Governor Bello promises a new Kogi

As the euphoria of the November 16 governorship election is dying down, the governor is now set to take Kogi state to the next level of development in line with his campaign promises


For Gov. Yahaya Adoza Bello of Kogi State a new dawn is here for the Confluence State following the renewal of his mandate to govern the state for the next four years. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), declared Governor Bello who contested on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of Saturday, November 16 governorship election in the state. The returning officer for the election and Vice Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, Prof Ibrahim Garba, who announced the results, said Bello polled 406, 222 votes to defeat his main challenger, Engr. Musa Wada of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), who got 189,704 votes. Bello won by landslide in 12 of the 21 local government areas of the state.

Goodwill messages have continued to pour in for the governor as a result of his victory at the poll. President Muhammadu Buhari was among the first set of leaders to congratulate the governor on his victory. The Nigerian leader said that the Kogi State Governor ran a good race in the November 16 governorship poll and won it well. This was contained in his message of congratulations to Bello. The President describes the election and emergence of the All Progressives Congress candidate as “a race well run and a victory well won.” said the statement.

“He commended APC supporters for remaining steadfast and resolute even in the face of isolated incidents of violence”, a State House statement by his media aide, Mr Femi Adesina said. The President also condoled with families who lost loved ones during the election. According to the statement: “All political actors and stakeholders must take deliberate steps to eschew electoral violence, as a peaceful and orderly process is vital to our quest for enduring democracy”, the President said. The statement added, “He salutes officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission and security agencies for creditably discharging their responsibilities under difficult conditions. “President Buhari urges Governor Bello to see his renewed mandate as another opportunity to build on the foundations already laid towards improving the lives of the people of Kogi State.

“He also enjoins the governor to imbibe the spirit of magnanimity in victory by extending a hand of partnership to opposition candidates, while urging those dissatisfied with the outcome of the election to approach the courts.” Reacting to the renewal of his mandate Governor Bello dedicated his victory in the November 16 governorship election to his mother and the entire people of the state. The governor who spoke shortly after INEC officially announced him as duly returned, also expressed gratitude to all those who made the victory possible for his party, the All Progressives Congress. Gov. Bello paid tribute to those who lost their lives saying that their killers would not be spared the wrath of the law of the land.

Gov. Bello added: “While we sympathize with those who lost their lives during the election, I assure you that everyone who had a hand in their killings will not be spared, they will be made to face the full wrath of the law of the land,” he said. The governor further stated that his mother played a vital role in his quest for the position and deserved to be so honoured. He assured the people of the state that he will never go back on his campaign promises adding that the victory will inspire him and his deputy, Edward Onoja, to do more in taking the state to the next level of development as promised during their electioneering campaign.

The re-elected governor had promised to improve upon his present performance in the course of his campaigns for a second term in office. Speaking earlier at a stakeholders meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Lokoja, the state capital, he also appealed to the people of the state not to lose hope in his administration. According to him, the recent reconciliation of the two factions of the party in the state was a pointer to a better tomorrow for the state. The governor said that his outstanding achievement was in the area of security where he was able to banish armed robbery, kidnapping and thuggery from the state.

“I confronted these ugly incidents headlong, and today the story has changed. We were able to institute infrastructure and integration of people into the administration that has been operating without sentiment,” he said. He called on party members to remain committed and dedicated to its ideals, thanking them for their support which saw him triumph at the poll. He urged them to sustain their passion and love for the party. He assured them that he will keep faith to his campaign promises towards improving the lives of all kogites. Among his priorities in line with his promises during one of his campaign is the reconstruction of Bassa roads and the Shintakun-Oguma-Gboloko-Mozum road. Going further, he promised to accord priority attention to construction of roads across the state in his second term.

Meanwhile 16 of the candidates that participated in the November 16 governorship election in the state have accepted the results of the election as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Addressing a news conference in Lokoja shortly after the announcement of the election results, the coalition of 16 candidates led by Dr Sani Teidi, the candidate of the Young Democratic Party urged losers to work with the winner for accelerated development of the state. According to him, “We congratulate His Excellency, Alhaji Yahaya Bello for the overwhelming victory at the poll and all those who participated in the election”.

“We appeal to the winner to be magnanimous in victory and prepare to mend fences for all-inclusive governance.” He went further: “We are also appealing to all Kogi stakeholders to accept the winner for participatory governance.” The candidates condemned the call for cancellation of the election by civil society groups, saying that they did not consider the enormity of waste and loss of lives that may occur in the course of re-running the election. “All aggrieved political parties should play the game by the rule, Kogi is our state, and the only panacea for development is peace,” he said. Some of the parties in the coalition included: Green Party of Nigeria, Accord Party, Young Democratic Party, Justice Must Prevail Party, Peoples Party of Nigeria, Africa Action Alliance and National Conscience Party, among others.

According to some concerned indigenes across the state who spoke with Supremacy magazine, they congratulated the governor for his victory and urged him to remain focused. They reaffirmed that the victory should not bring division among the various interest groups in the state but that the governor as a father to all should make reconciliation and peace his watchword in this his second term in office. They summed up by stating that development can only exist where there is peace and unity and that all hands must be on deck to achieve that.