The Movement for the Emancipation of Kogi State (MEKSTA) has urged traditional rulers in Okunland to dignify their stools and refuse to be used as agents of division, warning that alleged political scheming ahead of the 2027 elections threatens the unity of Kogi West.
MEKSTA gave the admonition in a statement among media houses in Lokoja on Thursday.
The statement was jointly signed by its Coordinators across the Nine Federal Constituencies in Kogi State.
The signatories are; Hon Obafemi Medaiyese (Yagba Federal Constituency constituency), Comrade Joseph Mebatonije (Kabba-Bunu/Ijumu Federal Constituency),Alhaji Yusuf Kpareke (Lokoja/Kotonkarfe Federal Constituency), Mallam Jimoh Ozovehe (Adavi/Okehi Federal Constituency) and Dr Nurudeen Adaviriku (Okene/Ogori-Magongo).
Others are ; Alhaji Isiaka Momoh (Ajaokuta Federal Constituency), Chief Ojonimi Adegbe (Idah/Igalamela-Odolu/Ofu/Ibaji Federal Constituency) and
Pastor Mark Onucheyo (Dekina/Bassa Federal Constituency), and Bishop Husseini Saidu (Ankpa/Omala/Olamaboro Federal Constituency)
In the statement, MEKSTA said the advice was necessary in reaction to reports that the Kogi State Government has allegedly convened a meeting of traditional rulers from the six Okun-speaking local government areas in Lokoja for Thursday, June 25, and Friday, June 26, 2026.
The group said traditional rulers must refrain from allowing themselves to be used as agents of destabilisation and destruction of their homeland.
It urged them to borrow a leaf from the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, Alhaji Ahmed Tijani Anaje, who recently told a political party candidate seeking support against his opponents that the traditional stool demands royals be fathers to all, not partial to some.
MEKSTA alleged that the meeting, which the Obaro of Kabba and Chairman of the Okun Traditional Council, Oba Solomon Dele Owoniyi, has been asked to rally his colleagues to, is aimed at disseminating falsehoods about the Senator representing Kogi West, Sunday Steve Karimi.
According to the group, the agenda will ride on a video recording reportedly sponsored by the state government, where some renegade chiefs from Egbe in Yagba West, the senator’s home area, made spurious allegations against him.
The group said this is a continuation of previous attempts by state government to prop up its protégé, Samuel Bamidele Aro, also from Yagba West, as an alternative to Karimi for 2027 senatorial race..
MEKSTA recalled that Aro, a reluctant aspirant prodded by Ododo and loyalists, withdrew his senatorial ambition in writing ahead of the May 18, 2026 APC primary and pledged support for Karimi.
It, however, alleged that Aro has since been fingered in the forgery and falsification of results of a primary election in which he did not participate, seeking to reflect his name as winner.
MEKSTA expressed dismay that rather than weld Kogi West people together against bandits, kidnappers and murderers, and inspire confidence, the state government continues to pursue what it termed needless diversion and division.
It noted that after the governor’s visit to Kabba-Bunu following the recent attempted mass kidnapping of students and teachers, Yagba West has been traumatised in what has become a pattern.
The group stressed that at a time of fear and despair, the people need the empathy of the state and rekindling of confidence, not the wilful orchestration of discord and disunity.
MEKSTA restated that the generality of Kogi West admire and respect Senator Karimi for the selflessness and humanness that have characterised his representational style.
It described him as accessible, pragmatic, effective and relatable, noting that he has profoundly impacted the zone in three years in the Senate.
The group said over 51,000 APC members across the 85 wards of the district queued in their units to freely, willingly and unanimously renew Karimi’s mandate to continue representing the zone beyond 2027.
It declared him the choice of the APC in Kogi West to fly its banner in 2027, stressing that no external influence can change that.
“Let’s be very clear: Any attempt to unsettle a beloved Senator Sunday Karimi who is entrenched in the hearts of the people of Kogi West, is an orchestrated ploy to put a knife through the heart of the APC in the zone.
“The repercussions will be devastating as it will deny the Okun-Yoruba speaking bloc of the multi-ethnic state the opportunity of reciprocating the positive gestures of President Bola Tinubu, towards the people and the area,” MEKSTA warned.
(vitanewsngr.com)
