BY Cornelius Ogereva Sanni
Globally, governance is measured based on the level of impact felt by its citizens whether in terms of infrastructure, welfare or security.
Upon assumption of office as the fifth Executive Governor of Kogi State, Governor Ododo was very clear on his mission of consolidation and continuity, a vision he preached to Kogi people during his campaigns.
Based on this, the Governor ensured completion of all projects of the previous administration of Alhaji Yahaya Bello, built more and still building.
Prominent among these projects among many others are the Nine Kilometres Zone 8- Barrack-Zango and 5.5 Kilometres Zone 8-Crusher roads with street lights to allow for visibility and beautification at night.
Before now, the tradition of consolidation and continuity was alien in Kogi State which has impeded development with abandoned projects littered all over the place.
The Chief Servant as Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo fondly calls himself demonstrated the importance of consolidation and continuity in governance which is a clear departure from the past.
On security, the Chief Servant has performed tremendously through regular support to all security outfits in the State as well as the approval for the recruitment of fifty hunters in each Local Government Area to help combat all forms of crime which has helped in reducing crime rate drastically.
A clear testament of the success story recorded with reference to security was the timely rescue of twenty students of Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara in May last year who were abducted by gunmen in their campus.
Worthy of note also was the establishment of a Forward Operation Base(FOB) in Bagana community in Omala Local Government Area which has helped in the restoration of peace and commercial activities in the hitherto deserted community due to crisis.
It is interesting to note that before the intervention of Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, Bagana community for decades has been ravaged by incessant invasion by suspected herdsmen from Benue and Nasarawa States which depleted commercial activities with lives and property lost.
The Chief Servant also demonstrated strong commitment to revolutionize agriculture through the initiation of several key programmes to boost food sufficiency in line with the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In matching his words with actions, Governor Ododo in June last year launched wet season farming initiative with an investment of over seven billion naira on farm inputs as well as deployment of over hundred tractors across seven thousand hectares of farmland, thereby making Kogi State a significant contributor to the nation’s economy.
As a follow up, the Chief Servant distributed truckloads of fertilizer to all twenty one Local Government Areas with Ibaji and Bassa being highest beneficiaries due to their agrarian nature.
The health sector is not left out as within one year in office, there has been swift completion of ongoing, remodelling and upgrading of over one hundred primary health care centres with provision of medical supplies.
With the Governor’s passion for education, in October last year he approved the sum of six hundred million naira for the payment of WAEC fees for over eighteen thousand senior secondary school students across all public schools in the State.
A laudable initiative aimed at alleviating financial burden on parents as well as reduce the number of out of school children as captured in the education law of Kogi State.
As if that was not enough, few days ago the Chief Servant equally approved five hundred and twenty two million naira for other critical examinations.
This package includes over one hundred and forty five million naira for the payment of Common Entrance and First School Leaving Certificate fees for primary school students, two hundred and fifteen million naira for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), and one hundred and eighty one million naira to facilitate JAMB form fees.
The Governor’s passion and investment in the education sector has placed Kogi State as the most educated in Northern Nigeria.
On the welfare of workers, the Chief Servant prioritizes workers welfare as he was the first Governor in northern Nigeria to approve seventy two thousand, five hundred naira for all categories of workers as against the approved seventy thousand naira approved by the Federal Government.
Pensioners were not left out in this gesture as the Governor graciously approved ten thousand naira harmonization allowance, a feat which has never happened for over two decades.
To boost trade and investment, the Governor graciously approved a multi-billion naira state -of-the-art international market which will be strategically located along Zone 8-Crusher road. This proposed market is expected to be ready in less than two years.
The Governor with an accounting background who believes in boosting internally generated revenue as well as blocking leakages declared a state of emergency on illegal mining across the State which has helped in checkmating activities of illegal miners and boosting state revenue.
In addition to this, he recently reviewed the infrastructure Maintenance Levy to allow for periodic and strategic collection of transportation levies through a streamlined framework.
Recently, he launched the Kogi Performance Indicator Tracker to allow the people monitor government policies and programs which creates a feedback mechanism. This shows the level of transparency and accountability embedded in current administration led by Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo.
These unprecedented achievements highlighted are just few among many other achievements within the space of one year.
With the giant strides recorded so far, the people of Kogi State should sustain their support and prayers for the Governor to enable him take Kogi State to an enviable height worthy of emulation.
