On 27 August 2026, Kogi State marked 35 years of its creation by the Military Administration of General Ibrahim Babangida, (rtd). Ordinarily, the anniversary should be a moment of celebrations as well as reflections, with the hope of planning for the future.
Instead, the anniversary week was overshadowed by blood, abductions and fear, in some parts of the state.
On Thursday, August 27, as the state was celebrating its anniversary, the peace of the residents of Dekina Local Government was shattered by suspected gunmen who killed the All Progressives Congress (APC) Chairman in the Local Government Area, Hon. Ishaq Yunusa, and abducted another occupant of his vehicle.
It was gathered that the attack occurred along the Itobe-Ochadamu Expressway, around Ojuwo Olijo in Ofu Local Government Area of the state.
The Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Afusat Saliu, in a statement issued to journalists in Lokoja on Friday, confirmed the incident.
Saliu said the attack occurred at about 5pm when armed assailants emerged from the surrounding bush and opened fire on motorists.
The Commissioner of Police, Kogi State Command, CP Naziru Bello Kankarofi, directed sustained security operations along the affected corridor and ordered efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice.
On Wednesday, the State Police Command confirmed the abduction of 15 National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members by suspected armed bandits along the Aloma–Egane Expressway in Ofu Local Government Area of the state.
The corps members were reportedly travelling from the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State to Abuja when armed assailants intercepted them.
However, Metrobusinessnews.com (MBN) gathered that eleven people, including an unidentified number of corps members were later rescued.
The police said the Divisional Police Officer in Ofu led a joint security team to the scene following a distress call, where two abandoned vehicles were recovered.
Some of the Kogites who spoke with MBN expressed mixed feelings about the anniversary celebration, urging the government to be proactive in tackling the insecurity that has become regular occurrences in the state.
“Although it is the week of celebrations, unfortunately, for some of us in the affected local governments, it a week of sorrow and blood.”
Another stakeholder.said, “The anniversary assessment must go beyond cataloguing projects by the government, but that of introspection on how it has been able to improve the lives and livelihoods of the people, how secure is the enviroment for farming and business.”
Infact, the state is one of Nigeria’s most strategically positioned and naturally endowed with fertile agricultural land as well as mineral deposits.
“Kogi was envisioned as the Confluence State, a bridge of cultures and commerce. Thirty-five years on, the state is struggling with basic security, youth unemployment, and infrastructure deficits.We should be celebrating achievements. Instead we are living in fear and sleepless nights,” says another stakeholder.
MBN gathered further that the killings are not isolated. In the last couple of months the state has continued to contend with heightened insecurity typified by killings, arson, kidnappings, and thuggery perpetrated by both locals and outsiders.
in an article, “KOGI STATE @ 35 YEARS: THE JOURNEY SO FAR!,”
Jerome Aduojo Agi, public affairs commentator and analyst wrote:
“Thirty-five years is long enough for a state to establish its identity, strengthen its institutions, develop its comparative advantages and translate its natural resources into measurable improvements in the lives of its people.
The central question, therefore, should not merely be : How far has Kogi State travelled? It should also be : How much of its enormous potential has Kogi transformed into prosperity for its citizens?
Kogi is one of Nigeria’s most strategically positioned and naturally endowed states. It possesses fertile agricultural land, extensive waterways, significant mineral occurrences, petroleum resources, historic settlements and extraordinary cultural diversity.
Lokoja, its capital, occupies a special place in Nigerian history and sits at the famous confluence of the Rivers Niger and Benue.
Yet the paradox remains striking : How can a state so richly endowed still struggle to achieve the scale of industrialisation, employment, internally generated revenue and infrastructure that its resources should ordinarily support?”
Writing further, Aduojo Agi stated that, “an anniversary assessment must go beyond cataloguing projects. The proper measurement of leadership is not simply what government builds but what permanently changes in the quality of life of the governed
Emphasising on security as an economic infrastructure, he wrote, “Investment cannot flourish where lives and property are unsafe.
Technology- enabled policing, community intelligence, professionalised local security support, emergency communications and strengthened cooperation among federal security agencies, traditional rulers and communities are essential. Security expenditure should be regarded as economic-development expenditure.”
