Kogi West Rerun: Melaye Rejects Results, Describes Poll As Helicopter Election

Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Kogi West
Senatorial District rerun election, Dino Melaye, has condemned the
results, calling it ‘fictitious’.

Mr. Melaye who spoke to journalists in Abuja, alleged that the
November 16 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.

“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 the Independent National Electoral Commission (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.

On October 11, the Appeal Court ordered a rerun election in Kogi
West Senatorial District between Senator Dino Melaye of the PDP and
Senator Smart Adeyemi of the APC.