Nobody expects everything to be alright in any society. But when very many things are on the wrong paths, every right thinking person should be concerned. Kogi State politics have taken a different dimension and the state government is no longer under the control of the people of Kogi. Of course, this is a very strange slant, an angle very many people are not aware of.
Before now, the governance of Kogi was by Kogites and for Kogites. Today, the reverse is the case. The state has been punctured and penetrated. That government house standing at Lokoja is being controlled and policed from Abuja. It never used to be so when we had political lords like Late Prince Audu Abubakar and others. They governed Kogi State without allowing much of national interference. The government was for the Kogites and not Abuja. They lend their voices on several national issues, kept the state for Kogites and then come back home to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people.
The infiltration begun in the build up to the 2015 governorship election. It became successful when the great Audu unfortunately gave up the ghost.
When Audu died, the issue of who becomes the next governor of Kogi State became a national concern and it drew international attention too. The All Progress Congress (APC) had a caucus meeting when the court asked the party to provide another candidate to inherit votes and the dice rolled in favour of Yahaya Bello. It was against certain national interests but it favoured other national interests. It was in that fixing process that Kogi was taken by national powers. Those powers are governing the Governor today.
As it was reported, except President Muhammed Buhari, most current political bigwigs in Nigeria were in Kogi State to commiserate with the governor on the loss of his dear mother. The visitation is being showcased as an achievement by the eulogisers of the government but little did they care to know the other side of the political coin.
Those Abuja men never came to console the governor because they are pained by the death or they so much feel for the bereaved. It was purely a political condolence for political interest and influence. Of course, you need the governor to have the state.
The Igalas used to be at the central of power because of their population strength as it is to the Thiv in Benue state but the death of Audu paved way for the infiltration of national powers.
The national powers are not really interested in Kogi because it has wealth, it is a state that is strategically positioned. It defines the political connectivity between the South and the North.
When Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was against President Muhammed Buhari in 2015, political analysts focused on the North Central states to predict the chances of Jonathan. The North Central, especially Kogi is a state you need to conquer, either you are from North or South to become the President of this Nation. If the North Central is not in your favour, forget it but if you get a share of it, you have a chance.
The national powers that have penetrated Kogi are planting loyalists and romancing the governor who would be instrumental in the coming elections. Those powers from above are in charge of our government house, Lokoja. Obviously, Bello doesn’t have a political godfather in Kogi, but you can’t say he came into power or he is dong whatever he is doing alone. He has Abuja backings which in turn, influences some of his actions and inactions.
That Federal power won’t see anything wrong in the state even if Bello refuse to do anything for the people or when things go wrong like it was during the past election. Their interest is to be in control of the state. Watch out, who becomes the next governor would be decided in Abuja and the Igala would be shocked at the outcome.
The new dimension seems to be favoring the minorities and the majority is suppressed. It’s not really about a state where the biggest ethnic group no longer have a voice. It’s a situation where no ethnic group holds power because victory now belongs to Abuja.
The Igalas are beginning to feel the situation but, the powers holding the state understand the game of politics better. They carry some of the people along and use those ones who are after personal interests to weaken the supposed strongest ethnic in the state. When power is lost, it can’t be easily recovered.
