A civil society group, the Movement for the Emancipation of Kogi State (MEKSTA), has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to refrain from interfering in the ongoing criminal prosecution of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello. In a strongly worded statement, the group praised the Nigerian judiciary for its “forthrightness and fearlessness” in handling the high-profile N110 billion fraud case, and urged the President to allow the legal process to proceed without political influence.
The appeal comes amid growing media narratives suggesting that Bello could play a key role in President Tinubu’s reelection campaign in 2027. MEKSTA alleged that a concerted effort is underway to pressure the Presidency into halting or indefinitely stalling Bello’s prosecution as a political trade-off.
“We note that between the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja and the Court of Appeal in Lagos, everything lawful and just is being done to ensure justice for the good people of Kogi State,” the group said. “The judiciary has proven itself capable of being dispassionate and objective.”
Citing the recent ruling by the Court of Appeal in Lagos upholding the seizure of assets worth N80 billion allegedly acquired by Bello with public funds, MEKSTA lauded the decision as a step toward accountability. The group also referenced upcoming hearings scheduled for October and November 2025 in connection with the fraud case.
In a pointed critique of alleged behind-the-scenes political maneuvering, MEKSTA accused Bello of attempting to leverage his influence within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to escape justice. The group claimed that Bello is portrayed in some quarters as a political “fixer” essential to President Tinubu’s electoral fortunes in Kogi, with ongoing efforts to frame his prosecution as politically motivated.
“While recognising that President Tinubu is a man of strong convictions, we candidly admonish him to allow the law to take its unimpeded course,” MEKSTA said. “Justice, fairness, and the integrity of the presidential system demand nothing less.”
The group also painted a grim picture of governance under Bello’s tenure, comparing the suffering of Kogi residents to that of “the Biblical children of Israel in the hands of the Pharaohs.” It accused Bello and his successor, Governor Ahmed Ododo, of controlling local government finances while neglecting essential public services. According to MEKSTA, judges and senior civil servants in Kogi are forced to commute in tricycles due to the lack of official vehicles, while Bello allegedly receives monthly subventions and flaunts luxury SUVs.
“In 26 years of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, no governor has been arraigned for defrauding a state of amounts close to what Yahaya Bello is accused of,” MEKSTA said, arguing that previous corruption cases involving former governors pale in comparison.
The statement concluded with a regional appeal, acknowledging the Tinubu administration’s efforts across the three senatorial districts of Kogi State, including appointments and infrastructure projects. However, the group maintained that the President’s legacy in the state would be better secured through impartial governance rather than alignment with “brutes who kill, maim, and destroy.”
The joint statement was signed by nine representatives from the state’s nine federal constituencies, including Hon. Obafemi Medaiyese (Yagba), Comrade Joseph Mebatonije (Kabba-Bunu/Ijumu), and Bishop Husseini Saidu (Ankpa/Omala/Olamaboro), among others.
They urged President Tinubu to “maintain neutrality” and ensure that the trial of Yahaya Bello remains free from political interference.
The full statement reads:
A PLEA TO PRESIDENT TINUBU:
ALLOW JUDICIARY FREE HAND IN YAHAYA BELLO TRIAL
We of the *Movement for the Emancipation of Kogi State, (MEKSTA),* extol the Judiciary of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for its forthrightness, fearlessness and good conscience in the criminal proceedings relating to Mr Yahaya Bello, the immediate past Governor of Kogi State. We note that between the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Maitama, Abuja, and the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, everything lawful and just is being done to ensure justice for the good people of Kogi State in the N110 Billion fraud case against Bello. We take special note of the concurrence yesterday, of the Appeal Court in Lagos, with the seizure of properties valued at N80 Billion, procured with the commonwealth of the hapless people of Kogi State, as ordered by the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, in February 2023. This is just as the Federal High Court in Abuja, has scheduled further hearing in the N110 Billion heist, until October and November 2025, respectively. As against spirited efforts to tar-brush the nation’s judiciary, we actually do have in place a justice system capable of being dispassionate and objective.
Paranoid that the trials could ultimately culminate in the justiceable conviction of Yahaya Bello, a fervent media campaign is being prosecuted to thwart the ongoing processes. The campaign is calculated to underscore the indispensability of Yahaya Bello, in the reelection of President Bola Tinubu, come 2027. Bello is being portrayed as the “Mr Fix It” of Kogi politics who holds the key to the success of the President in the 2027 poll. The intention is to instigate presidential interference in Bello’s multi-legged trials, for payback in 2027. There have also been reports and insinuations, that Bello is working with contacts close to the President to prevail on him for the termination and indefinite adjournment of the relevant cases, for political expediency.
While recognising that President Tinubu is a man of strong convictions, we hasten to candidly admonish him, to allow the law to take its unimpeded course. This is in the aggregate interest of fairness to the people of Kogi State, justice and the integrity of the presidential system of government. *In the 26 year trajectory of the Fourth Republic, no Governor has been arraigned for defrauding the state of sums of money anywhere close to Bello. The offences for which former Governors Diepreye Alamieyeseigha; James Ibori, Joshua Dariye, Jolly Nyame, of Bayelsa, Delta, Plateau and Taraba states, who were prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned, pale into insignificance pitched against Bello’s N110 Billion haul.
To refresh Mr President’s mind, *MEKSTA* recalls that the depth of pauperisation inflicted on Kogi State during Yahaya Bello’s eight-year overlordship, is only comparable to the experience of the Biblical children of Israel in the hands of the Pharaohs of Egypt. Bello and his handpicked successor, Ahmed Ododo, preside over local government funds in the state, without a care about the well-being of people at the third tier of government. There are reports that Bello has been on a monthly subvention of N2Billion from the Ododo system, which is being negotiated for upward review. The N1.2 Billion state-of-the-art SUV recently procured by Bello and flaunted in the face of the powerless people of Kogi State, is one of the proceeds of this continuous incestuous relationship.
Mr President, *MEKSTA* notes with grievous pain that Kogi State has suffered tremendously under the vice grip of Yahaya Bello and his vile and vicious structure who rule the streets without a whimper. With the hindsight of the respect for the generality of your constituents as Governor of Lagos State, and your respect for the public service, you will be downcast to imagine the humiliating conditions of Kogi State in its totality. Facilities as basic as official vehicles are denied Permanent Secretaries at the apex of the civil service, same way Judges and Magistrates hitchhike in public transportation including tricycles. This is the template of holistic dehumanisation operationalised by the Yahaya Bello DNA. The State House of Assembly has neither articulated nor passed any bills of its own, except Executive Bills handed down from Government House. This is the Kogi State situation in summary.
Under your watch, Mr President, *MEKSTA* desires that Kogi State be free from the stranglehold of Yahaya Bello’s notorious rule-of-the-gun *tata tatata* politics, effectively emplaced in 2019, to cower and disenfranchise the people. Kogi State must move forward after *34 years* of moving “one step forward, two steps backward,” accentuated under Yahaya Bello’s overlordship. Mr President, the people of Kogi State will vote for you on account of your visible endeavours in the state, not because of brutes who kill, maim and destroy. The people of Kogi East are thankful that you looked in the direction of the family of the father of modern day Kogi politics, the late Prince Abubakar Audu, to appoint his son, Shuaibu Abubakar-Audu, as Minister of Steel. The people of Kogi Central appreciate the fact that you are not giving up on the Ajaokuta Steel Project, even as you have resolved that it must work and reinvent the economy of Kogi State and Nigeria in your time. The people of Kogi West appreciate the efforts of your administration in changing the decrepit narrative of road infrastructure.
*MEKSTA* desires that Mr President maintains his neutrality in the Yahaya Bello trial and allows the law to take its due course. We congratulate you on your good works and assure you your success is better assured without the stained and blemished hands of Yahaya Bello.
Signed:
1. Hon Obafemi Medaiyese (Yagba Federal Constituency constituency)
2. Comrade Joseph Mebatonije (Kabba-Bunu/Ijumu Federal Constituency)
3. Alhaji Yusuf Kpareke (Lokoja/Kotonkarfe Federal Constituency)
4. Mallam Jimoh Ozovehe (Adavi/Okehi Federal Constituency)
5. Dr Nurudeen Adaviriku (Okene/Ogori-Magongo)
6. Alhaji Isiaka Momoh (Ajaokuta Federal Constituency)
7. Chief Ojonimi Adegbe (Idah/Igalamela/Ofu Federal Constituency)
8. Pastor Mark Onucheyo (Dekina/Bassa Federal Constituency)
9. Bishop Husseini Saidu (Ankpa/Omala/Olamaboro Federal Constituency)
