Alleged suspension: Kogi East APC leaders rise against Yahaya Bello
Some leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC from Kogi East Senatorial District have lampooned the state Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello for allegedly instigating the suspension of some elected officials for anti-party activities, saying if anyone should be so suspended, it should have been the governor himself.
Noting that Bello was never their choice for the governorship of Kogi state but a product of imposition, the Igala leaders said but for the death of Prince Abubakar Audi, Bello would not have been governor, a position they said he now uses to suppress others.
Speaking on behalf of the Kogi East APC Leaders Forum on Saturday at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja, the leader of the delegation, Citizen Akwu Umar Goodman
The Igala leaders also declared that Bello’s plot to install another Ebira man as his successor was “mission impossible”, noting that were it not for the death of the 2015 APC Governorship Candidate, Prince Abubakar Audu, the Igalas would have continued to rule the state in perpetuity.
He said; “The Igala people being one of the top ten largest demographic groups in Nigeria are forced to break our silence finally to stop the unbecoming and larger-than life attitude of some privileged political minors that providence paved way for them but have refused to appreciate God in totality.
“After the Kogi State APC Primary Election in 2015 that returned late Prince
Abubakar Audu, his would-be victory inheritor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello left the Party to join forces with PDP to fight against the successes of both Prince Audu and APC, but behold the Prince of the Confluence triumphed in a resounding victory, but death took him away.
“Same Alhaji Yahaya Bello that left and joined forces with PDP to stop the victory of the party was brought and imposed as Governor against the wishes of the people. This is nothing but anti-party of the highest order.
“Here we are, Governor Yahaya Bello selected Hon. Simon Achuba, the former majority leader of the State House of Assembly under Governor Ibrahim Idris, a full-fledged PDP member as his Deputy Governor, until the cookies crumbled and they remain at loggerhead till this moment. This is evidence number two of his anti-party activities.
“He followed the sequence by appointing PDP members as Commissioners, Special Advisers and Caretaker Chairmen of LGAs. Up till this moment, about 80% of his Cabinet members are PDP extraction, this is evidence number three.
“Now the crux of the matter.
The declaration of the Honorable Members of the State Assembly as terrorists to persecute them and the suspension of Chairmen and a party stalwart and a leading Governorship aspirant for that matter, was hastily done without recourse to due process, better still party constitution. It is like the case of giving the dog a bad name just to cut off the head.
“The whole exercise was borne out of envy, jealousy and hatred for the rising political profile of Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka, the kid on the block.
“Governor Yahaya Bello has never hidden his intention to impose his protégé from his tribe as successor come Nov 11 Kogi State Governorship Election, which is a mission impossible. Because politics is a game of numbers and the majority will always carry the day while the minority will always have their say.
“The declaration of Hon. Suleiman Atajachi Musa representing the good people of Idah, Hon. Daniel Rayin of Bassa Local Government Area and Mukhtar Ibrahim and the Hon. representing Ibaji Constituency is the greatest injustice and hatred. We, the Igala people are seriously injured and stigmatized by this pronouncement.
We condemned in its entirety and reject completely the appellation.
“Also, the Honourable member representing Ibaji, Hon Atule Egbunu and the able Council Chairman Hon. Williams O. Ikojo are people of high political pedigree.
“Igala land has never had a history of bomb explosions like the Ebira land which has recorded several bomb blasts, the last explosion was during the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to Kogi State on the 28th of December 2022, which claimed about two lives.
“Igalamela-Odolu is the home LG of Hon. Muritala Yakubu Ajaka. He did excellently well in all the elections, winning his Polling Unit, Ward, LGA and the Senatorial District, resoundingly.
“His individual contribution to the Kogi East and the State generally, financially and otherwise is un-rivalled. He donated vehicles to all the LGAs in the State, of which over 45 vehicles were commissioned in the Government House (Lugard House) by The Executive Governor, who was represented by His Chief of Staff, Pharm Jamiu Asuku, in December 2022.
“Without the financial support and fiscal roles of the Deputy National Publicity Secretary and member of the APC NWC, the state would have suffered serious set-back politically. He did not only finance the party, but he also supported all the candidates financially and went around the whole LGAs where he donated a handsome amount of money to mobilize the party faithful.
“Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka is the Hero of APC success in Kogi East and by extension Kogi State.
“We hereby pass a vote of absolute confidence on his capability, capacity and competence as a worthy representative of the state in the NWC and a great leader of our time.
Hence the illegal suspension by any individual, group of people and interest group is done out of hatred and fear of his rising political profile.
“Hence we are calling on the able and experienced National Chairman of our great party, Sen. Abdullahi Adamu, the Sarki Yaki Keffi led Executive to void the purported suspension of our people immediately as all the allegations are figments of imagination and hatred enveloped with fear of the intimidating profile of Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka.
The motive is political witch haunting”, the Igala APC added.
