Navy Admiral Jibrin Usman, one of at least 67 aspirants jostling to displace Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State for the ticket of the ruling APC in the state has concluded plans to purchase his forms today. Usman, who like most of the surprisingly large number of aspirants who hope to challenge Bello at the APC primaries, hails from the Kogi East senatorial district of the state will pay the sum of N22.5m for the expression of interest and nomination form at the National Secretariat of the APC in Abuja.

This development comes even as feelers indicate that many Kogites are displeased with the unwieldy number of aspirants of Kogi East extraction in the race. Nigerians, including many from among the majority Igala tribe which is the most populous in Kogi State and has produced all the previous governors since 1999 have taken to social media and other outlets to voice their disgust at the development.

A senior civil servant resident in Lokoja the state capital who is from the dominant tribe in Kogi East who was speaking under conditions of anonymity complained to our correspondent that unfit and unserious characters have taken over the race, especially in the APC.

‘Running for Governor used to be a serious thing but we are seeing all kinds of people rushing from the APC and the PDP now. Some of these people we know have serious criminal cases in the courts and should ordinarily not talk in public how much less running for executive or legislative office. Then there are those who cannot afford daily meals for their families. All of them are printing posters and gathering as aspirants.’

Our source declared that such people should be ashamed of themselves but feared that the large turnout from Kogi East is likely to send the wrong message about her people to the world.

‘What is all this desperation? Even people who should not be contesting for local government councillor are coming out as governorship aspirants. It is almost as if they believe any Kogi East person will beat Bello because he is from a smaller tribe. That is not true. Our people are objective in everything they do so this crowd is only painting a wrong picture about us.

He also did not also believe that Kogi East had received a good deal from having her sons as previous governors and wondered how anyone can believe the politicians will do better in future.

‘Come to think of it, what have we gained from nearly 20 years of having our people in office, especially after Prince Audu? Are we not the ones in darkness, with no electricity for our people? Our roads are bad, we don’t have water to drink and criminals used to terrorise us until Bello. If the only benefit of a Governor from my place is the title, let the present one continue. At least he knows what we can do and he is respecting us more than our brothers before. Even his traditional ruler has said so.’

It will be recalled that Governor Bello has been severally accused of focusing his administration’s projects in Kogi East and giving her people prominent roles in his government to gain their support. The governor denies the allegations, insisting that as one who detests bigotry, both ethnic and religious, it is only natural that he will allocate state resources proportionally depending on size and need.

the executives of the Igala Cultural Development Association (ICDA) will be visiting Governor Bello to thank him for the ultramodern Igala Unity House which was commissioned recently at Anyigba.

We also gathered that some of the the ICDA exco will take the opportunity to attend the inaugural meeting of the Project Power Kogi East Committee. Recall that Governor Yahaya Bello set up the committee headed by his Chief of Staff, Edward Onoja, to quickly bring electricity across the senatorial district.

While inaugurating members during the opening of the Igala Unity House the governor regretted that that Kogi East which had produced all the previous governors of the state had the worst electricity penetration in the state and promised to turn around the narrative in a few months.

Former president of Nigeria Football Federation Alhaji Abdullahi Sani-Lulu says he will be very ready for the forthcoming Kogi State APC governorship primary election.

Sani-Lulu, who was in charge of the NFF when Nigeria participated in her fourth FIFA World Cup finals appearance at South Africa 2010, has confirmed he would be at the APC National Secretariat, Abuja, Thursday, August 1st, to pick his party’s expression of interest and nomination form that would enable him to contest for the party’s primary election billed for August 29, 2019.

APC, which is the ruling party in Kogi State, has fixed August 29 for its party primaries in the state, with the winner going ahead to fly the party’s flag in the November 16 governorship election in the state.

A sum of N22.5m has been fixed by the party for the purchase of its nomination and expression of interest by each of the governorship aspirants.

Sani-Lulu, also a onetime FCT Director of Sports before upstaging Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima to become NFF President in 2006, is seen as a major challenger to incumbent governor, Yahaya Bello, amongst others, for the race to the Lord Lugard House – seat of Kogi State government in Lokoja.

“The desire or motivation for this new venture is aimed at serving my people at a higher level,” Sani-Lulu said of his motive of seeking political office after his leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF.

Sani-Lulu candidature is one brimmed with huge administrative experience, having served in the Federal Capital Development Authority (1981 – 2015), rising to the position of a Director in the Sports Council.

The Chief Executive Officer of Fosla Football Academy, was equally a board member and Chairman of the FCT FA, Team Manager and Patron FCDA Football Club.

A surveyor by profession, Sani-Lulu is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors; Fellow, Institute of Cooperate Administration of Nigeria and also a member of Nigerian Institute of Management, among others.