Hon. Cosmas Ilemona Atabor is a man specially made by God and presented to mankind; mostly to the good people of Igalamela/Odolu Local Government Area of Kogi State, to help them to progress and develop in all ramifications. Right from when he was a teen, Cosmas had shown several leadership traits that today is distinguishing him in all spheres of human life. He is a political reformer; a certified legal practitioner; a philanthropist and a friend to the poor.
I met and have known Hon. Atabor before I started following his political activities over the years and he is a political savvy Nigerian who is always passionate about addressing the plight of his people.
THE BIO-SKETCH OF HON. COSMAS ATABOR.
For the purpose of introduction or should I say re-introduction, Hon. Atabor is the current Caretaker/Transition Chairman of Igalamela/Odolu Local Government Area of Kogi State. He is the immediate past member of the Kogi State House of Assembly and a trained Nigerian lawyer. Cosmas was born on the 13th day of June, 1976. He hails from Igalamela/Odolu LGA. He spent part of the early years of his life in Makurdi (Benue State) and Lokoja in Kogi State. At various times too as a young boy, he had the privilege to live among his people in Kogi East. This experiences have facilitated his appreciation of the peculiar challenges confronting his people, their dreams and aspirations for an improved future.
Young Cosmas attended Our lady of Perpetual Help Primary School in Makurdi and graduated in 1986. He was the Head Perfect of the school. He also attended Bishop Delisle College Lokoja, for his secondary school education from where he graduated in 1993 also as the Head Perfect. He later proceeded to the prestigious Benue State University, Makurdi, where he studied Law and graduated with a Bachelor of Law degree in 1999. He divinely formed the National Association of Kogi Students (NAKOSS) in a lecture room sometime in 1996.
He was called to the Nigerian Bar in 2002 upon his graduation from the Nigeria Law School Kano.
At the beginning of his career as a young lawyer, he worked with the Law Firm of Barr. S.I. Ameh (SAN) Jubilee Chambers between 2003 and 2005, where he provided legal representation in courts for litigation cases, drafted legal letters, pleadings and conveyancy agreements. In 2005, he set-up his own Law firm called Atabor Cosmas & Associates. Thereafter, he worked as the head of the legal unit in Search Co. Nigeria Limited from 2007 where he facilitated business partnerships between the diverse companies to meet requirements for operating in Nigeria and also served as Company Secretary. In 2014, he became the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Stephlex Nigeria Limited.
ATABOR’S POLITICAL SOJOURN.
On the political front, Hon. Atabor joined politics in order to use it as a platform to reach out to a greater percentage of Kogites as a means of empowering them and bringing development to them. In 2005, he was an aspirant for the Kogi State House of Assembly under the People’s Democratic Party. In 2015, he became a candidate for the same position but failed to win but in 2019, he won the election under the platform of the All Progressives Congress with a wide margin, he scored 14,819 votes to defeat his closest rival who polled 3,318 votes. While in the House of Assembly, he served as the Chairman, House Standing Committee on Judiciary, Justice, Ethics and Protocol from 2019 to 2023. In 2017, the national body of the All Progressives Congress (APC) appointed Hon. Atabor as a member of the Abia State APC Ward and Local Government Congress Committee. Currently, Hon. Atabor is the Caretaker Chairman of his local government area–Igalamela/Odolu courtesy of Bello & Ododo’s leadership in the State. Cosmas is happily married.
The success story of Hon.Cosmas Henry Atabor did not start today as he had been around for some time to contribute to the well-being of the needy both in his community, Kogi and Nigeria. He grew up in a family setting where love, compassion, hard work, commitment and dedication were highly upheld. He is a true Pan-Igala personality, always determined to work for the general interest of all.
ATABOR’S GOALS FOR HIS PEOPLE.
Hon. Atabor has always desired a better life for his people and the society in general. He has demonstrated this in the lifes of the indigent youths, artisans, widows and in communities over the years. It has always been with a profound sense of humility or desire, a flaming passion and a burning zeal for Barr. Cosmas Atabor, to make a glaring difference in governance anytime he is called upon to lead/serve.
His vision is to make Igalamela/Odolu LGA a reference point to others and to make life better for the people and create infrastructure for the future of his area anchored on fairness and justice. His mission is to instill confidence in everyone in his local government area and to persuade the people to believe in themselves that they can achieve greatness, growth, reduce poverty, create jobs, and promote investment in agriculture.
He always intends to leverage on his God-given capability historically hallmarked by his compromising pursuit of hard work, excellence, consideration for others and his round-the-clock accessibility, to make a huge difference.
Reading between his lips as the Caretaker Chairman of his local government area, Hon. Atabor has promised to further promote unity in the area, Kogi State and Nigeria at large. He has also rightly said that he would use his tenure in office to empower the orphans, widows, artisans and the youths.
Presently, he is calling on the good people of the area of all shades of opinions and political lineages to join him in working towards a robust political consolidation that would serve as a fountain for revitalization and re-awakening of Igalamela/Odolu Local Government Area. political uplift and well-being of the people that matter most to him.
SOME UNIQUE ATTRIBUTES OF HON. ATABOR.
There are many things you cannot take away from Hon. Atabor. He is a man full of positive ideas, vision and virtues. He is a refined gentleman, who is always working hard to be the best in whatever role given to him to play. His superlative attributes have endeared him to the youths and women.
Barr. Atabor is highly skilled, dedicated and an adaptable professional with a proven track record of excelling in any environment he may find himself, and always poised to make meaningful contributions to any organization he may find himself.
He is by nature a very good listener, a dogged fighter for the individual and collective interests of his people; a passionate humanist, and an unassuming performer and a lover of community and communality.
He enjoys creating wealth as an entrepreneur and always encourages others to get themselves devoted to whatever profession they find themselves. He is truly fired up by the possibility as well as the enterprise nature of his people.
He relates to people as if he had known them all their lives. He is an eloquent, brilliant, social, courageous, humane and multi-talented Nigerian. Cosmas is someone who loves to inspire others to achieve greatness in life.
Whatever anyone may feel towards Hon. Cosmas Atabor, no one is likely to accuse him of a lack of competence towards the task of developing his area. If anything, his critics are more likely to charge him for being too workaholic and committed to national reconstruction through good governance.
Wherever the name Cosmas Henry Ilemona Atabor is mentioned, the reality that comes to mind are the unparalleled greatness, commitment, success, sheer determination, focus, dedication and hard work.
Great minds achieve great feats and only mediocre minds hide under excuses for their non-performance when entrusted with public trust. Hon. Atabor has done a lot to improve on the development of Kogi State.
Hon. Atabor is a rare gift to the polity, an intelligent politician, strategist, crowd puller, a trader in ideas and reality. His strength lies in his power of ideas and commitment to the lofty goals of life. He has borne out the truth in the aphorism that a golden fish has no hiding place. His name stands for so many things – administrator, policy analyst, a great mind with an incredible blend of depth and width.
The personality of this rare gem is winged on the parameters of adorable humility and remarkable generosity. An observer once rated Cosmas’s uncommon yet magnanimous lifestyle in a statement:- “Cosmas is a dangerous giver”.
These, and his training in law and humanities plus his multifaceted experiences in Nigeria’s public service have imbued him with the appropriate broadness of mind and perspicacity to stand-up for his people.
Written by: Felix Udebu JP
Publisher TheReflection newspaper
Lokoja, Kogi State