Awaited Excellency Of Kogi State

Meet Hon. Abiodun Faleke, The Running Mate Of The Late Abubakar Audu Abdulmumuni / 13 mins ago

Hon. James Faleke

Hon. James Abiodun Faleke was born on 25th December, 1959 in Ekinrin Adde, Ijumu Local Government of the old Kabba province, a Yoruba speaking area of Kogi State, where he had his primary and secondary school education. He attended the Abdulazeez Atta Memorial College, then proceeded to the Kaduna Polytechnic, from where he obtained a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Purchasing and Supply Management with Upper Credit in 1986. Here, he received the Best Student Award.

Hon. James Abiodun Faleke was posted to Lagos State for his NYSC program in the 1986/1987 service year, and served at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, his place of primary assignment (ppa)
As part of his service to the community, he provided waste bins to assist with waste collection and management in Ikeja LGA during his service year in 1987, and thus got a letter of commendation from the Local Government. This was, perhaps, a sign of things to come, as he would later become an elected Chairman of Ojodu LCDA of Ikeja Local Government Area.

In furtherance of his education and professional career, he obtained a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) with Management as his field of specialization from Imo State University, Owerri. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS), London, and the Institute of Public Administration (IPA).

From 1986 till date, Faleke has worked in different management capacities of procurement, clearing and forwarding, warehousing, distribution and construction. In 1986/87, he worked as the Purchasing Expediter in National Orthopaedic Hospital in Lagos State, and as a Material Manager at Kayo Foods Limited, Ilupeju, also in Lagos State. He then went on to serve as the Purchasing, Clearing and Distribution Manager and Commercial Manager at Tate Industries PLC, Purchasing Manager at Air Liquid PLC, Purchasing Manager at Aluminium Manufacturing Company of Nigeria (ALUMCO) PLC, and finally, as a Commercial Manager at Crown Agents Ltd. from 2000 to 2003.

He was also the Pioneer Executive Secretary of Ojodu LCDA from November 2003 to April 2004, and was elected as the Executive Chairman of the LCDA in 2004. He held this position until 2011, serving for two terms, and doubled as the Chairman of Conference 57, the body of Local Government Chairmen in Lagos State (from 2006-2011). During this period, he also featured on the state’s Electoral Reform Committee and the Governor’s Advisory Committee.

In 2011, he was duly elected to represent the Ikeja Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and served as chairman of the House Committee on Anti-Corruption, National Ethics and Values, and as a member of several other committees, including those on Public Procurement, MDG’s, Interior, Public Accounts, Science and Technology, and the House Committee on the Petroleum Subsidy Probe.

He also proposed a number of bills, including the NYSC Act Amendment Bill, which proposed life insurance coverage for NYSC members, a bill prohibiting the sale and use of military uniforms due to the attendant security risks and, still focusing on the nation’s security challenges, he sponsored another motion on the need to shut over 1,400 illegal border routes to curb insurgency.

Hon. James Abiodun Faleke was also the Lagos State coordinator for the Buhari/Osinbajo campaign from December 2014-April 2015.

Criticism

The major source of criticism regarding the ticket has been the choice of Faleke as the running mate; while some claim that being a “naturalised Lagosian”, he would not have a proper grasp of Kogi state politics, the fact remains that the administrative and legislative experience he has garnered both as an LCDA chairman and as a legislator can and will translate into purposeful leadership if the duo are elected into Lugard House come November 21. If anything, the fact that he is a son of Kogi state who has attained such heights in another state of the federation is enough evidence of his leadership acumen, and the progressiveness of the party to which he belongs – the APC.

Excelling somewhere other than the place of one’s birth should be a source of commendation, rather than something to be condemned for.

As Kogi decides, the rest of the country waits with bated breath; late Prince Audu was not without his share of criticism but his record in the state remains unmatched. As Kogi – a state blessed with abundant resources – remains stuck in time, frozen at the same spot for the past twelve years, with decaying infrastructure and woeful tales of bad governance, will the people opt for the party with Change as its slogan, or will they choose, instead, to remain in the cold comfort of an umbrella so torn that it shields them from nothing?