By Mardiyyah Abubakar
Political and community leaders in Kogi East have praised President Bola Tinubu and Kogi State Governor Usman Ododo for delivering major infrastructure projects across the district. They also pledged support for both leaders in the 2027 elections.
The commendation came on Tuesday as the Renewed Hope Ambassadors and the Presidential Communications Team inspected federal and state government legacy projects across Kogi State.
During a visit to a 12-kilometre internal road and a 24-kilometre dual drainage network in Ankpa Local Government Area, Council Chairman Ademu Yahaya described the project as the biggest government intervention in the area’s history.
“Ankpa has existed since the Benue-Plateau and old Kwara State eras, but this is the most impactful project any administration has delivered here,” he said.
Yahaya thanked Governor Ododo and President Tinubu, saying residents would show their appreciation during future elections.
Kogi State Commissioner for Environment and Ecological Management, Engr. Joseph Oluwasegun, said the erosion control project forms part of the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL), a World Bank-supported programme.
He explained that the project combines land reclamation, slope stabilisation and drainage channel construction to tackle erosion, recover degraded land and expand farmland for improved food production.
Oluwasegun credited Governor Ododo for consistently providing the counterpart funding required to unlock World Bank support.
“The World Bank only releases its funds after the state provides counterpart funding. Governor Ododo has consistently met that obligation,” he said.
He added that the programme has also improved livelihoods by disbursing more than $2 million in micro-loans to cooperative societies and rural farmers.
According to him, the intervention fulfils one of Governor Ododo’s campaign promises to Kogi East, with similar projects underway in other parts of the state.
Olubojo Community Secretary, Yahaya Samuel, said the project ended years of hardship caused by severe erosion and poor roads. He thanked the state government and pledged support for President Tinubu and other APC candidates in the 2027 elections.
The inspection team also visited Prince Abubakar Audu University (PAAU), Anyigba, where it assessed a new College of Health Sciences building funded under TETFund’s 2024 intervention programme and a new Senate Building executed through the agency’s High Impact Intervention.
The College of Health Sciences project is valued at ₦643 million, while the Senate Building costs ₦3.1 billion.
The delegation later inspected the ongoing 60-kilometre Iyale–Ogane–Enugu rural road in Semia Local Government Area.
Commissioner for Agriculture Timothy Ojoma said the road project will improve access to farming communities, boost agricultural production and strengthen commercial activities across the state.
