Kogi Poll: Ajaka Alleges Rigging, Decries INEC’s Role In Ododo’s Victory

The candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the Kogi State governorship election held on November 11, 2023, Murtala Ajaka, has raised serious allegations of election rigging in favor of Usman Ododo from the All Progressives Congress (APC). Speaking on Channels Television’s on Sunday night, Ajaka expressed his frustration with the electoral process and questioned the integrity of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Ajaka asserted that contesting the election outcome in court would be futile, as he believes INEC would defend the results as a witness. He emphasized his disappointment, stating, “If the INEC chairman allows this to stand, they are looking for trouble in Nigeria.” According to Ajaka, despite assurances of transparency, he accused INEC of allowing the manipulation of results. INEC had declared Ododo as the winner of the highly contested poll, securing 446,237 votes against Ajaka’s 259,052 votes and Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with 46,362 votes. Ajaka alleged that figures were inflated in favor of the APC candidate, particularly pointing to discrepancies in Okene Local Government, where the turnout purportedly exceeded the number recorded on the Biometric Verification and Authentication System (BVAS). “In Okene Local Government, they turned out over 130,000 votes. Haba! And INEC accepted that result, and what is on the BVAS is less than 30,000,” Ajaka claimed. He called for a thorough investigation into the conduct of INEC officials in Kogi State and warned of potential consequences, stating, “If they allow this to stand, I doubt if there will be an election in 2027. Because people will go into that election armed, and I fear Somalia will be a child’s play.” In a surprising twist, Ajaka admitted that had they anticipated a similar outcome, they might have considered playing along with the alleged irregularities by inflating results from his area.

Group reveals plot by Gov Bello to abduct, frame SDP candidate, Yakubu Ajaka

The Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka Campaign Organization has alleged a disturbing plot involving Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and certain security chiefs which is aimed at suppressing the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Governorship Candidate, Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka. In a press statement signed by the group’s Director, Communications, Faruk Adejoh-Audu and made available to the NIGERIAN ANCHOR, the group said there is a conspiracy to abduct Ajaka and transport him to Lokoja, where he would be falsely implicated in fabricated charges and potentially face detention or even assassination. The details of this sinister plan, according to them, is part of an orchestrated effort to arraign Alhaji Ajaka before a Lokoja Court hastily, ensuring his indefinite incarceration. Remarkably, the State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Adeshina Yusuf, who had previously shown reluctance to investigate the campaign organization’s petition regarding an attempted assassination against Mr. Bello and his group of thugs and gunmen, is now reportedly tailing Ajaka at the behest of Governor Bello. “Details of the plan which began manifesting on Tuesday included hastily arraigning Alhaji Ajaka before a Lokoja Court to legally seal the plot to incarcerate him indefinitely. “In furtherance of the plot, the State Commissioner of Police Hakeem Adeshina Yusuf who had obstinately refused to investigate our petition of attempted assassination against Mr Bello and his band of thugs and gunmen who attacked our motorcade on June 3, 2023 is now stalking our candidate at the behest of Mr Bello to accuse him of been the aggressor in the attack. “Some gunmen in Mufti appeared at an address on Khartoum Street in Wuse, Abuja at about 12:30 pm Tuesday claiming they have been detailed by Mr. Yusuf to arrest Alhaji Ajaka for attempted assassination, gun possession, and terrorism as a result of the same attack carried ours by Mr. Bello and his gunmen. “Already Mr. Bello has put some of his friendly media editors and social media influencers on cue to disparage the SDP Candidate through stories and commentaries that will portray the candidate as a violent man,” the statement read in part. See the full Statement Below: FRESH PLOT BY KOGI GOVERNOR YAHAYA BELLO AND SECURITY CHIEFS TO SUPPRESS SDP CANDIDATE ALHAJI MURTALA YAKUBU AJAKA UNCOVERED The Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka Campaign Organization has uncovered a dastardly conspiracy between some security chiefs in Kogi State to abduct the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Governorship Candidate, Alhaji Muritala Yakubu Ajaka to Lokoja and frame him with trump-up charges with the aim of clamping him into detention and possibly assassinate him. Details of the plan which began manifesting on Tuesday included hastily arraigning Alhaji Ajaka before a Lokoja Court to legally seal the plot to incarcerate him indefinitely. In furtherance of the plot, the State Commissioner of Police Hakeem Adeshina Yusuf who had obstinately refused to investigate our petition of attempted assassination against Mr. Bello and his band of thugs and gunmen who attacked our motorcade on June 3, 2023, is now stalking our candidate at the behest of Mr. Bello to accuse him of being the aggressor in the attack. Some gunmen in Mufti appeared at an address on Khartoum Street in Wuse, Abuja at about 12:30pm Tuesday claiming they have been detailed by Mr. Yusuf to arrest Alhaji Ajaka for attempted assassination, gun possession, and terrorism as a result of the same attack carried ours by Mr Bello and his gunmen. Already Mr. Bello has put some of his friendly media editors and social media influencers on cue to disparage the SDP Candidate through stories and commentaries that will portray the candidate as a violent man. This elaborate plot is an obvious manifestation to stop the escalating popularity of the SDP Candidate in the November 11, Governorship Elections. Mr. Bello is a Governor whose administration has gained notoriety for violence, framing up opponents, and compromising the institutions of the polity to gain an advantage in the elections. Alhaji Ajaka has no record of violence whatsoever at any time in his political career, but in the last four months, the candidate and members of his campaign team have been at the receiving end of State violence from Federal security agents who have been obviously compromised to torment political rivals of Mr. Bello. We have cried out to all the relevant agencies of the state to rein in Mr. Bello and get him to play by the rules of engagement of electioneering to no avail. Where in the world is an interested party in an election allowed the pleasure to arrest opponents and clamp them into detention to prevent them from campaigning? This plot was hatched after a campaign outing by Alhaji Ajaka at Idah during which a mammoth crowd never before recorded in the history of rallies in Kogi State came to receive him. In the last Presidential and National Assembly Elections Governor Bello took several bizarre measures to intimidate the then-main opposition Peoples Democratic Party in the state by deploying earth-moving equipment to dig craters on several streets leading to polling units in the Central Senatorial District of Kogi State. The intimidation was so effective that the PDP had to cancel its campaign flag-off rally in the said Central Senatorial District. Two weeks ago, he procured security agents in the state to extra-judicially execute Mallam Kabir Bala aka Okwo, a thug he freed from prison and unleashed on defenseless citizens of the state at the dawn of the 2019 Elections. Okwo was among about 20 thugs he freed from custody across the state to use for violence and electoral mayhem in 2019. The moment Okwo was executed Mr Yusuf the police commissioner accused him of several heinous felonies. Yet Okwo was a revered member of the party who was even inaugurated by Mr. Bello as the Ofu LGA Coordinator of the Tinubu/Shettima Campaign Council. He was also one of the 67 delegates to the APC National Convention. At no time was he ever accused, invited, or arrested for any crime since 2019 until he openly renounced violence and