Governor Yahaya Bello’s Uncommon Achievement In The Security Of Lives and Property In Kogi State
By Udebu Felix
It’s no longer news that the administration of Governor Yahaya Bello had recorded milestone achievement in terms of security of lives and properties in kogi State, rather the greater hight of his government outstanding credentials and performance in this sector has been a reference point and source of pride for the government, citizens and friends alike among the committee of states across the federation.
Kogi State within the record time of Governor Bello’s administration can boldly boost of adequate and enviable security architecture which is second to known far above the rest States in Nigeria.
Right from his earlier days in office the governor has left no one in doubt of his resolved and capacity to make Kogi State unhabitable for criminals and miscreant by taking decisive strike to prevent and dismantled all the hideouts of criminals that abound within the state prior to his arrival on the stage of Kogi State Governance.
Before Governor Yahaya Bello assume office, there were a lot of insecurities including kidnappings, banditry, terrorism and robbery bedeviling Kogi State. But he came along way in changing these narratives as of today.
Upon assumption to Office, Bello met daunting statistics of an average of 25 kidnap cases per month.
As of today, it has dropped to an average of 2 due to the provision of over 200 utility vehicles for patrol. Additionally, he procured sophisticated gadgets for the Operation Total Freedom established by the present administration to stamp out criminality in the State.
The result yielded greatly as Kidnapping and armed robbery has dropped by over 92 per cent!
Sequel to that, Yahaya was honorably awarded by the Inspector General of Police for his bravity as kidnappings and robberies have dropped drastically due to the determination and commitment of the Governor in ensuring the safety of Kogi State.
In order to achieve his plan, Bello declared full-fledged war on armed robbers and criminals operating in the State by using security apparatus to pursue kidnap kingpins in the State who were earlier seen as untouchable.
Eventually, their residential buildings and hideouts where the nefarious activities are schemed and executed were equally demolished.
He also constructed the Army Forward Operation bases at different places across the State to enhance the security of lives and properties of the people.
However, it is pertinent to note that, the aforementioned are just little of his achievements in the aspect of Security, as they say, security is key to development.
The Governor has over the years being directly involved in the fight against, hoodlums, kidnappers and terrorist who had tried to raise their hugely heads within the state.
He was personally involved in some of the major operations to pull down structures suspected to be the hideouts of criminals
Apart from motivation for security agencies in the frontline, with logistic and other supports, the Kogi Government in partnership with the Nigeria Police Force also established two Mobile Police Squadron Bases along Obajana-Kabba road and in Okene. He also facilitated the location of a Naval Base in Lokoja, established to ensure adequate security of the waterways in the confluence state.
He personally commissioned the Nigeria Navy Ship Lugard and Navy Barracks.
In recognition of Governor Bello’s astounding performance in the security sector, he has been honoured with several prestigious awards from around Nigeria and beyond, amongst which is: President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday, 21 October, 2022, at the presidential villa, Abuja, honoured him with a distinguished Nigeria Excellence Award in Public Service.
One of Nigeria’s leading newspapers, Blueprint, honoured Bello at it’s 2021 Annual Public Lectures and Impact Series/Awards, the award was in recognition of his “outstanding leadership qualities and decisive handling of the security situation in the state.”
Also, the Nigerian Police honoured Bello for his unparalleled achievements in securing Kogi, the only State in Nigeria, that borders about 10 States.
He also won the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) ‘Torch bearer of Security’ award.
Similarly, the Association of Nigerians in Diaspora, bestowed its “Icon on Security” award on Governor Yahaya Bello in 2021.
Though the achievement of Governor Yahaya Bello administration in the area of security are not limited to the above highlighted decimal point but the effects in these regards has marked a great turnaround in the state security atmosphere
Little Wonder how a lot of business and investors are trooping into the state to do business because they have found Kogi to be a peaceful and conducive environment for their business transactions owing to the laudable efforts of the State Government on security of lives and properties.