What began as a year-long campaign for power rotation to Kogi West has ended in controversy, after a Kogi Unity Accord summit reportedly endorsed Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo for a second term in 2027.
The development has angered advocates of zoning, who say the process betrayed the original demand that Kogi West should produce the next governor of Kogi State.
The reported endorsement aligns with a wider current of political support for Ododo’s re-election across the state, including endorsements by legislative, youth, community and partisan stakeholders.
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From Rotation Campaign to Endorsement
For about one year, Omoluabi, a son of Kogi West Senatorial District, was said to have toured the state’s three senatorial districts. He met traditional rulers, community leaders, organised groups, business figures and political stakeholders to press the case for Kogi West to produce Governor Ododo’s successor in 2027.
His argument was simple: fairness and political inclusion required that Kogi West be given the opportunity to occupy Lugard House after years outside the governorship.
But the outcome of the Unity Accord tour and summit has now become the centre of a political dispute. Critics say the initiative moved away from its stated goal of power rotation and instead became a platform for backing Ododo’s second-term ambition.
They argue that a campaign built to mobilise statewide support for Kogi West ultimately asked the district to defer its governorship aspiration until 2031.
Critics Question Summit Outcome
Opponents of the summit’s position say the final communiqué did not reflect the range of views submitted during the consultation process.
They contend that a genuine unity initiative should have accommodated competing positions rather than produce a recommendation that preserves the existing political arrangement.
The critics have therefore rejected the reported endorsement, describing it as unrepresentative of the broader position of Kogi West stakeholders.
However, the allegations of a predetermined outcome or deliberate political manipulation remain claims by aggrieved stakeholders. They would require the organisers’ full records, memoranda, participant list and the process used to adopt the final recommendations to be verified.
Recent reporting on the summit indicated that delegates backed Ododo completing a second term and proposed that power rotation begin in 2032, with the communiqué citing the need for further consultations, legislation and a legal framework.
A Collective Aspiration Under Pressure
For aggrieved stakeholders, the controversy is bigger than Omoluabi as an individual.
They see it as a test of whether a collective political cause can be advanced without being absorbed into the interests of powerful actors or converted into support for the status quo.
Their concern is that the aspiration of an entire senatorial district could be postponed through a summit whose conclusions are now being disputed.
They also question whether personal calculations and elite bargaining influenced the process. Those allegations have not been independently established, but they reflect the depth of mistrust generated by the reported outcome.
Kogi West Pushes Back
Ironically, the dispute may have energised the very movement its critics believe the summit weakened.
Supporters of Kogi West’s 2027 governorship ambition say the controversy has renewed conversations across the state’s 21 local government areas and encouraged fresh mobilisation for the district to produce the next governor.
Their position is that unity should not require any senatorial district to abandon its aspiration. Instead, they argue, it should create a political arrangement that gives every zone a fair opportunity to participate in governance.
The dissenting stakeholders insist that 2027 remains a legitimate opportunity to advance that demand, rather than accepting another delay until 2031.
2027: A Contested Road to Lugard House
The disagreement sets the stage for a more competitive political environment as aspirants, party leaders, traditional institutions and community interests begin positioning for the 2027 governorship election.
Ododo’s second-term project already enjoys visible backing from several political blocs, including Kogi East stakeholders who endorsed his re-election while seeking a return of power to their zone in 2031.
But the Kogi West dispute shows that support for continuity is not universal. The movement’s success will depend on organisation, consensus-building, credible candidates and the capacity to build alliances beyond the district.
For now, the central question in Kogi politics is whether statewide unity can coexist with the demand for power rotation.
For the aggrieved stakeholders, the answer is clear: they are not asking for privilege, but for what they describe as their fair turn.
Their message is blunt: Kogi West wants Lugard House in 2027.