Home » OPINION: The Giant Stride of Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, By Ashiwaju A. Idris

OPINION: The Giant Stride of Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, By Ashiwaju A. Idris

 Managing human and material resources for the common good of all is one of the hardest tasks in life and the broader it becomes; the more difficult it is, considering the complexities of human kind in terms of variable preferences.
Never the less, there is indeed a binding factor which is peculiar to all mankind irrespective of age , language or  creed and it bothers on three significance areas, tagged the basic necessities of life. These depends on how well an individual in the society can assess his food, clothing and shelter and any form of government that has been able to create an enabling environment for easy accessibility of the listed factors can be considered a responsible and responsive government.
Sadly enough, Nigeria is factually lacking in this fundamental areas as most of her citizens are wallowing in abject poverty which has created a crippling effect on the economy, quality of life and at a broader perception, the root cause of ninety five percent of the problems confronting the nation. With a staggering figure of over one hundred million Nigerians living bellow poverty level as reported by the National Bureau of Statistics this year, there is indeed a lot of work to be done to salvage the situation.
If the nation must get out of the woods and conquer the hydra headed monster of corruption, epileptic power supply, poor infrastructural facilities and social amenities, the country needs renaissance which can be attracted through a waves of consciousness of majority of the people or divinely established as it is, currently in Kogi state.
Kogi state is indeed a state to painstakingly consider when experimenting critical issues that will add value or could plummet down the country as the case may be. Of recent, God has in one way or the other  proven to us as Kogians that our decisions as human are irrelevant to His divine agenda for a state.
If we go by history and carefully observed the political terrain of Kogi state, there is no doubt about the fact that, Nigeria as whole and the global world in recent time, have indeed learn something unique especially in the twist of fate that produced a governor whose emergence in Luggards house was divinely arranged.
At different occasion, Governor Yahaya Bello has expressed his determination to create a positive impact in both human and infrastructural development as a mark of honour to the Supreme Being who miraculously foisted his wish above the electorates who had tenaciously battled for their choice of candidate to occupy the Luggard House.
This he swore he will do without fear or favour. Adopting Buharis philosophy about governance, Governor Bello always assert that he belongs to every body and to nobody.
Immediately after his swearing in ceremony which attracted a mammoth crowd from the state and beyond, Governor Bello, adopting empirical approach to issues constituted a fact finding committee to move across the villages, town and local governments in the state to feel the pulse of the people, access the level of infrastructural deficit and report back to him for appropriate actions towards meeting their yawning and aspiration.
The compiled reports of the committee was utilized in forming the five thematic areas of focus of the present administration consisting of education, agriculture, health, youth and sport development and civil service reform.
To realize the lofty agenda of the present administration in the face of the significant drop in the federal allocation as at the inception of the present administration, Governor Yahaya Bello incorporated the federal government’s policies on anti corruption to the state accounting system. He starting with the screening exercise to determined the wage bill and phase out the ghost workers’ syndrome, he introduced the Treasury Single Account policy, and as well revisited the contracts issued by past administration.
The screening exercise, though taunted with series of problems ranging from saboteur within the committee and social unrest especially from the students of tertiary institutions, was one of the significant achievement of the present administration. Although there are pains and strains occasioned by human errors, never the less, the present administration having determined not to sack any genuine worker, the present administration provided Windows of opportunities for those affected to iron out issues with committee. Of recent, it is worthy to note that the exercise was not an easy task as there were potholes  and landmines placed by those who have benefitted from the phenomenon.
With the shocking revelations discovered during the screening exercise, a doubting Thomas will surely believed that the state cannot record a significant growth when billions of Naira fall into private pockets under the guise of being a government staff. The ghost must be permanently buried for the living to live a befitting lifestyle and bequeath a good legacy for the generation unborn.
The present administration has also significantly improved on the security network of the state which is crucial to the development of any society. Human security and human development are part of the same enterprise and the two are inseparable; where human development seeks to increase people options, opportunities and access to public services, human security focuses on the risk, dangers and threat to human development and where there is insecurity, there can’t be meaningful development.
Governor Bello, being a chief security officer of the state, did not fold his arms in the face of the new waves of crime bedevilling the society in recent times.
By motivating security agencies with operational vehicles and fund to carry out their duty as expected, kidnapping and arm robbery has significantly reduced in the state. He did not stop at that, he has ordered that the houses of those caught with dangerous weapons should be demolished to make crime unattractive to the youths. The state will also collaborate with Chinese government  by next year to introduce close circuit cameras in strategic areas of the state particularly the roads linking other states with Kogi state. This is to compliment the efforts of the security agencies and avail them the privilege of accessing events as they occurs. The state will also benefit monetarily from it as government is willing to partner with telecommunications industries that will make use of the cables and other equipment needed for the project.
In the aspect of infrastructural development, Governor Yahaya Bello has performed tremendously well by laying a solid foundation that will greatly affect the manifestoes of politicians in subsequent elections.
Politicians have always used the infrastructural decay in the country as the bait to woo the electorates. Year in year out, the electorates have always been bombarded with the promises of infrastructural and social amenities which at the long run, will never materialized.
But with the interest of the present administration in providing social and infrastructural amenities across the state, those interested in political office will be mentally tasked to think outside the box about things that will advanced humanity rather than the usual promises of road construction, provision of electricity, water supply and other facilities which will never be done and  in a cyclic pattern, be used as a fundamental tools to campaign in the next election.
Governor Bello in his sixteen months in office has commissioned more projects than any of his predecessors. He is the first to engage a reputable consultant to examine both ongoing and abandoned projects whose funds have been overpriced, diverted or looted as the case may be. From the findings of the firm, millions of Naira has been recovered from contracts that were left undone, overprized. Contractors with shoddy and abandoned projects were  also mobilised back to cite.
For instance, major savings have been recorded from the contractors handling the Ultra Modern Park, Kogi Hotels, Kogi House in Abuja, Otokiti by Pass, River Niger Embankment, as well as the reduction of the cost of running the Greater Lokoja Water Works to about seventy percent.
Currently, the state capital has witnessed a touch of excellence. With the massive rehabilitation of roads, traffic light, traffic signals and the reconstruction of the State House of Assembly, State Secretariat, newly built Revenue House , Sustainable Development Goal’s building, the renovation of government house, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, maintenance of a serene environment  as well as the planting of the ornamental plants on the road divides, Lokoja indeed has metamorphosed to an urban settlement.
There is a massive road reconstruction cutting across the three senatorial districts of the state. The ongoing major roads construction from the East includes:   Gboloko Shintaku Road in Bassa,  Onyedega Road in Ibaji, Ankpa Abajukolo Road, Ogugu Ibana Ekeji Road, Idah ,Ajaka, Ugwolawo, Ankpa, Ogigidibeje and Sheria Oguma Bridge.
The Central senatorial district of the state was not left of the developmental agenda, the ongoing road construction in the area include: Ogaminana Ika  Egbegogo Road, Agasa Road Spur Auchi project, Obehira  Ihima Obangede Road, Adavi Okehi and Okene Obangede roads.
Others from the West include,Kabba Township Road, Oke Oyi Isanlu Road, Ife- Olukotun Road and Kaaba  Ijumu Road.
With the electrification of places such as Abejukolo, Agassa, Koton karfi ,Isanlu and water projects cutting across the three senatorial districts, as well as the health and education that have benefitted over twenty five billion naira worth of projects across the state, the present administration has laid a solid platform for investors to thrive. No wonder the state is currently receiving attention from both local and international inventors .In the agric sector, the present administration has to its credit, the upgrading of Omi Dam in Yagba West Local Government Area to a farm settlement. Over five thousand hectares have been cleared for rice plantation and about eight hundred youths engaged to manage the farm. With the development, Kogi will be self sufficient in rice production. This will also boost the internally generated revenue. Apart from that, the state Chapter of the All Farmers Association has been fully incorporated into the system. The Chairperson of the Association is a serving Senior  Special Assistant to the Governor. The purpose of the synergy is to sanitise the agric sector  and ascertain that farm imputes and loan facilities get to the real farmers. More importantly, the state government has procured ten tractors for mechanised system of farming. The governor has also directed all his political appointees to engage in farming to encourage youths and farmers at the subsistence level. With all these initiatives the present administration is seriously delivering on its mandates. It behooves on us as good citizens of Kogi state, to set aside the politics of ruthless condemnation, and jointly work together by offering useful suggestions that can move the state forward. No matter how good an idea is without the will power and conscious efforts for its realization, it remain dormant. As a patriotic Kogites, we must be supportive of the present administration even if we disagree with the government policies and programme. Together we can build a state of our dream, and the right time is now.
 Ashiwaju Ashiru Idris is the Kogi State Commissioner for Finance

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