Idris Ahmed, Lokoja.
Political party is a group of people sharing the same political ideology in view of their collective resolve to politick together and protect their interest to get into government circle and derive benefits therefrom. Therefore, interest is the cornerstone and permanent in its pursuit. Outside interest it is no longer political gathering. When the gathering of people are successfully harnessed then political victory is actualised.
This is so because the raw material for political victory is the human being. As such large number of persons are needed for political party’s performance.
All Progressives Congress (APC) is not an exception. No wonder since 2015 Kogi Local Government Area has won all elections held so far including the last house of representatives bye-election. The bye-election was held and the main political gladiators were:
I. All Progressives Congress (APC) with Alhaji Haruna Isah as her candidate
ii. People’s Democratic Party, (PDP) with Engineer Bashir Abubakar as her candidate.
At the conclusion of the bye-election Alhaji Haruna Isah of APC won the election while Engineer Abubakar of PDP lost the election.
In view of the open door policy of Governor Yahaya Bello led APC administration which became attractive to Engineer Bashir Abubakar of PDP and he defected to the ruling party.
Alhaji Haruna Isah spent about 8-9 months in the House of Representatives in the National Assembly Abuja and the tenure ended.
Engineer Bashir the opponent of the Alhaji Haruna Isah is now a commissioner in the State Ministry for Solid Minerals.
Engineer Bashir Abubakar needed therefore to play politics of decorum and respect. Governor Yahaya Bello provided enabling ground for defectors to feel at home and such decampees should not be treated as inferior members of the party.
In the face of this acceptability Engr. Bashir Abubakar is over assuming and treating stakeholders with disdain, impunity and reckless abandon
The political display of the said Solid Mineral Commissioner is unhealthy to the political atmosphere of Kogi LGA.
The Commissioner is dealing and fraternising with SSA Security of Kogi LGA alone to the exclusion of other appointees of Governor Yahaya Bello.
The said Commissioner is busy exhibiting monkey theory to the concerned members of APC in Kogi LGA.
If this continues the raw material for the political success which is human being will be hampered and the subsequent result is negativity.
The first tenure of Governor Yahaya Bello in Kogi LGA was perfect and conducive to the extent that the coming together of former Commissioner, Mohammed Awal, Administrator, Barr. Muhammed Tanko Musa, Special Adviser Ibrahim Adaosoza, SSA Musa Shuaibu, SSA, Alhaji Danjuma Suleiman Gegu and others worked together as a team without crack and it earned us political victory Kogi LGA.
A painstaking analysis of the above discourse is capable of charting a way forward.
Note that, Kogi LGA is having three geo-political zones A, B and C and today there is a palpable political imbalance.
Zone A is already on the path of endangering political success of APC. Zone A has Ukwo ward as its component which has the following positions to the detriment of other wards in Zone A . B and C.
Ukwo ward is having the under-listed positions:-
1. Chairman Kogi Local Government Service Commission
2. Chairman Civil Service Commission
3. SSA Security
4. Chairperson School of Health Obangede
5. Members Health Management Board
6. Member House of Representatives.
The forthcoming local government election cannot conveniently afford to accommodate Ukwo ward for another major political appointment if allowed could unsettle political equation of the Local Government Area.
It is pertinent to note that the scheming by the Commissioner and his co traveller, Mr Abdulkarim Isah, the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Security matters are bent on thwarting the peaceful and acceptable political arrangement of the people of entire Kogi Local Government Area.
It is also suspicious that the ruling APC has been infiltrated by some power thirsty opposition members who believe that they can grab power by destroying the political arrangement of the people.
The Governor of Kogi state, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, Kogi APC executives and the entire APC members should not allow some greedy elements who are desperate to acquire power by all means including dismantling of the party’s structure in Kogi Local Government Area to have their way.
