Kogi Assembly Speaker restates commitment to pro-people legislation »

Lauds former Governor Bello for commitment to State dev’t

The Speaker of Kogi State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Aliyu Umar Yusuf has restated the commitment of the current legislature in the state to pro-people legislation.

He stated this on Wednesday when he led other members of the Assembly on a New Year visit to the immediate past Governor of the State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello at his official residence in Okene.

The Speaker noted this in a Press statement signed and made available to journalists by his Chief Press Secretary, Yabagi Mohammed.

According to the statement, the speaker thanked the former Governor for his sacrifices for the good of the State, adding that his stewardship has given Governor Ahmed Ododo an important blueprint that is translating into development in all sectors of the state.

The Speaker, who mentioned the recent travails of the former Governor in the hands of security agencies as a divine test that Alhaji Yahaya Bello has passed with flying colours, stressed that the current Assembly has not wavered in its commitment to working in unity with the executive in the interest the state’s development.

He said the sacrifices of the former Governor have not gone unnoticed, even by his harshest critics, and urged him not to be dampened, as evidenced in the mammoth crowd that recently ushered him into the State for the New Year Celebration.

Rt Hon Umar particularly mentioned the brave decision of the ex-governor to carry out civil service reforms, which has brought sanity into Kogi’s payment systems, and said that alone was worthy of commendation from all and sundry.

The Speaker used the opportunity to thank the former Governor over the crop of individuals currently serving in the Assembly for the 25 state constituencies, stressing that they have all been round pegs in the right holes.

Responding, former Governor Bello expressed gratitude to the Speaker and members of the Assembly for their unity and their collaborative efforts with the government of Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo.

He particularly thanked the Speaker for his maturity and show of loyalty to the APC in Kogi State, stressing that the state’s development trajectory can only succeed if all stakeholders work collectively.

The ex-governor enjoined them to buy into the policies and programmes of the federal government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, saying that it was only through that that they could take the State to its desired height.