The All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Campaign Council in Kogi state has called on law enforcement agencies to arrest Muritala Yakubu Ajaka, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Governorship candidate.
The call comes in the wake of an alleged attack on the residence of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, prompting fears of escalating violence.
The APC Campaign Council accused Ajaka and his supporters of orchestrating the attack, citing previous warnings about planned assaults on INEC.
They claim this move attempts to manipulate documents related to the Kogi East election, where they allege foul play in excluding APC supporters from collation centres.
The Director of Media and Publicity/Spokesperson for the Campaign Council, Kingsley Fanwo, who spoke at an emergency press briefing on Friday, said, “The same arsonists also had an attempt to burn down the Kogi State Government House foiled by our eagle-eye security agents. The same attempt was foiled at the State APC Secretariat in Lokoja.”
He added: “The reason they are desperate to destroy some documents in INEC is to cover the heist they committed in Kogi East where they killed APC supporters and drove them out of collation centres to forge the results that were eventually trumped by the massive votes of Kogites for the Governor-Elect.
“They are attempting to corrupt certain documents in INEC before handing them to their legal team. We have no problem allowing legal teams to access documents and materials. It is the norm. But we won’t allow any desperate, bloodthirsty politician to tamper with the true verdict of the Kogi people.
“After their violent protests a few days ago, our people have also moved to Lokoja to ensure their mandate is protected. Resorting to assassination and arson will never help the Social Democratic Party and their confused candidate.
“Now is the time to arrest Muritala Yakubu Ajaka before he throws Kogi into a state of anomie. Democracy is the expression of the wishes of the people. Those wishes have been expressed, and no amount of bullets can silence the voice of the ballot.
“We are calling on the Police, DSS and other security agencies to immediately arrest the slide to anarchy by arresting Muritala Yakubu Ajaka and his co-swimmers in the pool of violence.
“We have cautioned our supporters to remain calm, and the call will be more effective if the anarchists are immediately apprehended and prosecuted.
“The violence witnessed in Kogi East because of the desperation of Muritala Yakubu Ajaka was not witnessed in the West and Central. He turned himself to an outlaw, attacking the opposition, killing opposition members and boasting to go free because of his mouthed connection with certain powerful people.
“Kogi must not be allowed to become a lawless place, and the only solution now is to use Muritala Yakubu Ajaka as a scapegoat. He was not the only one who contested the election.
“But he is the only one who feels he must kill everything and everyone standing on his path to his irredeemable dream of grabbing power by force. Totalitarianism has no place in a democratic setting.”