Wada wins Kogi PDP governorship primary

Musa Wada has won Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship ticket in Kogi State.

Wada polled a total of 748 votes to defeat his closed opponent Ibrahim Abubakar, who polled 710 votes.

Wada’s elder brother and the immediate past governor of the state Idris Wada, came third with 345 votes while Dino Melaye polled 70 votes to emerge fourth.

The governorship primary election had initially ended abruptly in the early hours of Wednesday when gunmen invaded the Lokoja Confluence Stadium venue of the election.

Sorting of votes was going on when the gunmen came to the venue at about 1:45 a.m. and started shooting in different directions.

According to the report, votes in eight out of the 10 ballot boxes have already been counted and sorted out before the disruption by the gunmen.

Aspirants, delegates, and others scampered for safety while the number of casualties has yet to be ascertained as at the time of filing this report.

The election, however, resumed at a lodge, adjacent the Government House Lokoja, with all the aspirants and their agents present.

The State’s Governor Yahaya Bello said the violent disruption of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary election was an expression of the party’s ideology for a ‘do-or-die’ politics.

Bello expressed disappointment with the shootings at Lokoja Confluence Stadium. He stated that such acts were an affront to the security of lives and properties.

But the opposition party said the governor was responsible for the disruption of the election. PDP alleged that Bello and APC’s decision to resort to “violence and bloodletting” cannot save the failed governor and his party during the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

“Bello has become chaotic in the face of his rejection by the people as well as the soaring popularity of the PDP in Kogi state, and has now resorted to violence in a failed desperate attempt to prevent our party from presenting a candidate for the election,” PDP spokesman Kola Ologbondiyan said in a statement on Wednesday.

Wada will be challenging Bello in the November 16 election. Bello will be contesting under the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress.