A socio-political critic, Abiodun Mayomi Anjorin, has accused Hon. Leke Abejide, the member representing Yagba Federal Constituency, of reneging on his previous advocacy for power rotation and justice in the state.
In a widely circulated commentary, Anjorin referenced statements made by Abejide and published in a national daily on September 13, 2023, ahead of the November 2023 gubernatorial election, in which the lawmaker had passionately canvassed for the Kogi West Senatorial District to produce the next governor of the state.
Quoting the lawmaker, Anjorin recalled that Abejide had declared: “We are not slaves, neither are we inferior to others in the state. We, in the West, have been supportive of other senatorial districts to be governors of the state. Now is our time.”
The lawmaker was also reported to have emphasised that: “The November governorship election is not about political parties alone, but the people. They gave us a state university and expect us to abandon our right to be governor of the state. Why would anyone think giving Okun people a university will make us chicken out of the governorship race?”
In his appeal for equity, Abejide was said to have added: “For justice, both Kogi East and Kogi Central should, as a way of reciprocating our patience and kind gestures, give Kogi West maximum support this time to lead the state. Kogi East has led for 19 years, and Kogi Central is rounding off eight years. It is natural to allow Kogi West, which has had zero years, to have a bite this time.”
Anjorin, however, accused the lawmaker of betraying the very ideals he championed less than two years ago.
“The same man who went round the state campaigning for equity and fairness is now contradicting himself in his core constituency,” Anjorin stated. “He cried that we are not slaves, and rightly so, but he is now behaving like the same slave masters he once condemned.”
Continuing, the commentator remarked: “My take is simple. Elder is not different from those he called ‘slave masters’.”
The sociopolitical commentator’s criticism comes amid mounting debates over Abejide’s reported bid for a third term in the House of Representatives, despite his past rhetoric against political domination and power hoarding. At the time of filing this report, the lawmaker could not be reached.
