Tension is brewing in Kogi West Senatorial District over alleged threats by the Chairman of Yagba West Local Government Council, Hon. Tosin Olokun, to make it difficult for Senator Sunday Karimi to campaign across the seven local government areas of the district.
The development is linked to recent comments by the Senator on monthly allocations to local councils in the state.
Senator Karimi had spoken during a town hall meeting in Dekina/Bassa Federal Constituency held at Anyigba, where stakeholders under the aegis of Win With Tinubu/Shettima (WWTS) project mobilized support for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
While acknowledging the economic difficulties confronting Nigerians, the lawmaker argued that the savings from the removal of fuel subsidy should translate to improved living conditions for citizens, if properly utilized.
Defending President Tinubu’s reforms, particularly the strengthening of governance at the third tier, Karimi said the policy had significantly increased monthly statutory allocations to states and local governments, noting that an average local government in Kogi now receives about N500 million monthly.
“We shouldn’t be blaming everything on the Federal Government. A lot of savings have been made from fuel subsidy removal. We need to follow the utilisation. If those savings are transformed into better living conditions for our people, that would be okay,” he said.
Days after the remarks, Hon. Olokun, who also serves as Chairman of the Kogi State chapter of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), was said to have addressed APC supporters at his residence in Egbe, which is also Senator Karimi’s hometown.
At the meeting, he was alleged to have declared “total war” against the Senator and vowed to frustrate his re-election bid.
According to sources present at the meeting, Olokun allegedly said he had compiled a list of political appointees perceived to be sympathetic to Senator Karimi for removal from office, while also echoing a position attributed to Governor Usman Ododo that the Senator must not be allowed to win any local government in the district for questioning the use of council funds.
He was further quoted as threatening to order the arrest of supporters of the Senator who circulate what he termed unverified information on local government allocations.
A highly placed member of the APC executive in the local government, who attended the meeting held shortly after the council election that returned Olokun for a second term and spoke on condition of anonymity, faulted the threats.
According to him, Senator Karimi’s defence of the President’s subsidy removal policy and his call for accountability in the use of increased allocations should be commended rather than resented.
“If the State Government is not touching local government money, as the ALGON Chairman claims, then he owes the people a clear explanation of how the monthly allocations to the councils are being utilized,” the party chieftain said.
The alleged outburst has heightened political tension in Yagba West. On Saturday evening, youths took to the streets of Egbe chanting pro-Karimi slogans and vowing to resist any form of intimidation as activities ahead of the 2027 general elections gather momentum.
“Democracy is about accountability to the people. Questions on how public funds are used are not an attack on any office, and the people of Kogi West deserve clear answers,” Mrs Janet Igunnu, a resident and businesswoman in the area, said.
