By joshua Dear People of Kogi West,
AFTER 16 YEARS OF IGALA AND 12 YEARS OF EBIRA GOVERNORSHIPS, NO IGALA OR EBIRA SON WOULD APPEAR BEFORE THEIR ROYAL FATHER TO DECLARE THAT THEIR PEOPLE ARE NOT READY FOR GOVERNOR
By Musa Bakare
History does not merely judge those who are denied power; it judges more severely those who willingly surrender their own destiny.
The greatest tragedy of a people is not oppression by outsiders, but the internal voices that normalize their own exclusion.
This is the painful question confronting the people of Kogi West Senatorial District of Kogi State today.
How does a Kogi West son rise in the palace any of the Chairmen of the Local Government Traditional Council and passionately campaign that the people of Kogi West are not prepared to produce the Governor of Kogi State come January 2028?
What greater insult can be offered to the memory of our fathers? What deeper wound can be inflicted upon the hopes of our children?
The palace of traditional rulers or any place in Kogi West for that matter is not a marketplace for the auction of the destiny of the people.
A palace is the sacred altar where the aspirations, dignity, and unity of our people should be defended.
For over three decades since the creation of Kogi State in 1991, the governorship has remained beyond the reach of Kogi West.
The Igala nation has occupied the office for over sixteen years. The Ebira nation is completing about twelve years by January 2028.
Justice, equity, and the moral logic of fairness now point unmistakably to Kogi West.
Yet, astonishingly, some among us have chosen to become advocates against their own peoples’ destiny.
No Igala son, after sixteen years in power, would publicly tell the Attah of Igala that the Igala nation was not ready to govern.
No Ebira son or daughter would stand before the Ohinoyi of Ebiraland to declare that Ebira people should abandon its continuity agenda as governor.
Such a suggestion would be rejected because every great people instinctively defends their collective interest.
Why then should any Kogi West son become the loudest voice against our legitimate aspiration?
People who consistently doubt themselves eventually convince others that they deserve to be denied.
Self defeat has never produced justice. Those who surrender their mandate before the contest begins should not complain when history passes them by.
If some Kogi West people declare
that they are not ready to produce governor in 2027, what moral authority shall we possess in 2031 when another chorus emerges saying, “Let Ebira complete their sixteen years like the Igala”?
History teaches that postponed justice often becomes permanent injustice.
The struggle for equity is never won by those waiting for perfect conditions. It is won by those who possess the courage to insist that what is right cannot be postponed indefinitely.
This is not a struggle against the Igala people. It is not a contest against the Ebira people.
They have every right to defend the interests of their own people.
Our concern is that Kogi West must also defend its own legitimate place within the Kogi project.
Political power is rarely donated. It is negotiated through unity, conviction, strategy, and unwavering belief in one’s collective destiny.
The greatest obstacle before Kogi West today is not numerical strength, geographical spread, or political capacity. It is the dangerous philosophy of self doubt.
Our forefathers built kingdoms, defended civilizations, and preserved our identity through courage.
They never taught us to surrender our inheritance before the battle had begun.
The time has therefore come for every son and daughter of Kogi West to rise above personal ambition, partisan interests, and temporary political calculations.
The governorship of Kogi State in January 2028 is not merely about occupying an office. It is about restoring confidence in a generation, affirming the principle of fairness, and proving that no section of Kogi State should remain permanently excluded from leadership.
The future belongs to those who believe they deserve it.
If we cannot believe in ourselves, no one else will.
If we abandon our destiny today, history may not offer us another opportunity tomorrow.
Let every village hear it.
Let every community proclaim it.
Let every traditional institution defend it.
Let every political leader embrace it.
2027 is not merely another election year. It is a defining moment in the history of Kogi West and in the pursuit of justice, equity, and inclusion within Kogi State.
The choice before us is simple: either we stand together and pursue our rightful place with courage, or we continue the tragic cycle of surrender that future generations will struggle to understand.
The time to believe in ourselves is now.