Ultimately, leadership is not about glorious crowning acts. It is about keeping your team focused on a goal and motivated to do their best to achieve it, especially when the stakes are high and the consequences really matter. It is about laying the groundwork for others’ success, and then standing back and letting them shine.
The above describes the personality of Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello. When he was sworn-in on January 27, 2016, Bello made history as the youngest governor ever in Nigeria. Since then, he has been facing attacks from various faceless groups floated by ‘opposition elements’ in the state.
The first was a story on alleged embezzlement of bailout fund published by an online medium, which was sponsored by political opposition in the state. All the issues raised in the publication against Bello were unfounded, baseless myth which has since been discarded by the state government. It is important to remind those opposition elements that Governor Bello met an empty treasury, with huge debt profile, including unpaid workers’ salary of five months, contractors, among others. Bello was sworn in at a time when the state needed about N50 billion to settle debts owed to workers in the state.
It may interest them to know that the governor moved quickly in order to ameliorate the suffering of the state workers. He approached necessary authorities for bailout and was only able to access N20 billion with the help of Zenith and Access banks respectively. Since then, all genuine workers have all received their salary at both state and the local government areas. As a result, they called-off of the strike embarked upon by the workers’ union.
Since he assumed office, Bello has institutionalised transparency and good governance in the running of the state affairs. The action has greatly paid off, with the discovery of over 18,000 ghost workers, which cost the state over N1.3 billion monthly. Bello has never done anything in a vacuum or taken unilateral decisions. He always consults with larger stakeholders in the state, including royal fathers and party leaders across board.
It will also be recalled that Bello has assured that the people of the state should henceforth expect development, prosperity and good governance all the way, after the Court of Appeal judgment came in his favour.
His words: “Remember, I am on a divine mission and I will do nothing less than to continue to develop the state and to curb corruption, waste and mismanagement; and to put the state on developmental map.”
Some even accused him of causing the chaos in the Kogi House of Assembly. But the governor told his critics plainly that, “There has never been any face-off between the executive and the legislature. There has always been misunderstanding in every legislative house, and Kogi State is not an exception. As of today, we have one united Kogi Assembly.”
I will advise the ‘opposition elements’ to come and join hands with the governor, in order to move the state forward. I will also advise other politicians in the state to set the record straight rather than misleading the public for selfish reasons, all in the name of politics.
Bello has chosen to remain focused, promising that he will continue to impacts on the lives of the people, and would not be distracted by any faceless, selfish group whose inordinate aim is to create confusion in the state for cheap political gains.
•Kehinde, a Journalist and Public Affairs Commentator based in Abuja, can be reached via kennyadewole@gmail.com. Photo shows Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State.
