The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has described recent violence in Kogi State, as a result of the governorship election in the State, as barbaric, undemocratic and unacceptable.
The ruling party, however, warned the opposition to stop sponsoring such acts.
The major opposition political parties in the said elections, where APC won, are the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
There was an attack against the Secretary of the Election Tribunal, Mike Umar David, on Monday, December 4, 2023. Prior to this, the residence of the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr. Gabriel Hale Longpet, was attacked on Friday, December 1, 2023 by armed hoodlums.
Reacting to the development through a press conference, Thursday in Abuja, the APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, said: “The SDP clearly has a lot of explaining to do regarding this incident. Their utterances and actions, prior to, and since, that incident, betray suspicious special knowledge of the incident.”
According to Morka, This is all against the backdrop of INEC’s declaration of the APC candidate, Ahmed Usman Ododo, who polled 446,237, as winner of the Kogi State election, with Muritala Ajaka of SDP polling 259,052, and Dino Melaye of PDP polling 46,362. Ajaka and Dino rejected the election results, citing alleged irregularities.
While condemning the attacks, the APC spokesman siad: “These and other acts of violence in Kogi state are barbaric, undemocratic and unacceptable. The people of Kogi State deserve to live in peace and security. These sponsored and senseless acts of violence must stop.
“We note and welcome the statement by the Kogi Police Command of an ongoing investigation of the alleged attack on the Secretary to the Election Tribunal and the Resident Electoral Commissioner. We urge the Police to do so thoroughly and expeditiously, and to bring the perpetrators and their sponsors to justice.”
