Politics in Kogi East has degenerated into a sad and crippling adventure—stripped of transparency, vision, and genuine democratic practices. What should be a platform for service has turned into a revolving door of recycled mediocrity. Elections are no longer sacred reflections of the people’s will but orchestrated dramas where power is traded, not earned. This decline has alienated the youth, silenced reformers, and turned governance into a tool of control rather than transformation.

Yet, the region is not without hope. Kogi East possesses a deep well of intellectual and professional capital—experts in technology, hospitality, engineering, academia, and finance scattered across Nigeria and the diaspora. But sadly, many of these minds have turned their backs on home, believing the system too polluted to fix. As Kenyan scholar PLO Lumumba rightly observed, “Africa is not poor. It is poorly governed.” The same holds true here: the tragedy is not the absence of talent but the absence of intelligent leadership willing to rise.

If we must recover the profitable dividends of democratic development, we must shun fear, escapism, and apathy, and reclaim power back to the land. For too long, fear of failure, the escapism of comfort zones, and political apathy have paralyzed our brightest minds. But democracy yields fruits only when citizens cultivate it with courage. Until we confront the status quo with strategic boldness, Kogi East will remain politically famished despite its abundant human resources. Our silence has helped entrench those unfit to govern. It is time for our brightest to stop running, and start returning.

The time has come for the best of Igala—those who build tech platforms, manage hotels, teach in global classrooms, and lead startups—to stop spectating. As Joseph Nye said, “Leadership is about mobilizing others to struggle for shared aspirations.” The diaspora and local innovators must move from commentary to constructive participation. Influence does not begin at the ballot box; it begins in ideas, in planning boards, think tanks, and strategic policy work.

Where are the disciplined, strategic pioneers who built empires in hospitality and fintech? Where are the teachers, coders, project managers, and researchers who shape the world but remain invisible in Igala politics? Their silence is costly. Democracy must be reclaimed—not by noise but by brains. We need commissioners who understand data, advisers who manage people, and leaders who see politics as public trust, not a personal trophy. As Prof. Claude Ake once warned, “Politics in Africa is war by other means because it is not about service but survival.” We must reverse this.

2027 is fast approaching. If we fail to plant our best minds in the places that matter—policy, education, innovation, and community reform—we will lose not just elections, but the future. The true profit of politics is not found in contracts or motorcades, but in building communities that thrive. Let Kogi East rise—not in volume, but in value. The pot that boils the people’s mandate must now warm their homes, not burn their hopes.

 writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
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