Kogi West: PDP urges supporters to prepare for victory

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has urges its members and supporters in Kogi West Senatorial District to brace up and get ready for a triumphant supplementary election on Nov. 30.

The party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, on Sunday in Abuja, said that nothing would deter PDP from picking the Senate seat.

Ologbondiyan called on all PDP members, supporters, citizens and voters in Kogi West to be united.

He urged them to be “ready against any repressive forces that might attempt to forcefully invade any polling unit, disrupt electoral process or alter results as witnessed in the Nov. 16 elections”.

He said that Kogi, and particularly Kogi West, remains home of PDP and the people were not ready to accept any impunity.

”Our party charges the people of Kogi to come prepared to vote, protect their votes and ensure that they stamp their will on the ballot despite the odds.”

He cautioned security agents as well as INEC officials against subverting the will of the people, adding that such was “capable of attracting dire consequences”.

“The party directs its members to stay united under their leaders in the area as they will continue to be updated of vital information ahead of the election.”

Ologbondiyan said that the PDP was mourning compatriots killed in the Nov. 16, restating that their death would never be in vain.

INEC has fixed Nov. 30 for the conduct of supplementary election in the district to conclude the court-ordered rerun election.

The Nov. 16 re-run election for Kogi West was declared inconclusive because the margin of win was less than the total cancelled votes.

INEC Returning Officer for the election, Prof. Olayide Lawal, while announcing the outcome, said that the candidate of the APC, Smart Adeyemi, polled 80,118 votes while Dino Melaye of the PDP got 59,548.

Lawal, however, said that votes were cancelled across 53 polling units in the senatorial district with 46,127 registered voters involved.

He attributed the cancellation to violence and ballot box snatching.