Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State says the outcome of the November 11 governorship election has clearly shown that no ethnic tribe can single handedly decide who becomes the governor of the state.
Bello, who spoke on Saturday during a meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) further explained that under no illusion must any tribe think they could vote for themselves and become governor without the support of other tribes.
According to the Governor, the November 11 governorship election has shown that unity is the watchword for all parts of the state to brace.
The governor expressed shock that some residents allowed emotion and parochial interest to becloud their sense of reasoning before and during the election.
He insisted that the level of good governance provided by his administration in the areas of road construction, education, healthcare and infrastructure development was enough for the APC to win overwhelmingly but some people decided to play tribal politics.
Bello , reiterated his commitment to preserving the unity of the state, saying that he was transparent in the distribution of the gains of democracy across the three senatorial districts.
The governor thanked God and President Bola Tinubu for the support which gave birth to the victory of the APC in the governorship election.
Bello, insisted that the party and its candidate, Ahmed Usman Ododo “won the election clean and clear.”
He said the stakeholders meeting was called to review and evaluate the election, for people to learn from the mistakes and avoid the pitfalls of the past in future exercises.
“The journey was full of ups and downs in the last seven years.
“But we thank God for the resounding victory.
“With all the obstacles before, during and after the election, the APC came out stronger.
“The time for everybody to carry his cross has come. Everybody will bear his father’s name because there is still a future,” he said.
He maintained that Kogi State must develop as one united state.
“In 2019, I won without ethnic agenda.
“I cautioned against tribal sentiments and asked that we desist from it before the election.
“I was optimistic that the APC would win the November 11 Governorship election. I wanted it to be a sweet victory, reason I cautioned against sentiments,” he added.
Governor Bello described the Igala nation as good people, saying “the Igala nation are not tribalistic or racist.
“They are good people but majority are being misled by poor representation.”
Bello assured the people of Kogi West that payback time would soon come and called on leaders to educate their people and be selfless.
He said : Time for Kogi State to consolidate on unity and security amongst other several achievements is now.”
He thanked God for giving him the opportunity to serve and learn, adding that he was well equipped to continue to serve the state better even after leaving office.
In his remarks, the Deputy Governor of Kogi State, Edward Onoja, congratulated the APC family and the governor – elect, saying that the victory wouldn’t have been achieved without the support and hard work of Governor Yahaya Bello.
“Those who could not work for victory should break away from sentiments and work for a united Kogi State in the future,” he said.
Senator Sunday Karimi, representing Kogi West in the Senate, thanked the people of Kogi West for standing strong, despite three Okun sons being in the contest.
The Kogi State APC Chairman, Abdullahi Bello, in his remarks appreciated the APC faithful for working very hard the victor achieved in the election.
He disclosed the party would do a review of the whole process to determine those who betrayed the APC.
(vitalnewsngr.com)
