Why We Walked Out Of Kogi East-Kogi, Kogi-West Alliance Meeting — Chieftain

A political stalwart from Kogi-West has explained why the delegation from the senatorial district walked out of a meeting convened to explore a possible political alliance between Kogi-East and Kogi-West ahead of the 2027 governorship election in Kogi State.

The chieftain, who spoke exclusively with Daily Independent on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorised to speak publicly on the matter, described the meeting as a “cunning contraption” allegedly designed to make Kogi-West accept a pre-arranged alliance that would ultimately favour Kogi-East.

He expressed disappointment with what he described as the “models” presented by the Kogi-East delegation, arguing that the proposals placed Kogi-West at a significant disadvantage.

“I must say that we were disappointed,” he said. “The Kogi-East delegation put forward strategies that seemed to rate us very low.”

“I think they completely underrated us. They put forward many proposals to take power from Kogi-Central, but all of those proposals will eventually land the governorship in the East and tie our hands to the back. For us, this is unacceptable and we wouldn’t have accepted it.”

The chieftain recalled the 1999 governorship election, arguing that Kogi-West had previously lost an opportunity to produce the governor despite securing the ticket of a major political party.

“It’s not only the Central that has deprived us of the governorship seat. In 1999, the most popular party in Nigeria at the time gave us the governorship ticket. But Kogi-East fielded their son on the platform of the then APP and defeated our son,” he said.

“If the proposed alliance must work, Kogi-East needs to take a step back and reconsider their determination to use us to take power from our closest neighbour.”

He further warned that Kogi-West wouldn’t accept what he described as a self-serving political arrangement that places the district at a disadvantage, saying its leaders would consider other options for achieving their governorship aspiration.

“In 2023, the incumbent won because the West worked with the Central. The West didn’t vote for their sons. They deliberately voted for a candidate from the Central with the hope of taking power from him after his tenure. It’s a norm in Nigeria. Anyone who does a first term will want to do a second term.

“The options before us would be to support whoever has five years to go or wait till eternity if we’re giving it to the East. With the way the delegation of Kogi-East behaved at the meeting, they only want to take power and then ensure that no one is able to take it from them again. We cannot be trapped in such a selfish arrangement”, he said.

The political stalwart also expressed concern about how the people of Kogi-West would perceive continued political engagement with Kogi-East, alleging that the latter was seeking an alliance after failing to secure the governorship independently in 2023.

“Kogi-East wasn’t happy to have lost power and now they’re desperately trying to seize power. They thought they could go it alone in 2023. But after realising no single ethnic group can produce the governorship alone, they’re now coming to us,” he said.

He rejected suggestions that members of the Kogi-West delegation were acting as supporters of any particular political bloc, insisting that the district’s interest was paramount.

“It was an insult for them to begin to call us supporters of anyone after we rejected the slavery they’re proposing. We’re supporters of Kogi-West. We want the governorship, but we won’t go into the market blind,” he said.

“We reject any proposal that won’t give us the governorship ticket first and we won’t be bullied by any ethnic group. If Kogi-East is genuine, they should step down and allow Kogi West to have it in 2027.”

On the possibility of renewed engagement with Kogi-Central, the chieftain said Kogi-West remained open to discussions with all political interests, stressing that its immediate priority was to secure the governorship either in 2027 or at the nearest opportunity.

“We’re open to discussing with everyone to find a solution. We’re interested in the governorship, but we don’t want to be deceived,” he said.

“Kogi-East has proven with the model presented at our meeting that they’re not sincere with us. They only wanted to walk us into a dark room to arm-twist us.”

Ahead of the 2027 governorship election, political negotiations and realignments have intensified among the three senatorial districts in Kogi State, with stakeholders examining possible alliances and power-sharing arrangements.

While some political actors in Kogi-West argue that the governorship should return to the district in 2027, others favour an arrangement that would see the incumbent complete two terms before power is handed to a Kogi-West candidate.

Kogi-East, meanwhile, has also been positioning for the governorship, with political actors from the district seeking alliances ahead of the 2027 contest.

In the 2023 governorship election, political alignments between Kogi-West and Kogi-Central contributed to the electoral outcome, while the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator Dino Melaye, emerged from Kogi-West and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, Alhaji Muritala Ajaka, from Kogi-East.

As political consultations intensify ahead of 2027, the question of zoning, rotation and the terms of any prospective alliance is expected to remain a major issue in determining the direction of Kogi politics.