Mr Kingsley Fanwo, a former Senior Correspondent with Vanguard newspapers is the Director General on Media and Publicity to the Governor of Kogi State. In recent times, Kogi has been the hotbed for intriguing politics and controversies over non-payment of salaries. In this exclusive interview with Vanguard reporters, Fanwo speaks on a range of issues from politics to the economy of the state. Excerpts:

Kingsley Fanwo, Director General on Media and Publicity to the Governor of Kogi State

Kogi State has been in the news for mixed reasons of late. Why do you think Kogi is always a national topic?

We are in the news because we are central to the glory of Nigeria. From being the center of the nation to being the first capital of a united Nigeria; from being the minerals capital of Nigeria to being the Confluence of two of Africa’s most important rivers; Kogi is an interesting twist of history and events. While Lagos and Kano boast of high-heel populations, we boast of our mineral resources and history. We are the Confluence of the nation. Another reason we are in the news of late is the fact that we have a new Governor, the Ambassador of the youth in governance, a courageous reformer who is concerned about getting things right. System above personal sentiments.

But many have criticized the Governor’s style. For instance, he was accused of over-stretching the screening exercise which led to civil servants not getting paid for a long period of time. What is your take on that?

It is quite unfortunate that some people look at things from a biased angle. The civil service was a burrowing hole of endless corruption. We were losing billions of naira to people who were cornering our resources into guilty pockets of greed. We needed to arrest the tides. Many Governors before now had attempted to stop the rot in the past. They saw the waste but they couldn’t confront the hydra-headed monster of ghost workers syndrome. Governor Yahaya Bello confronted it and defeated it. He knows that some innocent souls went through painful experiences in the course of the screening. He has apologized to them. We wouldn’t have been where we are today without the screening exercise. The reform is beyond weeding out ghost workers and ghost pensioners; but to also ensure efficiency in the civil service and make it more productive.

But despite the screening exercise, the Kogi State Government has been accused of not paying its civil servants.

It is not true that we are owing what they are bandying around in the media. We are owing only July salaries which will be paid soon. The facts are there on the website of the State, www.kogistate.gov.ng for all to see. People should get the facts before judging us. Governor Yahaya Bello cannot achieve the noble goals he has set for the greatness of the State without a well motivated civil service to drive the New Direction Agenda of the administration. We are working hard to make the civil service better. The clock-in-clock-out system is being test-run in selected MDAs and we hope to deploy the system as soon as possible. We are also building a digital database for the civil service. A service without data is dead. Our civil servants will remain top of the Governor’s priorities.

Senator Dino Melaye was alleged to have referred to the Governor as a dictator. In your opinion, is the Governor a dictator?

Governor Yahaya Bello was democratically elected to democratically lead a democratically conscious four million Kogites who are enjoying democracy under their Governor. Democracy has no room for totalitarianism. We have the legislature and the judiciary to check the executive. We thank God that all the arms of government are functioning properly in Kogi State. Our Governor is therefore not a dictator but a fine democrat.

But the Governor was alleged to have orchestrated the impeachment of the former Speaker of the House because of his independent mind. What is your take on that?

It is normal in politics for people to speculate. The same set of speculators had insinuated the Governor was also behind the vote of confidence passed on him shortly before his eventual impeachment. The fact remains that the Governor is not a member of the House of Assembly and can therefore not interfere in who leads the House. Those familiar with House politics would appreciate the fact that it is a House where anything is possible. The Governor is not interested in who is Speaker or not. His role is to provide leadership that will promote peace and prosperity. He is playing his role fantastically.

How will you rate the administration of Alh. Yahaya Bello in Kogi State?

People have been telling the Governor how well he has performed while some have seen him as not doing enough. We are taking in both the commendation and criticism. He wants to be remembered as the best Governor in the history of the State and he won’t relent on his efforts until his dreams are realized. The administration of Governor Yahaya Bello has made Lokoja look like a state capital. It is cleaner with better roads and other infrastructures. We now have street lights which have brought the night life back to the first capital of Nigeria. We have road projects at different stages across the state. Many of them will be completed soon. We are building model schools across the state as well as modern state-of-the-art hospitals. Our tertiary institutions are wearing new looks and we have trained thousands of our youths and women to become wealth creators and employers of labour. We have employed thousands of youth in the education, security, agric, Health and environment sectors. Before the advent of the present administration, Kogi was a haven for criminals . Today, the present administration has restored normalcy. The security architecture was revamped, more patrol vehicles and intelligence gathering gadgets were provided and our vigilante service was strengthened. The Governor has won many awards nationally and globally for his approach to tackling security challenges in the state. Nothing could be achieved in an insecure environment. So the Governor got it right. He went all out against criminals. Brought them to justice, stopped them from carrying out their nefarious acts, pulled down beautiful structures erected from the dirty proceeds of crimes and made Kogi a no-go-area for criminals. The administration has also worked hard to reposition the civil service and also put in place pension reforms. The Governor wants our senior citizens to enjoy their retirement. The Confluence Express, our carrier in the transport sector is back on the roads. Agriculture is fast becoming the biggest wealth creator in Kogi State and our male and female football teams are winning national attention as well as other sporting events.

Do you consider the proscription of KSU-ASUU a good move?

The Kogi State University belongs to the people of Kogi State. The dream of the founding fathers was to make it a first class institution for producing top class personnel and professionals that will contribute meaningfully to the progress of the society. The decision of the Governor was in line with the desire of the Kogi people who want their children to complete their courses within stipulated periods. It is normal for employers and employees to have disputes. But the interest of the students should override those of either the employers or the employees. Government shifted ground, paid their salaries and subventions, paid their allowances and set up their Governing Councils. Other institutions went back to classes while the KSU lecturers turned deaf ears to all counsel. The Governor went to the school, sat with them for five hours and made commitments which started manifesting within 48hours. But the lecturers wouldn’t resume. The public moved against them. The future of our students was at stake. And the government was left with the last resort to save the careers of our students. Now, not a few States are looking at the Kogi option in the face of needless strike by labor. The Governor has been vindicated.

The PDP recently took a swipe at the State Government, threatening to take over in 2019. Is the Governor worried by the threat?

We are happy that the PDP is gearing up to play a role of an opposition. But we are concerned about its effectiveness going by the moral baggage around its neck. PDP caused the mess we are cleaning up. Nigerians have not forgotten those goat and yam days. Nigerians have not forgotten how they mismanaged our boom era to put the nation on her knees. Their clueless era will continue to drown their hopes.

Even during the Congress of the party to elect the National Delegates of the party, the Chairman of the party and other leaders stayed off. How has their boycott affected the validity of the Congress?

The Governor is the leader of the party in the state and he attended the stakeholders meeting with other leaders of the party. The Congress was a signature of the beautiful internal democracy in APC. It was a huge success. We have no problem with those who boycotted it. They must have their reasons for doing so. Politics is about the people, it is a contact game.

Hon. Karimi once referred to the Governor as a Pharaoh. He said the Governor was pushing the State toward anarchy. How true are his assertions?

I responded that day by expressing my worries about a federal legislator making such statements on television. We should be worried as a nation because those statements are sweeping and worrisome, coming from someone elected to make laws. We need statements that unite and bond us together as a people. The Governor is open to working with all Kogites of goodwill. He is a dynamic leader who is disposed to good governance but opposed to corruption.

Why would the Governor build on a road as alleged by his opponents?

Governor Yahaya Bello is a law-abiding Nigerian. He wouldn’t build on a road. He is rather trying to provide good road to the people of the state.

An epidemic was widely reported to have led to the death of scores of Kogites in Yagba West. What is government doing to arrest further spread?

The Ministry of Health has been directed by the Governor to address the issue. The Governor is concerned about the issue and has mobilized enough expertise to curb further casualties. He will also visit the affected communities in the next few hours to have first hand information about the epidemic and how to arrest it. He will stand with the people in solidarity and commiserate with families and communities who have lost lives. It is sad. Our hearts go to the affected families. Government will do everything possible to arrest further spread and to also provide medical care to those receiving treatments at government hospitals.