Kogi politics has been rocked by a bombshell revelation from former Deputy Governor Edward Onoja, who claims Yahaya Bello strung him along with promises of succession for four years, only to stab him in the back on the eve of the APC primaries.
Onoja, once Bello’s trusted ally and now a board member of the South-East Development Commission, opened up on the betrayal during a tell-all appearance on the MIC ON Podcast.
“For four years before 2023, he (Yahaya Bello) was the one who called me and said, ‘You will succeed me, get prepared.’ And of course, I planned, I worked, and when it was time, he gave all of us the opportunity to contest,” Onoja revealed.
But when the primaries loomed, Bello abandoned his long-time deputy — throwing his full weight behind Usman Ododo instead.
“At the end of the day, his heart and his choice were with the current governor, His Excellency, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo,” Onoja said.
The sting came just 24 hours before the vote.
“When he broke the news to me a day before the primaries, I told him, ‘You are the boss, you are over me, what you see is what I see, so let’s go get the job done, but I hope you are not making a mistake,’” Onoja recalled.
Despite being blindsided, Onoja insists he swallowed the betrayal and worked tirelessly to ensure Ododo’s victory in November 2023.
