The Kogi State House of Assembly has resolved to extend the tenure of the Transition Committee Chairmen of local government areas in the State by an additional six months.

The decision was made during the House plenary session held on Friday.

The extension followed a request from Governor Ahmed Ododo, who highlighted the state’s financial constraints and high wage bills as significant barriers to conducting local government elections at this time. In his letter to the House, Ododo emphasised that the financial challenges necessitated the postponement of the local government elections.

Reading the governor’s letter, Speaker of the House, Umar Yusuf, urged the transition chairmen to diligently serve their local government areas and act as exemplary leaders. “In the next six months, it will be interesting at the Local Government level as there will be mostly submission of reports to the Assembly. The chairmen henceforth should take note of this,” Yusuf stated.

LEADERSHIP recalls that the tenure of the 21 Transition Committee Chairmen was initially set to expire on July 8, 2024.

With the House’s approval for tenure extension, their tenure of office has been extended until January 8, 2025, when local government elections are expected to be conducted in the State.