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Build up to August primary election for governorship aspirants in Kogi state,it is be coming more clearer on the coarse ,that the new entrant of Hassan Abdullahi Baiwa in the forth coming contest, have throw the ring of leadership of the state to the main contender, against the desire of the current governor,Yahaya Bello to return to Lugard house
Looking at the inactions of the current leadership in Kogi powered by the governor,Alhaji Yahaya Bello,it is already a forgone conclusion in a free,fair and credible election, how the expectation of the people will not come to pass
It is already in the public domain that the current administration of Alhaji Yahaya Bello, had underplay the welfare of the masses in the area of social services,infrastructural development and the plight of the people in the area of empowerment live much to be desired,even though with huge funds accrued to the state in the last four years, through internally generated revenue,federal allocation as well as grants to the state
In the last three and half years,payment of workers salaries both at the state and local government as well as pensioners had become a great favour and erratic,a situation that had pauperised the working class of the state leading to series of deaths through sicknesses and suicide
It is so bad that public workers in the state had turned to street beggars because of the unreliable style of workers salary payment, that have been unduly politicised under the guise of endless staff screening and verification exercise, that the reports became contradictory and controversial
In the last 3 years,kogi workers and pensioners who have served the state to the best of their knowledge and abilities are been hauled into detention over minor discrepancies in documents and results and treated as common criminals, before been bailed out from the police custody
This is in addition to throughly been beaten in some instances to a state of coma, that had made some civil servants in the state to avoid and abandon their various jobs, to run for their lives, over the system of verification exercise adopted by the state government
It got worsened,that labour unions in the state had embarked on industrial action to protect the lives and integrity of the state workforce,with government reaction moving from one office to the other, by breaking in and forcing workers to resume work,through analogue timing that was later digitised into clock in clock out arrangements
All this trend will wear a new look to the preference of Hassan Baiwa Abdullahi at the helms of leadership of the state, as the work force and the people can not afford another round of four years castigation under the incumbent government of Alhaji Yahaya Bello
It is obvious that the current adminstration has outlived its tenure, owing to controversies surrounding the payements of workers salaries in the state,with the state on the side insisting not owing workers salaries while some of the workers impressed on non payment of salaries in the last 39 months
Kogi deputy governor,Elder Simon Achuba consented to the impression of some workers owed for 39 months, as he publicly owned up that state workers are been owed arears of salaries, that had been muddled with no results, including his revered office of the Deputy Governor, not salaried in the last two years
Now, the time has come and the slogan of ‘Bello Must Go’ to pave way for good governance through the puropseful leadership of Hassan Abdullahi is adored everywhere,as some pundits and analyst has it that another round of four years for Yahaya Bello, will be the total extinction of the people of Kogi state
Even the clearance of Kogi governor to contest the current primary for the November governorship election, has thrown residents of lokoja into mourning, as they least expect the unthinkable,even when they are already armed to vote him out by all means possible in the forthcoming election
All options considered and the best bet for Kogi is to replace Yahaya Bello’s bad leadership with Hassan Abdullahi Baiwa in the next political dispensation and history of kogi state
