Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello on Thursday stated that he surpassed his predecessors with significant achievements in all sectors across the state in his six years in office as governor.
Bello made the assertion in Lokoja at a ceremony to mark his sixth anniversary in office.
He stated said that Kogi under his leadership had remained top-notch.
Bello noted that since he assumed the position of governor, visible successes had been recorded across all sectors with the security, health, infrastructure sectors topping the list
The governor, who reeled out his achievements, attributed a great part of his successes to the unflinching and overwhelming supports by the residents.
“My dear Kogites, today is the sixth anniversary in office of my New Direction Administration and I am truly proud of how far we have come with you.
“Since my first inauguration as the 4th Executive Governor of Kogi State on Jan. 27, 2016 my team and I have done nothing but labour in your service to fulfill our promises.
“Everything else has been secondary to this primary assignment,” he said.
According to him, the last six years have been satisfying.
“To this extent, I can show by many proofs that I have steered Kogi State towards the goal of accelerated and proportional development in all her constituencies.
“Which I set for us in our New Direction Blueprint shortly after I stepped into Lugard House,” Bello stated.
The governor said that lives and properties were safer in the state than when he first came into the office.
He said that threats from bandits, terrorists, kidnappers had continued to multiply across board except in Kogi, following efforts put by his New Direction Administration to tackling the menace.
The governor noted that at great human and financial cost, his administration had continued to ensure that not an inch of Kogi State is under the control of hostile non-state actors.
Speaking about infrastructure, Bello noted that thousands of kilometres of new roads, hundreds of blocks of classrooms, primary healthcare centres, and several model primary and secondary schools had been constructed across the three Senatorial Districts.
“We have also built a 300-bed reference hospital and half a dozen general hospitals, established the brand new Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTECH), Osara, and, constructed dozens of legacy buildings in all our other tertiary institutions.
“We also achieved the first ever 100% accreditation of courses by national regulators at several of our institutions, including the Prince Abubakar Audu University, Anyigba,” Bello stated.
On welfare, Bello stated it calls for celebration to note that for the first time ever an administration does not owe one month of salaries or pensions midway into a second term.
“The government has continued to pay state workers on or before the end of each month since our staff screening and verification exercise ended about three years ago with a table payment exercise to clear previous arrears
“Some issues with the wage-bill, particularly the inability to accommodate 100% salary payments to local government workers, pose a challenge.
“Currently, this can only be possible with extensive staff retrenchment to remove massive redundancy.
“This is the sad reality imposed on us by a bloated workforce in the face of severely desiccated allocations cum finances,” Bello stated.
Bello, however, assured the workers that his administration was not contemplating any retrenchment exercise at the moment.
Commenting on the forthcoming presidential election, Bello said Nigeria could not afford to get the question of its next President wrong.
Bello stated that failure to elect credible leaders in 2023 might be the end for the country.
“I will, therefore, implore all of us, on behalf of our nation, to be guided by the National Interest in our approach to 2023.
“If you enjoy security, unity, peace and progress, you have a duty not to directly or indirectly work or vote for geography, tribe, religion or class.
“For that will be voting for more of the very things you hate so much right now,” Bello stated.