed Chief of Staff from another ethic group outside his own. That is why in Kogi State, hate speech does not affect government administration simply because the hate speeches are often anchored on religious or ethnic sentiments.”
He said there are people within and outside the party, who believe the only way to get what they want, is to “draw battle line with the governor,” but noted that Gov. Bello is not deterred because “majority of citizens of the state are with him.”
Abdulmalik said Gov. Bello is the first governor to call a town hall meeting and declare the volume of IGR in the state, which has not gone down well with people who have been used to exploiting the state’s revenue.
“There is a certain revenue source in the state that generates about N13 million monthly, out of this revenue, only N1 million is paid to government coffers, the rest are shared by certain categories of people in the state. The governor blocked it and he became an enemy of progress to such corrupt citizens.”
Credit: The Nation
