By joshua Benefits of Gov. Ododo’s U.K support rally for Tinubu
By Hon. Chris Ben-Kato Senior Special Assistant on information and communication strategy
Winning an election requires different levels of organization and approach. Where people may ordinarily look to not matter may be the very point capable of offering a victory to a candidate for an election.
His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo who won his first term in office election in November 2023 understood the many bridges he crossed to win that election. He understood better that to win an election in a state, one has to extend his or her political tentacles across the state.
There are strategies in winning an election that His Excellency, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo will till tomorrow keep to his chest moreso that he is already preparing for the next contest for a second term in office. Call it Governor Ododo’s personal political calculus, you may not be wrong.
When His Excellency, the Chief Servant of Kogi State, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo recently traveled to the United Kingdom to shore up economic intrest for Kogi State, he also used the same opportunity to canvass support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from Kogi State indigines living in the United Kingdom. He did so because for one, he is a die hard member of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Two he is also in the fore front of the national campaign to return President Tinubu for a second term in office. Three he is in tandem with President Tinubu’s policies which are currently strengthening the nation’s economy and stabilizing the polity in the country. Politically too, Governor Ododo’s relationship with President Tinubu can be likened to that of a father/son relationship.
If His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo therefore took President Tinubu’s second term in office support to the United Kingdom it is based on the above four mentioned political planks. The governor sincerely and deeply too, believes in President Tinubu’s leadership and the manner he is positively piloting the affairs of the country.
But one may ask, what is the need for the governor to be calling for President Tinubu’s support on people living in diaspora? What is the political value of Nigerians in the diaspora since our constitution did not permit them to vote abroad during any of Nigeria’s general elections? This indeed are good question that deserves an accurate answer. Like I mentioned earlier, winning an election requires one exploring various levels of approach. For one, Nigeria indigines living in diaspora have their country at heart. They are interested in the affairs of their country and how it is being run. Not paying attention to the input of Nigerians in diaspora on any given election will therefore be too risky to contend.
Let me State here that there are Kogi indigines and Nigerians in diaspora that are more concerned about the growth of democracy in Nigeria than some Nigerians. This of course is the stark reality. It is therefore of great political value to draw Nigerians living in the diaspora closer to political events at home whenever the opportunity provides. This is exactly the position of His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo when he rallied support for President Tinubu when he visited the United Kingdom recently.
There are people living in diaspora who could on their own volunteer to come down to Nigeria during the general election to woo their community to vote for President Tinubu in the January 2027 Presidential election. There are also Nigerians living in diaspora whose phone call to their community leaders could turn the tables of an election in favour of President Tinubu. His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo is therefore right to drum support for President Tinubu during his recent visit to the United Kingdom.
It is also worth to note here that His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo is the first Governor among his peers who have been traveling abroad to drum support for President Tinubu’s second term in office. This in itself is a big plus for Governor Ododo who sees afar and strategizes to achieve his targeted political goals.
There is no doubt that His Excellency, the Chief Servant of Kogi State is a political strategists. This is the more reason Kogi State today is very peaceful and the people of the state have kept enjoying his administration with the dividends of democracy littering the state. His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo as a master political strategy deserves a second term in office. The people of Kogi State cannot afford to loose a political genius to any kindergarten politician in the run up to the 2027 governorship election in Kogi State.
To me, for His Excellency, the Chief Servant of Kogi State, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo – one good and excellent term deserve another term come 2027 Kogi State governorship election.
Hon Chris Ben-Kato is the Senior Special Assistant on information and communication strategy to His Excellency Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo.