The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the just-concluded gubernatorial election in Kogi State, Musa Wada, has rejected the INEC declaration of Governor Yahaya Bello as the winner of the Saturday election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission has returned Bello as the winner of the governorship election in Kogi State.
During a media briefing in Abuja, Wada said that Bello of the All Progressives Congress did not win the November 16 governorship election.
“I will challenge the result at the election petition tribunal and reclaim my stolen victory at the tribunal.” Wada concluded
He said, “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; a 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 allegedly 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 the APC and handed over to the Independent National Electoral Commission to announce against the will of the people.
He said, “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 costs.
“It is therefore distressing that INEC went ahead with a shameful collation and declaration of fabricated results despite the glaring disruptions that characterised 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 the people of Kogi State were horrified, brutalised and dehumanised.
According to him, people have been weeping across the state since the announcement of Bello as the governor of the state for another four years.
He said, “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.”
The Independent Electoral Commission had earlier declared Yahyah Bello of the APC the winner of the election with a total poll of 406,222 as against Wada, who scored 189,704 votes.
