
News
The Tragedy Of Kogi State At 32 Years – By J S Okutepa SAN
“Kogi state is the least developed state in Nigeria. The capital city of the state Lokoja is a glorified village. Nothing to show that Lokoja is capital city”, writes the Legal Luminary
By J S Okutepa SAN
Kogi State was created on the 27th of August 1991. That is exactly 32 years ago today. A child born 32 years ago is fully an adult. The same thing Kogi State is now an adult State. It is no longer a new state. But go to that state and weep. It is a state that has the best human and natural resources but the most backwards in terms of physical and human capital developments.
Being old state one expects to see significant developments in all spheres of the state. The reason for creation of state is for development. Kogi state is the least developed state in Nigeria. The capital city of the state Lokoja is a glorified village. Nothing to show that Lokoja is capital city. Everything in the capital Lokoja seem to be in total dilapidation.
No good roads. In fact social amenities in the capacity city are completely non-functional.
No good roads. No infrastructural developments. No significant building to show that Lokoja is different from what it was when it was made the state capital on the 27th August 1991.

The tragedy of Kogi State is that it is the state where the best of the best are from but has been led since the creation by its worst 11. The tragedy of Kogi state is that it is either was led by leadership that was so authoritarian or an adolescent leadership that has no regards for the feelings of the people or leadership that is so distanced from the people.
It is a state where democracy doest not make sense to those who forced themselves on the people. It is a state where dictatorship and despotic show of force are equated with democracy. It is a state where exercising your freedom of choice is taken as act of terrorism.
You can be charged for it and those who have the duties and responsibilities to checkmate despotic tendencies are scared of doing so for their dare lives. It is a state where those whose tomorrow are being destroyed are ready to be used as tools to perpetuate evils against the people. That is the tragedy of Kogi State at 32.
The state has had bad leaders who have no ideas of what good governance entails. That is why over the years the state remains a glorified hamlet/ village. Nothing works in that state. The only thing one sees in abundance in leadership is lack of vision and directions.
Virtually all the leaders that has led that state have had one funny acronyms or the other. Of all the leaders that have led that state, the leadership of Yahaya Bello as governor is the worst. Apart from personal development, Yahaya Bello as Governor has not developed Kogi state. There is nothing good in that State.
The administration of Yahaya Bello has achieved more in impoverishment of Kogi people than all the previous leaders. Salaries are not paid. No new industries. No new roads.
Democracy in Kogi State under Yahaya Bello has been characterized by democratic thuggery and thugs. Leadership has assumed childish behavior in the most extreme in the state.
Lies have been elevated to truth so much so that even the blinds can see that there is no truth in the propaganda of falsehood always dished out to the people.
The tragedy of Kogi State at 32 is that it is a state blessed with abundant human and natural resources but lack decent leadership that has capacity for good governance. That is the tragedy of my state.
It is a state where the elders are virified and insulted by those in power. It is a state where political actors have colonised the state as their estate. It is a state where elders are afraid of those in power because of the propensity of those in power using thugs and thuggery to kill. That is the tragedy of Kogi State.
It is a state where the security agencies have conspired with those in power based on primordial partisan selfish interest to oppress the people. That is the tragedy of Kogi State at 32.
As Kogi State clocks 32 years today, I hope those who are aspiring to lead the state will have the humane dispositions to turn the misfortune of that state to fortune and then harness the natural and material resources of the state for the good of the vast majority of Kogi People.
News
Two Suspected Bandits Killed in Kano Ransom Collection Ambush, ₦10m Recovered
Two suspected bandits have been killed and ₦10 million recovered after local hunters intercepted a gang allegedly involved in a kidnapping operation in Falgore Forest, Doguwa Local Government Area of Kano State.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday, shortly after three suspected bandits collected the ransom demanded for the release of a 45-year-old man, Kabiru Aliyu.
Aliyu, a resident of Falgore Village, was abducted on September 11, 2026.
According to the Kano State Police Command, the suspects were intercepted by local hunters, popularly known as Yan Bula, while returning to their hideout after collecting the ransom.
Two of the suspects reportedly died during the confrontation, while the third escaped with injuries. The hunters recovered the entire ₦10 million ransom.

The police spokesperson, Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, said preliminary investigations identified one of the deceased suspects as Dogo Isah, a commercial motorcycle operator from Maigwanda Village in Kubau Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The operation was carried out under Operation Kukan Kura, a security initiative aimed at tackling kidnapping, banditry and other violent crimes in Kano State.
The Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Adamu Bakori, commended the hunters for their intervention and directed security operatives to intensify efforts to apprehend the fleeing suspect and recover any weapons used by the gang.
The rescued victim was subsequently debriefed, medically examined and reunited with his family.
The incident highlights the role of local hunters in intelligence gathering and rural security, particularly in areas where difficult terrain poses challenges to conventional security operations.
However, the escape of one of the suspects leaves security operatives with the task of tracking him down and determining whether the gang was involved in other kidnapping incidents in the region.
The police urged residents to provide credible information that could assist ongoing efforts to apprehend fleeing suspects and prevent further criminal activities.
News
2027: Atiku’s Son Pledges 10 Buses for Tinubu’s Re-election Campaign
Abba Atiku Abubakar, son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has pledged 10 buses to support mobilisation for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Abba made the pledge during a visit to the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Secretariat in Abuja on Friday, according to a statement issued by Yusi Buba, Senior Special Assistant on Youth Mobilisation to the party’s Deputy National Chairman.
He was received by the APC Deputy National Chairman (North), Bukar Dalori.
Buba said Abba commended the party’s leadership and Tinubu’s administration, expressing support for the President’s continued stay in office.
“In a demonstration of his commitment to the political engagement ahead of the 2027 general elections, Hon. Abba Atiku Abubakar announced the donation of ten buses to support activities aimed at mobilising support for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima in 2027,” the statement said.

The APC aide said Dalori welcomed Abba and acknowledged his pledge, describing it as support for the party’s mobilisation efforts ahead of the elections.
The development followed Abba’s announcement of a nationwide mobilisation campaign for Tinubu’s re-election and the unveiling of the Haske Bola Tinubu Organisation, a political support group established to advance the President’s second-term ambition.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Friday, Abba said the organisation would commence activities in the Federal Capital Territory before expanding to other parts of the country.
He also announced plans for a two-million-man mobilisation march across the six geopolitical zones, with the exercise scheduled to begin in Abuja.
Abba defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in January, declaring his support for Tinubu’s re-election bid.
His father, Atiku Abubakar, is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 general election.
News
NCDC Identifies Two Suspected Ebola Cases In North-East
Two suspected cases of Ebola disease have been identified in the North-East region of the country.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) disclosed this in a post via its official X handle on Saturday, adding that both individuals had been isolated.
It also said contact identification and listing are ongoing, and laboratory testing is underway.
According to the agency, confirmation is subject to laboratory results.
Two suspected cases of Ebola disease have been identified in Nigeria’s North-East region. Both individuals have been isolated, contact identification and listing is ongoing, and laboratory testing is being conducted,” the NCDC said.
“Being classified as suspected cases does not mean they are confirmed Ebola cases; confirmation is subject to laboratory results.
“The public is advised to maintain good hand hygiene, practise enhanced sanitation and follow guidance from public health authorities. Further updates will be provided as verified information becomes available.”

The latest update by the NCDC came days after it said it identified another contact, an e-hailing driver, linked to the confirmed case of the recent Ebola outbreak in Nigeria, increasing the number of primary contacts to 54.
The NCDC Director-General, Dr. Jide Idris, told Channels Television on October 26 that efforts were ongoing to identify the secondary contacts.
“So we are not out of the woods yet until we are sure that we have all the contacts, and they have been followed up. So we are still not out of the woods; because the index case is out doesn’t mean that we don’t have that,” he said.
The Federal Government had announced Nigeria’s first confirmed case of the Bundibugyo strain in Abuja on October 20, 2026, identifying the patient as a woman with a recent travel history to Uganda, who returned to Nigeria with symptoms on October 7, but the Ugandan authorities denied reports of an Ebola outbreak in the East African country.
The index patient was later flown to Switzerland along with her husband.
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