Key political stakeholders and leaders of the All Progressives Congress in Kogi East Senatorial District have declared total support for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu and Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo, in the 2027 general elections.
The leaders, however, demanded urgent action to address what they described as a 20-year infrastructure deficit in Kogi East and called for a negotiated framework for power rotation among the state’s three senatorial districts.
The position was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the Kogi East APC Strategic Leadership Conference held in Abuja and made available to journalists on Thursday.
The communiqué was signed by 26 prominent leaders, including the Conference Chairman, Maj. Gen. Patrick Ademu Akpa (retd), Amb. Isaac A. Onu, Rt. Hon. Ismaila Inna Hussani, Rt. Hon. Dr Emmanuel Egwu, Hajia Salamatu Baiwa Umar-Eluma, AIG Abutu Yaro (retd), Dr Sani Teidi, Hon. Dan Okolo, Abdullahi Haruna (SAN), Dr Johnson Musa, Prof. Aliyu Idris, Dr Tom Diche, Hajia Mariam Yakubu, Hajia Hassanat Abubakar and Hon. Sadiq Ainoko.
The stakeholders reaffirmed that Kogi East remained the largest voting bloc in the state, recalling that the district delivered the highest number of votes for Tinubu during the 2023 presidential election.
They pledged to repeat the performance in 2027, citing what they described as President Tinubu’s goodwill through the appointment of Kogi East indigenes into strategic federal positions.
The communiqué read, “We call for an immediate shift toward building consensus, renegotiating power transfer, and establishing an inclusive, development-driven agenda that guarantees equitable access to the instruments of power.
“Kogi East will never be an appendage of any other political bloc. We stand as a major partner prepared to negotiate and seize opportunities for our people.”
The conference resolved to open discussions with leaders in Kogi Central and Kogi West to establish a peaceful, transparent and predictable framework for power rotation in the state.
The stakeholders also decried what they described as decades of neglect and leadership drift, saying Kogi East had suffered a 20-year infrastructure deficit, particularly after the death of the state’s first civilian governor, Prince Abubakar Audu.
They urged the Federal Government and the Kogi State Government to prioritise road construction, upgrade public facilities and implement projects capable of driving economic growth across the district’s nine local government areas.
The leaders said Kogi East’s political support must translate into tangible development, similar to landmark projects initiated during the Audu administration, including the establishment of the state university in Anyigba, major road networks and the Obajana Cement Project.
Among its resolutions, the conference pledged to mobilise grassroots support across the nine local government areas for the re-election of Tinubu, Ododo and all APC candidates in 2027.
The stakeholders also resolved to reconcile aggrieved political actors within the district, institutionalise the Prince Abubakar Audu Leadership Foundation and appeal to the Federal Government to confer a posthumous national honour on the late former governor.
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
