Fear Gripped Gov Bello As Buhari Set To Meet Achuba

Kogiflame.com

There were strong indications that President Muhammadu Buhari will soon meet Deputy Governor of Kogi State, Elder Simon Achuba for a consultation meeting at the State House, Abuja. 

It was gathered that the invitation from the President was not unconnected with the crisis lingering between Governor Bello and the deputy governor whose office and status the governor has continued to despise.

The meeting between Deputy Governor Achuba and President Buhari was said to have generated monumental fear in Governor Bello that the deputy governor might expose the perceived corruption and other issue of mis-governance in the Government House, including the non-payment of salaries.

The Kogi StateDeputy Governor, Simon Achuba, has overtime raised alarm over threat to his life, alleging that they want to kill him in the state.

This was, however, after his aides were said to be partly withdrawn by Governor Bello. The deputy governor had to recruit his own personal aides to provide him protection and secure his family.

More so, Deputy Governor Achuba cried out over the stoppage of his salary by Governor Bello. He alerted stakeholders in the state and beyond that he has not been paid salaries and imprest for two years.

The deputy governor had, thereafter, issued the Kogi State government an ultimatum to pay his two years salary arrears, threatening legal action against the governor.

Sources disclosed further that the president is troubled by the lingering crisis between governor Bello and Deputy Governor Achuba, including the non-payment of workers’ salaries in Kogi State despite the various financial allocations and other interventionist disbursement to the state.

Since the meeting between President Buhari and Deputy Governor Achuba at the State House, Abuja, Governor Bello was said to be catching cold; even though he is yet to resolve that crisis with Achuba, he has been wary of what will be the next action of the deputy governor.

A presidency source told National Daily that since President Buhari’s consultation meeting with Deputy Governor Achuba, Governor Bello has been finding it difficult to have access to the President.

This was said to be the reason the Kogi State governor resorted to deploy traditional rulers in the state, including other prominent stakeholders, to approach and appease President Buhari for support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship ticket for second tenure.

Meanwhile, the governor appears to have grip of the State APC, but he has 20 governorship aspirants to contend with in the APC primary election which the National Working Committee (NWC) approved indirect primary election as requested by Governor Bello.