DAVID EXCEL: EMPOWERMENT THAT PUTS THE PEOPLE FIRST
₦50 Million Intervention for 1,000 Market Women in Okene Signals Stronger Grassroots Leadership
In a time when the real measure of leadership is increasingly judged by its impact on ordinary citizens, Hon. David Excel, Special Adviser to the Kogi State Governor on Citizens’ Rights and Political Mobilisation, has once again demonstrated that meaningful leadership must reach the grassroots.
Through a major empowerment initiative in Upokoro, Okene Local Government Area, Hon. David Excel supported 1,000 market women with ₦50,000 each, representing a total intervention of ₦50 million.
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The intervention, organised in collaboration with the Director-General of the Native Boys Movement, is targeted at women engaged in petty trading and small-scale businesses. Beyond the immediate financial relief, the initiative is expected to strengthen working capital, support business expansion and improve the economic wellbeing of beneficiaries.
More importantly, the programme reflects a leadership philosophy anchored on direct engagement, inclusion and empowerment. Rather than limiting grassroots mobilisation to political activities, David Excel is demonstrating that the people must also experience tangible benefits from leadership.
The presence of political leaders, government officials, APC stakeholders, community leaders and other dignitaries, including the Kogi State APC Chairman, Hon. Engr. Aliyu Momoh Ezzu, further underscored the importance attached to the intervention.
The empowerment of market women is particularly significant because women remain central to the survival and growth of the grassroots economy. Their businesses support families, create employment opportunities and sustain communities. Investing in them is therefore not merely an act of giving; it is an investment in household stability, economic resilience and community development.
David Excel’s intervention also reinforces the broader principle that political mobilisation should go beyond rhetoric. It should translate into service, opportunity and practical support for the people.
By taking the intervention directly to Upokoro, the initiative further demonstrates a deliberate effort to bring leadership closer to the people and ensure that grassroots communities are not forgotten.
At ₦50 million for 1,000 beneficiaries, the programme is more than a financial intervention. It is a statement about the kind of politics and leadership that places the welfare of the people at the centre.
From mobilisation to empowerment, from promises to action, David Excel is showing that leadership is most meaningful when the people can feel its impact.
David Excel: Empowering the People. Strengthening the Grassroots. Building a More Inclusive Kogi.
From Tosin Tafu
DemocracyNewslineNewspaper, September 15, 2026
