The
appeal court had annulled the February election of Melaye and ordered a fresh
one which held on November 16, an exercise that was declared inconclusive while
a supplementary poll fixed for November 30.
Kola Ologbondiyan,
spokesman of the PDP, while speaking on Saturday expressed worry that INEC
might not conduct a free and fair election.
He said, “It is public knowledge that all accredited local
and international observers, including the Civil Society Situation Room, have
declared that the elections did not meet the minimum standard for credible
election and have unanimously called for outright cancelation. ”
“There
is indeed nothing to indicate that more people will not be massacred in the
proposed Kogi West Senatorial re-run election. It is therefore doubtful if
Nigerians will be prepared to participate in that re-run given their sordid experiences
in the last election.
“There is already a growing
consensus across the nation that participating in elections by INEC as
presently constituted under the Buhari Presidency would amount to helping to
legitimise illegitimacies and outright criminalities.
“Moreover,
there are reports in the public space that the APC-controlled Federal
Government does not want Senator Dino Melaye in the Senate just because of his
forthrightness in defending the interest of the people.
“Nigerians recall with
shock how, at the presentation of the 2020 budget, Mr. President reportedly
asked Senator Melaye ‘you, you mean you are still in this chamber?’. A question
which meaning cannot be far-fetched.
“Our party has been made
aware of how INEC and security apparatus have been instructed to use all means
to stop Senator Dino from returning to the Senate. INEC had also blatantly
refused to consider Senator Melaye’s petitions regarding the November 16
election.”
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