The chances of Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State clinching the ticket of All Progress Congress may have suffered another major setback as one of the influential traditional rulers in the state says the governor is being misled by wrong people around him.
Oba Abdul Rahman Ado Ibrahim, ohinoyi of Ebiraland, stated this in an interview with Daily Trust.
The traditional ruler also said that the governor was carried away by the power of money which made to behave differently from how he was before becoming governor of the state.
While commenting on the relationship between the people of the state and the governor, Oba Ibrahim said Bello has lost the goodwill of the people, saying it would be difficult to convince them to vote him for a second term in office.
He said: “So there is this issue of the boy not knowing what he should do because he has extremely wrong people around him. Bello is a nice young man and highly intelligent; that is why I recommended him at that time,” Ibrahim said.
“People said I was supporting Bello because he is my cousin. Well, partly, that could be one reason. Two, he had money to do it, and that money is what has misled him so far.
He said Bello allowed money to control him “A good person should always put money aside and put reality in the front. Money should just be a palliative anytime you need it,” he was quoted as saying by Daily Trust.
The traditional ruler lamented that Governor Bello had not for once allowed traditional rulers to advise him on some critical issues “The governor did not allow traditional rulers to advise him. I haven’t sat with him to advise him on issues that are required to stabilise the peace of the people. I think I should advise him on policy issues, but he gave more time to those who idolize him. He is enjoying that.”
Ibrahim who declined to comment on the payment of salaries of workers in the state said “For the assessment, I can’t say much, I can only talk about what people are saying and what I read in the papers,” he said.
“I don’t know how he does it. If people say he didn’t pay salaries, I cannot say why he didn’t do that. As far as I am concerned, he is paying salaries. I cannot comment on whatever they say he is doing.”
The 43-year-old governor was declared the winner of the 2015 Kogi State gubernatorial election after he was chosen on the platform of the All Progressives Congress as the replacement for the late Abubakar Audu who originally won the election but died before the result was declared.
The governor has been close to Aso Rock, but some of his critics say his closeness to Buhari would not secure him the second term ticket.
They are also speculations that he might dump the ruling APC if the party failed to grant him second term ticket.
Share your thoughts with us on the chances of Governor Bello securing a second term ticket of APC.