SOBER REFLECTIONS AND INDEED THE LESSON

By Abdulrazaq Mamman Oganya

All praises be to God almighty the most high, the most compassionate and the merciful. Thank you for this unimaginable miracle. You are indeed the custodian of life, time, hours and events.

While I congratulate the newest and youngest governor ALh. Yahaya Adoza Bello, Atei azi anebira and good people of Kogi State in general. Its also very worthy to reflect on our past on this journey in order to learn for the future.

This is what is refer to as "Planning" in administrative management and of course as the golden rule says "when you fail to plan, you are planning to fail".

The quest for POWER-SHIFT has occupied the front burner for close to two decades now, most particularly after the expiration of Prince Abubakar Audu's first tenure. There are many causes to this agitation. This includes lack of freedom and choice to determine our destiny even at local level.

We have had funny scenario where the former governor came all the way to our ward to impose councilor on the people. There is also lack of adequate food even amidst heavy budget for food. There is lack of capital project and poor access to health care facilities as a result of Audu's relocation of the state owned hospital from Central to the East. There is also issue of maltreatment and discrimination in the Kogi State Civil service. The central also feel the scourge of exclusion from the key decision making processes in the state.

There is also the issue of unrealistic demographic claim by the East that they're 55% while in real sense 85% of our statehood is to maintain the East.  These orchestrated deprivation, alienation, unevenness, and infringement without any adequate or sincere effort to explain, examine, determined and compromise if necessary where the impetus or driving force behind POWER-SHIFT drumbeat.

Thus, in view of addressing this prevailing social economic unjust KC and KW entered into an "unholy" alliance as a means to a beautiful end. It was unholy because her aim wasn't religiously followed but the concept of POWER-SHIFT was given birth to.

This agitation culminated into a serious threat to the East, therefore looking for a way to quell it by employing "Divide and Rule" axiom. More depressing n the course of this struggle was the  lost of our political icon in a ghastly accident Late. Sen. A.T AHMED may Allah have mercy on his soul. At this juncture while some of the agitatators felt defeated and chicken out of struggle others saw it as a mere setback that couldn't truncate the desire for power-shift.
Then, it became obvious that KC and KW could not realize their objective in PDP which the East was in total control. Some of them who still believe in the cause sojourn to the then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) which flagged distingushed Sen. M.S Ohiare as their candidate for the governorship election in 2007. The election was charactarised by irregularities inform of rigging and figure manipulations by the PDP led federal government aided by the electoral body. Thus, the atmosphere was charged, choas, killings,  arson, violence, destruction, break down of law and order.
Ironically both the agitators and the resisted forces limited their fight within KC making Ebiraland a theater of misery and warehouse of arms.
During this fight ACN was also challenging the victory of IBRO legally, with the indications that the election might be annulled Governor Ibrahim horribly instituted caretaker chairman in other to get his allies empowered and be ready for imminent war.

On the 6th of February 2008 the governor's victory was  overturned, that morning I had a discussion with leader of our group late. Nuru-Deen Isah Teina (general) we were sitting down when the news broke. He looked at me and called me by my then nickname HOMEBOY? I replied the general... He said "this is a war without end until an ebiraman becomes a governor" hmmmmmmmm, what a day? General was killed that same day just two hours after this discussion, his struggle was predicated on power-shift philosophy. 

Though approach might be wrong perhaps many of us then were driven by the "Force theory" who believe strength and conquer as the  source of power.
Deen's death was wrong shut PDP has ever taken. It escalated and polarized the crisis among clans, communities, local gov't in fact to a different dimensions.

And Today,  God the author of life, time and hours, the determinant of "who gets what, when and how" has materialized our long awaited dream with no life or property loss. Such a wonderful God! No soldier in the world can stop an idea whose time has come.

At this point, the task is more demanding than ever, the governor must showcase and set a good record for the oppressors to envy. We must acknowledge that AYB is not just an Ebira governor but the entire Kogites. He must succeed in order to lay better pedestal for others to dwel on. We must coordinate ourselves, develop ourselves via continously never ending learning. Information and knowledge are the keys to 21st century. The governor must ensure the right person at the right time are placed in the right position to achieve the right result.

Of course you can't be the right person for any job when you have absolutely zero qualification irrespective of your ties with the governor. The governor must ensure an inclusive education and economic institutions that would create an inclusive market for inclusive development that would be beneficial to all Kogites.
Anebira must trust the judgement of His Excellency in his selection of his kichen cabinet. We must all change our negative approach to issues to positive approach. We must learn to accomodate others. There was never a time vengeance pay. We must remember the manner at which we get this opportunity and strive to do what's right before God. May he succeed.
Long Live Your Excellency
Long live Kogi Central
Long Live Kogi State
long live Nigeria.

Oganya Abdulrazak Mamman is the
Founder; Campaign Against Thuggery/Violence in Kogi Central