The Kogi State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Usmam Ododo, unveiled a primary school teacher, Salifu Joel, on Sunday as his running mate for the Nov. 11 election.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Salifu Joel is the current chairman of the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) and the treasurer of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Kogi State.
Gov Yahaya Bello, who spoke at the event at the Government House, said that the choice of Joel, a class teacher and unionist, as the deputy governorship candidate of the APC, was borne out of the party’s desire to carry everybody along in its quest for the development of the state.
Gov Bello assured that he would leave no stone unturned to ensure that the APC wins the governorship election in the state.
According to him: “APC will follow and abide by all the existing electoral laws to win the November 11 election, moreso that my administration has performed creditably well in the areas of infrastructure provision, quality education, and healthcare delivery, among others.”
The governor claimed that his administration has shown competence, dedication, and commitment to the Kogi people in terms of performance and therefore is entitled “to also ask for their votes in the next governorship election.”
Bello warned: “In this dispensation, we won’t tolerate any politics of bitterness nor condone any act of political violence because Kogi as a state is bigger than any personal interest.”
The state’s APC chairman, Abdullahi Bello, commended the selection of the running mate for the party’s governorship candidate from a very critical section of society.
The deputy governorship candidate in his response said: “I am short of words for me as a classroom teacher to be nominated as the running mate and deputy governor to the APC guber candidate.”
Speaking further, Joel, who said he heartily accepted the position, assured that he will “do all I can to ensure that our party becomes victorious in the forthcoming governorship election.”
In their goodwill messages, the National President of TUC, Audu Anaba, Gabriel Amari, and Edoka Onu, respectively present and past NLC chairmen, commended the emergence of a member of labour unions as Ododo’s running mate.
They assured the governor of their total support and promised to mobilise votes for the Ododo/Joel ticket to ensure that the duo emerge as the next governor and deputy governor of Kogi State.
