The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi West for the Saturday, February 23, National Assembly election, Senator Smart Adeyemi is leading the arrays of aggrieved candidates in Kogi State to election petition tribunal.
Others two senatorial candidates are Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Natasha Akpoti and Senator Ahmed Ogembe, have filed petitions against the conduct and outcome of the election in Kogi Central senatorial district.
According to the secretary of the Kogi state election petitions tribunal, Aisha Mana who confirmed this on Thursday, March 21, in Lokoja, the petitions filed by Adeyemi, Akpoti and Ogembe, were among the 10 received by the tribunal from aggrieved candidates who participated in the election.
It would be recalled that while Adeyemi contested on the platforms of the APC, Akpoti and Ogembe contested the election on the platforms of the SDP and PDP respectively.
Mana said that while Adeyemi, a two-term former senator lost to his closest rival, Senator Dino Melaye in the Kogi West senatorial district, both Natasha and Ogembe contested and lost the senatorial election in Kogi Central to Yakubu Oseni of APC.
Others candidates who have also filed their petitions at the tribunal include: Habiba Muhammed Deen of the PDP, who lost the Ankpa-Omala-Olamaboro federal constituency election to Abdulahi Ibrahim of the APC, and Emmanuel Egwu, also of the PDP, who lost the Idah-Ibaji-Igalamela federal constituency election to David Zacharis of the APC.
Abimbola Henry Tuesday of the APC, who lost the Yagba federal constituency election to Leke Abejide of the SDP, Onimisi Itopa of the PDP, who lost the Okene-Ogori Magongo federal constituency election to Bello Joseph Asuku of the APC, and Wemi Jones Ojo of the APC, who is challenging the victory of Tajudeen Yusuf of the PDP as the representative-elect for Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu federal constituency.
Also, Ibrahim Shaba Isah of the PDP is also contesting the election of Abdulkareem Usman Wambai of APC as the Representative-elect for the Lokoja-Kogi federal constituency seat and Lawal Idrissu of the PDP, who is protesting the election of the APC candidate for the Ajaokuta federal constituency.
Mana also said that no date has been fixed for the hearing of the petitions.
The secretary reiterated that the tribunal would hold its sittings in Abuja as earlier announced, urging security agencies and other stakeholders to take note.
