Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the governorship election held in Kogi State on Saturday, November 17, Mr. Musa Wada, is set to challenge the result of the exercise at the election petition tribunal to reclaim his stolen mandate.
It would be recalled that the Independent National Election Commission (INEC), on Monday declared the governor, Mr. Yahaya Bello of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner.
Bello polled a total of 406,222 votes to defeat the PDP candidate, Wada who got 189,704 votes.
Ms. Natasha Akpoti of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) came third with a score of 9,482 votes.
Announcing the result at INEC collation centre in Lokoja on Monday, the returning officer for the election, Prof. Ibrahim Garba, said Bello having satisfied the requirement of law had been returned as winner.
The margin with which Bello defeated Wada is 216,518 votes whereas the total registered voters in canceled polling units is 149,576.
Bello won in 12 of the 21 local governments namely Lokoja, Ibaji, Adavi, Okehi, Okene, Kabba Bunu, Ogori Magongo, Koton Karfi , Mopa Muro, Ajaokuta, and Olamaboro.
Wada won in Omala , Igalamela , Yagba East, Yagba West, Idah, Dekina , Bassa, Ofu, and Ankpa local government areas.
Reacting to the declaration, Wada described the exercise as a sham saying Bello did not win the election.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja, Wada stated his resolve to take the matter up at election petition tribunal.
“I and the overwhelming majority of the people of Kogi State reject the conduct and outcome of the governorship election held on November 16, 2019.
“It is clear to all that there was no election on Saturday, November 16th 2019 but a declaration and execution of war against the people.
“What happened in Kogi State was an organised war against democracy; coup against the people and seizure of power through brigandage and the barrel of the gun with members of the police and other security agencies coordinating the stealing of the people’s votes.”
Wada alleged that the police aided suspected APC thugs to invade polling units with impunity, shoot and kill voters and cart away ballot boxes to government facilities where, according to him, results were written in favour of APC and handed over to INEC to announce against the will of the people.
“The APC turned our state into a theatre of war. No fewer than nine innocent Nigerians were killed. Many more were maimed and injured by the APC in their desperation to seize power at all cost.
“It is therefore distressing that INEC went ahead with a shameful collation and declaration of fabricated results despite the glaring disruptions that characterized the shambolic exercise.
“In order to achieve this ignoble goal, INEC cancelled our votes in areas of our stronghold, subtracted from our votes in many other areas and padded the votes of APC to give a semblance of victory for APC,” he said.
He said the people of Kogi State were horrified, brutalized and dehumanized.
He added that people had been weeping across the state since the announcement of Bello as the governor of the state for another four years.
“We, therefore, stand with the people of Kogi to state without equivocation that this brigandage and stealing of our mandate cannot stand.
“We will never despair but remain strong in our determination to retrieve the mandate freely given to us by the people in their desire for a change. We will pursue this course to its logical conclusion within the confines of the law of this country,” said Wada.
For her part, Akpoti, called for the outright cancellation of the election, saying it was a “civil war” imposed on the Kogi people by the governor.
She said violence and thuggery inflicted on the people on the election day should not be allowed to go without a penalty.
She also alleged that the results were a product of massive rigging.
Meanwhile, INEC declared as inconclusive the rerun of election in Kogi West Senatorial District held alongside the governorship poll in the state because the margin of win was less than the total cancelled votes.
It said it would later announce a date for supplementary election in the area.
INEC said APC candidate, Mr. Smart Adeyemi, scored a total of 80,118 votes while the PDP flag bearer, Mr. Dino Melaye, scored 59,548 votes.
According to the returning officer, Prof. Olayinde Lawal, the margin between the candidates of the Adeyemi and Melaye was 20,570.
He explained that the total margin between both candidates was lower than the 43,127 registered voters in 53 polling units of 20 registration areas in the zone where elections were canceled.
The returning officer, who declared the election as inconclusive, said he decided not to declare a winner because of the slim margin between the two leading candidates.
It was gathered that election in the state was largely characterised largely by violence and ballot box snatching.
Consequently, prominent election observers called for the total cancellation of the election saying it did not reflect the wishes of the people and was marred by widespread violence.
Similarly, Melaye who spoke to journalists in Abuja, alleged that the election was marred by compromise, extreme violence, and rigging.
“The innovation is that what we had is what I have christened ‘Helicopter election’.
“For the first time, rigging has been advanced to the level that now the use of a helicopter in perpetuating this electoral atrocity manifested yesterday (Saturday).
“Helicopter hovering around Polling units in Lokoja, dropping bullets on innocent, harmless citizens and electorate; and as I speak, yesterday, teargas being fired from this helicopter.”
He added that the violence witnessed in his community should give INEC reasons to stop the collation of results on Sunday.
“Despite the fact that this helicopter was used in harassing, intimidating and firing innocent electorates, the votes of those places were carted away and taken to the government house, stuffed and brought back to the collation centre and they have been accepted and admitted and collation is ongoing. “They brought mayhem on my own community and even killed my nephew, we are waiting to see what INEC will do, but I reject in totality, this fictitious result and I want to say that all these are not about the election, it is about Dino Melaye,” he stated.
