The ‘Stingy’ Governor Changing Kogi’s Story — Ododo’s Impact

Some people called Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo “stingy” when he first took office.

People who anticipated that government funds would keep pouring into the coffers of godfathers and political influencers came up with the term.

Yet, months into his term, that particular “stinginess” is becoming a shining virtue, driving a transformation in public utility, healthcare, education, and rural infrastructure.

Kogi might be seeing the start of a new period of significant development if being frugal with political rent-seekers translates into being giving to the populace.

Several transformers were recently delivered to the Kogi State Government, with an emphasis on rural towns, to improve the state’s electrical supply. Many parts of our rural communities were literally and economically in the dark for decades. The tide is changing now.

Electricity is a driving force behind rural development and is not only about light. It is now possible for small-scale food processors to add value to agricultural products including rice, groundnuts, yams, and cassava thanks to improved power supplies. This will lower post-harvest losses while also increasing household income. This is emancipation for craftspeople who rely on electricity to work, such mechanics, welders, hairdressers, and tailors.

Their ability to function from their local communities deters the rural-urban migration that has long deprived our villages of their young people and productive potential.

Improvements will also be made to get clean water because many water pumping systems and boreholes rely on energy. As a result, women and children who must go great distances to gather water are less burdened, and they are more likely to avoid waterborne illnesses like cholera and typhoid.

We call it surgical prudence, but some call it stinginess. Money that would otherwise be wasted is being diverted to areas where the government really needs it.

In the medical field, the same revolutionary tale is being told. More than two hundred primary health centers are undergoing renovations throughout the state’s twenty-one LGAs. This is more than a simple patch job or coat of paint, though. These health facilities are being outfitted to manage secondary healthcare tasks, enabling remote people to have access to life-saving services. Without a doubt, this is the most bold investment Kogi State has ever made in its rural healthcare system.

Shining new health facilities are being built in villages like Otafun, Ayede, and many more that have never experienced governmental investment.

Getting basic medical care no longer requires residents to travel for hours. The treatment of chronic ailments, minor operations, vaccinations, and prenatal care are now accessible.

During this period, when many states are having difficulty maintaining urban hospitals, Kogi is quietly creating a healthcare safety net in her most isolated regions.

Education is also reaping the benefits of the governor’s “stinginess.” Take Takete-Ide’s Government Day Secondary School, for example. Established in 1980, its community-built classrooms have stood as a symbol of grassroots sacrifice for decades.

But that changed two months ago. The school accepted the delivery of contemporary classrooms featuring electric fixtures, secure doors and windows, tiled floors, strong roofs, and attractive walls.

The government was actually felt by the instructors and students for the first time in more than 40 years. Additionally, this is not a singular occurrence. Similar changes are being made to schools around the state, transforming them from temporary sheds into actual educational institutions.

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However, it goes beyond buildings. Education is a public right, and the State Government, led by Governor Ododo, has followed up this claim with action. Tuition is no longer charged for primary and secondary education in the state. WAEC, NECO, and other internal and external exams are also funded by the government. Bursaries are now utilized to help tertiary students keep focused on their education rather than their tuition costs, so they are not excluded.

This implies that the impoverished children sense the support of the government from the first day of elementary school to the last day in a university lecture hall. Governance should be about easing burdens rather than adding new ones. And the governor’s refusal to’settle’ the politically entitled at the expense of the voiceless masses is the only reason it’s feasible.

Education, healthcare, and power are only a few areas of the revolution. An extraordinary amount of attention is also being paid to the state’s urban and rural infrastructure. The Governor has a sustainable and strategic approach, which includes road developments that connect farming villages to markets and ongoing erosion control efforts in areas of Kogi East, Kogi West, and Kogi Central.

The goal is to serve as many individuals as possible with each kobo. Competency, not connection, is the deciding factor in the hiring process. Projects are made to be useful, not just for publicity.

Governor Ododo has also significantly improved security, another essential element of development.

His government has backed the deployment and training of community-based security personnel and made significant investments in the acquisition of supplies for security organizations. Disrupting criminal operations before they escalate has been made possible by these local workers, who are the first line of defense in their areas. There is a relative quiet in flashpoints that were once the subject of violent and banditry headlines. This enhanced security environment is the consequence of intentional, targeted investment in preserving lives and livelihoods; it is not a coincidence.

Furthermore, the Governor has endorsed the generation of wealth by means of the Kogi Enterprise Development Agency (KEDA). The government’s proper support of the agency empowers small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly those led by women and young people. The state is offering training, technical assistance, and soft loans to prospective business owners. In the core of the economy, this “stinginess” places confidence and capital in the hands of the people. Creating wealth at the grassroots level is a movement under Governor Ododo, not just a program.

His administration has also taken action to automate land administration by using the Kogi Geographic Information System (KOGIS), which would make land paperwork more investor-friendly, transparent, and accessible. Another outcome of wise leadership is that real estate value will be unlocked, and the state will get steady money.

The straightforward but uncommon attitude taken by Governor Ododo is that if something doesn’t help the people, it isn’t worthy of their money. One should strive to be as frugal as this.

The critics who formerly griped that he wasn’t “spending” enough on irrelevant items are now facing an administration that is not only spending, but doing so prudently.

Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo is demonstrating that true leadership is about standing with the many, even if it means disappointing the self-centered few, at a time when some politicians still think that getting along with a select few is the goal of governing.

When used to defend the commonwealth from the avaricious grasp of self-serving political manipulators, he has reinvented stinginess as a public virtue.

Does Ododo’s frugal behavior benefit Kogi? It is the newly illuminated villages, the renovated health facilities, the redesigned schools, the relieved expressions of parents who no longer have to pay school fees, and the empowered hands of farmers and artisans who are at last reaping the benefits of democracy.

May Kogi’s governors remain frugal with the self-interested but generous with the general good.