By joshua Why It Must Be Ododo Beyond 2027 As Comr. Onuh Edoka’s Advocacy Gains Ground Across Kogi LGAs
By Abu Micheal.
Across the 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State, a quiet but deliberate conversation is taking place in staff rooms, Council halls, and Market squares.
Led by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Labour Matters, Comr. Onuh Edoka, the ongoing Workplace Security and Employment Stability Campaign is urging Kogi workers to protect the gains, secure the future, and look beyond 2027.
It is an advocacy that many labour observers now describe as a watershed in the history of the state’s workforce.
There was a time in Kogi State when being called a government worker was almost a cause for Shame. Salaries came late, or in percentages. Rent went unpaid. School fees piled up. Families struggled to eat. Every election season came with fear, rumours, and the dreaded question of whether workers would still have a job after the polls.
That narrative, workers say, has changed since the emergence of His Excellency, Alh. Ahmed Usman Ododo.
Today, the message in all the LGAs visited by Comr. Edoka’s team has been consistent. Gov. Ododo is doing well in the prompt payment of salaries, pensions, and other entitlements. Workers now know the date their pay will be credited. They can plan, budget, and provide for their families with dignity. For the first time in years, many say they are proud to be government workers.
Beyond wages, Comr. Edoka’s team has also been sensitising workers on workplace safety and community security at a time when insecurity remains a global concern. The message is that a safe worker is a productive worker, and a stable government is one that can guarantee that safety.
The Special Adviser, who walked a similar path of advocacy in 2023 and was at the time misunderstood, is now being vindicated. Many now say he saw ahead and spoke early for the good of the workforce.
The campaign’s central appeal to workers at all levels is caution. The economy is hard everywhere and austerity is biting. But in the midst of it, Kogi workers are enjoying something rare: permanent employment with benefits and a government that pays as and when due. To return to the old ways, the team warns, would be to go back to the dark days after tasting stability.
“Workers are being urged not to trade a serene environment for uncertainty. What we have today may not be everything we want, but it is far better than what we had, and it must be consolidated and built upon”.
The team has emphasised the importance of prompt payment, improved security, and the restored dignity of labour. Under Gov. Ododo, Kogi has been made uncomfortable for bandits and kidnappers. Criminals hardly return, and those caught face the full weight of the law. The shame that once came with being a government worker has been replaced with pride and stability.
Like any message of salvation, acceptance requires faith. But for those who embrace it, the benefits far outweigh the doubt. The advocacy is not about politics alone. It is about protecting homes, children’s school fees, hospital bills, and the peace of mind that comes with knowing your job is safe.
As Comr. Edoka and his team continue the tour across all LGAs, the feedback has been unanimous. Workers say they have made up their minds: it is Gov. Ododo beyond 2027.
Kogi workers are being asked not just to vote, but to preserve a legacy of timely pay, of security, and of dignity restored. The gains are real, the message is clear, and the call is for workers at all levels to hold the line and secure the future they now enjoy.