By Olaolu Oladipo
Popularly known as the White Lion, former Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State remains a prominent political figure in the Confluence State, and is often viewed as a strategist that has journeyed through turbulent, uncharted paths in his political odyssey.
From his assumption of office as the helmsman of the state, through what many people have described as divine means, he carved a niche for himself in contemporary Kogi politics, especially when he held sway as governor.
His tenure is deemed somewhat controversial but many residents of the state whose opinions had been sampled however stated that his stewardship recorded many significant milestones as he achieved many firsts in terms of achievements, which were recorded during his eight-year tenure.
According to those in the know, these achievements, widely acknowledged across all critical sectors of the state such as healthcare delivery, education, and infrastructure, among others, placed Kogi State within the country’s first 10 developing states.
More importantly and interestingly, the state, under Bello, won the World Bank’s Awards of Excellence in three categories, namely in Fiscal Transparency and Accountability, Debt Sustainability and Domestic Revenue Mobilisation, in November 2022.
The World Bank had, in July 2021, also commended former Governor Bello for refunding $4.63 million surplus funds under the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP).
This is why Bello’s supporters contend that, like any leader of substance, his trajectory from being a private citizen to his stint in government, particularly as the governor and beyond, continues to embody the values they argue his detractors have tried to bury without luck.
Analysts argue that the public praise showered on Bello by prominent Nigerians from all walks of life is by no means accidental.
They contend it is more than mere coincidence that the nation’s political and social elite including President Bola Tinubu, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, and influential voices like Reno Omokri have, at different times, spoken in his favour.
Also to be noted are the comments from fellow politicians like one of his predecessors in office, Alhaji Idris Wada and a former member of the Senate, Mr. Smart Adeyemi, to other popular figures. The list of those validating his leadership continues to grow on daily basis.
A Port Harcourt-based current affairs analyst, Mr. Ifeoma Ogbonna, observed: “It is good Nigerians, especially Bello’s detractors Iknow that no man can curse whom God has blessed.
“I may not supporting him personally, but as the saying goes, one man’s food is another man’s poison. For every person who dislikes him, there is another willing to go to great lengths to defend him, especially his people of Kogi Central. That is the world we live in, and we must learn to adapt to some truth.”
Despite his humble beginning in Okene town, it was clear to those around the young Yahaya Bello that he possessed an innate gift for leadership, moving with the poise of someone capable of carrying great responsibility with ease and a smile.
“Bello was also known for his grounded, down-to-earth nature. From his early years in public primary through and secondary schools to his time at university, his leadership traits—fortified by what many saw as a sense of divine favour—marked him as a man destined for success in any arena,” Abdullahi Musa, one of his kinsmen, who was his senior at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, said.
“His rise to the position of the number one citizen of Kogi State, from 2016 to 2024, bore all the hallmarks of what many, both within and beyond the state, describe as the journey of a child of destiny,” he added.
In 2016, Bello made history as Nigeria’s youngest governor, propelled by a profound commitment to those he swore to serve.
At just 41, he displayed the audacity to stand among Kogi’s most revered political titans, engaging as an equal with the seasoned legends of the state.
With the audacity of youth, the relatively unknown Bello surged to a second-place finish in the 2015 All Progressives Congress governorship primary, a feat that instantly put the state’s political establishment on notice.
– New Telegraph
