Lagos — Democracy, as a form of government was defined by Abraham Lincoln, one of the most outstanding Presidents of the United States, as the government of the people by the people and for the people.

This characterization of politics made over two hundred years ago has remained the most widely accepted of all known definitions of democracy.

Many forms of governments that are far in the opposite direction existed in the past and still do exist today in different parts of the globe. However, the unanimous verdict by scholars and even political practitioners themselves is that democracy, no matter the variant, still remains the most preferred form of organizing the human society.

Democracy encourages people to participate in their own affairs either directly or indirectly. Its hallmarks include rule of law, openness, transparency, accountability and, most importantly, the freedom of choice.

Our country, Nigeria, embraced democratic form of government as bequeathed to it by the British colonial authorities. As the colonial authorities retreated from the political scene, the legacy of democratic rule which they left with Nigeria upon the attainment of independence in 1960 did not survive the onslaught of the military for too long.

Six years after, regrettably, the military intervened in the political arena, thus terminating democracy in the land. Sadly enough, until 1999 when Nigeria returned to democratic rule again, out of the 39 years of Nigeria's existence as an independent political entity, the military had held political power for 29 odd years through the barrels of the gun.

It is however heartwarming to note that since 1999, Nigeria has been running uninterruptedly as a democracy. A decade of sustained democracy in Nigeria is in deed a remarkable achievement that calls for celebration.

In the last ten years, concrete progress has been made in some States of the Federation, although some cynics and critics are wont to dismiss the last ten years of democracy as a wasted and lost decade, particularly at the center. Yes, they are entitled to their opinion. The truth of the matter is that Nigeria has been underperforming in terms of realizing her manifest destiny as a nation well endowed by Providence.

The story, however, is not only that of gloom and doom. There have been some sparks of brilliant performance in some States which had ensured that the true meaning of democracy is not lost on the people.

It is against this background that one is compelled by the facts that are on ground in Kogi State to appreciate the essence of democracy. Last week, I was in Lokoja at the instance of my former colleague in the Daily Times of old, Alhaji Zakari Adamu who is now the Media Adviser to Governor Idris Ibrahim of Kogi State.

That trip afforded me an opportunity for a close up on the efforts of Kogi State government under the leadership of Alhaji Ibrahim Idris to deliver the dividends of democracy to the people. The Governor has been on the saddle in the last six years, having been elected in 2003 for the first time. He was re-elected for a second term in 2007.

His re-election was challenged at the Election Petitions Tribunal by his opponent, Prince Audu Abubakar, a former Governor of the State, who equally contested and lost to him in the 2003 elections. The election was nullified by the Tribunal and the nullification sustained by the Appeal Court, sitting in Abuja.

In a rescheduled election that took place last year, Idris Ibrahim was returned with a very huge mandate. Ever since, the opposition in the State has never seen anything good in the Government of Kogi under Idris Ibrahim. In spite of his enormous achievements which are there for everybody to see, the opposition elements in the State have continued to paint the picture of non-performance and ineptitude.

I think this is all politics as the verifiable facts on ground do not support the charge of incompetence. My stay in the State afforded me an opportunity to move round and see things for myself.

In Lokoja, the State Capital, a massive construction of road networks is ongoing, with many of the roads already completed and awaiting commissioning. The roads which are interconnected are aimed at opening up and decongesting the ever increasing traffic in Lokoja which is a major gateway to the Eastern and Western parts of Nigeria.

The Lokoja-Ganaja-Ajaokuta highway which carries much of the traffic, given the location of Ajaokuta steel plant and the Obajana cement factory is being currently dualized to ease the pains which commuters go through on that route.

Also a bye-pass is being constructed from Shintaku to Ajaokuta to reduce traffic in Lokoja. What this means is that when the project is concluded, motorists going or coming to the East through Ajaokuta may no longer be caught up in the usual Lokoja hold-up as they will not have any need to pass through the city. This makes a lot of sense.

In the area of housing, the Idris Ibrahim Government has kept faith with its covenant with the people. In Lokoja alone, 502 housing units have been delivered and they have been given out to civil servants on owner-occupier basis.

Also within the Capital city of Lokoja, 60 Mansionettes meant for Judges, Permanent Secretaries, Members of the Kogi State House of Assembly and other high ranking Government officials had since been concluded and handed over to the beneficiaries.

The Governor did not restrict this to the State Capital alone. The gesture was extended to the 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the State. At the moment, 20 housing units are being constructed in each of the LGAs. It was gathered that the Governor intends to increase the units to 50 per LGA. The decision to disperse developments to all the nooks and crannies of the State is anchored on the Governor's philosophy of equity and even development. According to Governor Idris Ibrahim, "Whatever resources we have are meant for the whole State; so they should be distributed evenly across the State".

The Governor appreciates that sustainable power supply is the key to industrialization and in deed sustainable economic development; hence he has invested heavily in the area of rural electrification. He has partnered with the Federal Government in the construction of the Lokoja-Ajaokuta-Anyigba-Egume-Ejule power line. This ambitious project has ensured that power, for the first time, is taken to the door steps of many communities located in the Eastern Senatorial District of the State.

Another landmark achievement of the Governor is the transformation of the Kogi State University into an enviable citadel of learning. Upon his assumption of office in 2003, the University only existed in name. It was no more than a glorified college.

Out of about 30 Courses offered by the University, 29 were denied accreditation by the National University Commission (NUC). This was a disaster for the undergraduates and parents who had their wards in the University pursuing one program or the other. The University, based on that exercise by NUC was stopped from offering admissions to prospective students until the necessary requirements were met.

The Governor was challenged by the situation and he rose stoutly to the occasion. He personally undertook a visit to NUC Headquarters in Abuja where he got first hand briefing on what and what was required to be done to remedy the bad situation. When he returned to Kogi, he moved into action. He appointed Professor Idachaba, a globally renowned Agricultural Economist as the Vice- Chancellor and provided him with sufficient funds and autonomy to re-engineer the institution.

Twenty nine months after his assumption of office in 2005, the 29 Courses that were denied accreditation have been fully accredited including Law. Today, Kogi State University is ranked by NUC as the best State Government and privately owned University in the country. According to the Governor, his desire is to make it the best in the whole country.

On balance, Governor Idris Ibrahim has discharged and acquitted himself in his social contract with the people of Kogi State. For want of an adequate phrase, what is going on in the Confluence State is nothing but infrastructural revolution.