When a lawmaker is returned to the legislature by his people, that constituency enjoys a harvest of advantages that a first-timer can hardly offer. It is an investment in experience and continuity.
The legislature runs on ranking. A returning lawmaker moves up in seniority, earns principal offices, chairmanship of grade A committees, and a place in leadership. He who chairs a committee determines what comes to his constituency. He already knows the rules, the procedures and the lobby. He does not spend two years learning. From day one, he can sponsor bills, move motions that become law, and negotiate constituency projects into the budget because he has built relationships across party lines, with MDAs and the Executive. In short, to return a performing lawmaker is to return influence and development. To replace him with a novice is to send your constituency back to nursery while others are in final year.
That is why Lokoja I must stand with its own.
In legislative representation, perfection is an illusion. What matters is presence, effort, and measurable progress within constitutional limits. Before politics, Hon. Bin-Ebaiya Shehu Tijjani, popularly known as Team-Best, was already a familiar name in Lokoja. From Lagos where he built his business, he paid school fees, settled hospital bills and intervened in water challenges. That goodwill made his 2023 election a referendum on trust.
A lawmaker is not an executive chairman or contractor. His mandate is three-fold: lawmaking, representation and oversight. Judged strictly by those yardsticks, Ebaiya has shown up. He has over 15 motions to his name, one of the highest in the 8th Assembly, and a verifiable legislative footprint: contributions to the Kogi State Anti-Corruption Agency Bill, push for the Kogi State Free Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare Services Bill 2025, and support for the College of Agriculture Ochaja-Egume Bill 2026. His motions speak directly to Lokoja’s urban realities: expansion of the Lokoja Urban Mass Transit System to check arbitrary charges by tricycles and motorcycles, provision of safe and potable water as Chairman House Committee on Water Resources, youth unemployment, and a comprehensive Social Protection Policy for the aged, persons with disabilities, women and children.
Outside the chamber, he has chosen quiet lobbying over noisy grandstanding, working in synergy with his colleague and Speaker Rt. Hon. Aliyu Umar Yusuf of Lokoja II to attract state interventions for the metropolis. As a private citizen and later as Senior Special Adviser on Water Resources, he undertook reticulation and repair of moribund pipes from Karaworo to Up-Garage and Felele, an effort commended by the Hakimi of Ward C. As lawmaker, he sustained it with boreholes and facilitation of water projects. In education, he provided 500 free JAMB forms, free computer-based preparatory classes for JAMB, WAEC, NECO and NABTEB candidates, and a reward scheme for top-performing students. Only recently, he sponsored a free medical outreach that attended to over 1,500 constituents with consultation, drugs and referrals.
Let Us Put Differences Behind Us
Lokoja I, being the state capital, is a metropolis of endless needs. Needs are infinite, resources are finite. Private philanthropy allows choice; public office puts everyone on the same queue. Managing that pressure with humility is part of representation, and Ebaiya has done so with uncommon accessibility.
This is therefore a firm appeal to conscience: let us remember we are brothers before politics. Let us put collective interest over personal grievance. No community develops in division. To err is human, to forgive is divine. Let us judge by what is visible, not by gossip and social media propaganda.
Other constituencies that kept their lawmakers became strong. Those that change lawmakers every term remain backward. If we lose a ranking member, we lose chairmanship, we lose voice in the budget, we lose our place in leadership. Your return ticket is your own development ticket.
The recent criticisms from a few quarters, largely driven by post-primary grievances after an open stakeholder ballot where all aspirants agreed to the process, should not blind the larger constituency to the bigger picture. Dissent is legitimate, but sustained pull-him-down after a credible process serves no one.
Every first term is for learning the ropes, the second term is for consolidation. Hon. Ebaiya is a work in progress, but a work with visible foundation, proven loyalty to APC, and a record that outweighs the noise. If he has not reached you, give him another chance. The second term is when lawmakers give their best.
My brothers and sisters, I beg you in the name of our land, let us forgive, forget and move forward together. When we are divided, we are weak before opponents. When we are united, no one can defeat us.
For a man who showed up when he held no office, and has continued to show up with the little available in office, standing by him now is both logical and fair. Let us return Hon. Bin-Ebaiya Shehu Tijjani. Available evidence point to his winning the forthcoming election. The question will be, what role did you play. Be mindful of roles that will hunt you politically in the future. The time for rethink is now. Team Best, is a sure bet, will deliver the desired gains for Lokoja 1.
Abu Micheal, Journalists, Author, President Southerners Resident in Lokoja, is Special Adviser, South South Mobilization.
