By joshua SEN. SUNDAY KARIMI: THE VOICE, THE VISION, THE VERIFIABLE PROJECTS REDEFINING KOGI WEST
By Abu Micheal
Sen. Sunday Karimi, representing Kogi West Senatorial District, has without mincing words made indelible marks in effective representation. In a political season where promises are common and delivery is rare, he has chosen to be measured by what the people can see, touch, and live with.
He has surpassed past administrations when measured by the amount of money attracted and the number of projects executed. But more than figures, the projects he has attracted and built personally are verifiable. They stand the test of time in visibility, from the dusty roads of Kogi LGA to the market squares of Kabba Bunu, from the classrooms of Ijumu to the health centers of Yagba West. Bridges where there were none. Solar lights where darkness once ruled. Boreholes where women once trekked kilometers. “This is the first time we are feeling government,” an elder in Yagba West said during the commissioning of a water project. “Senator Karimi has brought the government to our doorstep.”
On the floor of the Senate, he has not been quiet. He has been courageous and outspoken, a quality representation needs even when it is sometimes misconstrued. He has sponsored motions and contributed to debates with personal imprints that have a direct bearing on the lives of Nigerians and the people he represents. His voice has consistently called for fairness, equity and justice, and in doing so he has become the echo of what the generality of constituents have long desired. As one market woman in Kabba put it, “He talks for us in Abuja the way we talk in our compounds. He does not forget us.” Posterity is already judging him, and the early verdict is that he dared to speak when silence was safer.
Since his assumption as the People’s Senator, the story of Kogi West has changed across every sector of life. In education, classroom blocks have risen and ICT centers have been equipped because he believes that “an educated child is a weapon against poverty.” Indigent students have received JAMB and WAEC support, and scholarships have taken sons and daughters of farmers to universities and polytechnics. In health, primary health centers have been renovated and equipped, free medical outreaches have reached the aged in Ijumu, and ambulances have reduced the number of lives lost on bad roads. “Before, we used to pray when someone was sick,” a youth leader in Kogi LGA said. “Now we have a place to run to, because our Senator remembered us.”
For the youths, he has opened doors that were shut for too long. Through skills acquisition in ICT, agriculture, tailoring and welding, and through start-up grants and equipment, thousands have moved from waiting to working. Women’s cooperatives have received grinding machines and capital, because he understands what Eleanor Roosevelt meant when she said, _“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” He has believed in the dreams of Kogi West women and invested in them. In agriculture, farmers have received tractors, seedlings and training, and cooperatives have been linked to federal interventions so that Kogi West can feed itself and sell to the rest of the country. In security, he has facilitated support for agencies and community vigilantes, knowing that no development can survive where there is no peace.
What makes his representation different is not just the volume of projects, but the philosophy behind them. He is a builder. He is not interested in projects that die after the ribbon is cut. Contractors working with him know he will ask, “Will this last for our children?” That engineering mindset is why his roads, his schools, and his health centers are still standing and still serving.
The people have noticed. From Kogi LGA to Kabba Bunu, Ijumu and down to Yagba West, the comment is the same and it is loud: “We have never had it this good.” A community leader in Kabba Bunu said, “For years we voted and waited. With Senator Karimi, we voted and we saw.” Another in Ijumu noted, “He does not play politics with development. If it will help the people, he will do it.” That is the long desired dream of Kogi West finally finding a voice and finding hands.
As John F. Kennedy once said, “One person can make a difference, and everyone should try.” Sen. Karimi has tried, and the difference is visible. In the Senate, ranking defines performance and what a lawmaker can achieve. Committees, budgets, and federal presence all follow seniority and credibility. To start over in 2027 would be to throw away the leverage Kogi West has painfully earned. That is why across the district, the call is growing: his re-election is not about one man, it is about consolidation.
As we go for the 2027 polls, every district will be struggling to field and present their best. Kogi West should not compromise on the altar of selfish tendencies. In a football game, you don’t change a winning team. What Sen. Karimi represents is a solid foundation already laid. To abandon it now is to trade a joker for pawns. The people know this. That is why the sing song from one LGA to another is, “Let him finish the work.”
For now, Sen. Karimi represents the yearning and aspirations of the people. He represents a call for unity of purpose, for constituents to stay the course. He represents proof that politics can still be about service. “The best way to predict the future is to create it,” Peter Drucker said. In Kogi West, that future is being created in blocks, in boreholes, in scholarships, in jobs, and in a voice that refuses to be silent in Abuja.
Sen. Sunday Karimi remains the bold face for changing the narrative of Kogi West. And the people, in one voice, are saying: let the foundation he has built be completed. Let the dream continue.