Kogi West Tribunal: Dino Melaye panics, meets INEC officials in Lokoja hotel

All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate in the March 28 election (Kogi West), Dino Melaye, who was declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has met with some officials of the commission in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital.
The meeting was held at Ideato Hotel, Lokoja.
A source at the meeting said Melaye was “in a panic mood because of the letter from INEC on December 8, 2014, stating that the APC did not conduct primaries in Kogi West Senatorial District”.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator Smart Adeyemi, has sent a 250-page petition to the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Lokoja, declaring that Melaye, in connivance with some INEC officials, rigged the polls.
Freedom Online learned that Melaye summoned the meeting at the hotel “to have a soft landing because the INEC letter is enough to disqualify him”.
It is believed that the officials are being pressurised to write another letter, indicating that the APC conducted primaries.
The source said: “Money was offered but I don’t know how much. But it is like the INEC officials are being careful because of the December 8, 2014 letter which is already in public domain. In fact, it is one of the documents Senator Adeyemi has filed before the tribunal, which will sit at the Lokoja High Court”.
Adeyemi’s counsel, Dr. J.O. Olatoke (SAN), is already preparing to relocate to Lokoja “to ensure that nothing goes wrong legally”.
The source also said the conversation between Melaye and the INEC officials was recorded.
Freedom Online could not confirm this as at the time of filing this report.
It was gathered that one of the officials demanded for a higher fee if they are to issue another letter.
Another meeting will be held very soon, said the source.
It was also learned that the Certified True Copies (CTCs) of election results from all the wards in Kogi West Senatorial District “are a source of worry to Melaye”.
Also of concern is the case filed by some APC aspirants, who later defected to Labour Party (LP) and Accord, against Melaye that the APC never held primaries.
It was learned that they also accused former governor, Abubakar Audu, of disrupting the primaries because he knew that Melaye will lose.
Adeyemi had revealed corrupt, arbitrary and fraudulent practices in the petition filed before the tribunal, insisting that some of the irregularities during the elections are falsification of results, mutilation of result sheets, replacing authentic figures with fake figures, use of writing materials to erase already-typed figures etc.
These arbitrary and fraudulent practices, according to him, were perpetrated in several wards.
Adeyemi declared that all the result sheets, forms, EC.17, EC.25 series, EC. 40 series, voters register, ballot papers, list of electorate who collected the Permanent Voter Card (PVCs) and other materials “used for the election in Kogi West Senatorial District comprising of seven local governments namely Kabba/Bunu, Kogi Koton-Karfe, Lokoja, Ijumu, Mopa/Muro, Yagba East and Yagba West” clearly indicate that he won the polls.
He insisted that the CTCs of election results from all the wards show that he (Adeyemi) got 37,353 of the total votes cast while Melaye got 33,911 but the Returning Officer (RO) wrongfully declared Melaye as the winner.
He, therefore, prayed the tribunal: “That it be determined and declared that the 1stRespondent, Hon. Dino Melaye, was not duly elected or returned by the majority of the lawful votes cast at the election to Kogi West Senatorial District held on the 28th day of March, 2015.
“Declaration that the 1st Petitioner, Senator Smart Adeyemi, scored the majority of lawful votes cast at the election into the National Assembly Election for Kogi West Senatorial District held on the 28th day of March, 2015 and ought to have been declared the winner and returned as elected into the Senate.
“An order declaring the 1st Petitioner, Senator Smart Adeyemi, the winner of the Senatorial Election for Kogi West Senatorial District held on the 28th day of March, 2015 and returns him as elected.
“An order withdrawing or nullifying the Certificate of Return issued to the 1st Respondent, Hon Dino Melaye, as the winner of the election for the office of the senate for Kogi West Senatorial District held on the 28th March, 2015.
“An order directing the 3rd Respondent, the Independent National Electoral Commission, to issue a Certificate of Return to the 1st petitioner, Senator Smart Adeyemi, as the winner of the election forthwith.
OR IN THE ALTERNATIVE:
I.A DECLARATION that the 1st Respondent was not qualified at the time of the election to contest the Kogi West Senatorial District election held on the 28th March 2015.
II.AN ORDER disqualifying the candidature of the 1st Respondent as candidate for the election into the Kogi West Senatorial District held on 28th March 2015.
III.AN ORDER directing the 3rdRespondent to conduct a fresh election into the Kogi West Senatorial District.