Melaye asks INEC to postpone supplementary poll in Kogi west

Dino Melaye, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in Kogi west senatorial election, has called for the postponement of the supplementary poll scheduled for Saturday.

Addressing journalists at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters in Abuja, Melaye said the poll should be postponed until “infractions” in the November 16 election are resolved.

He was at INEC to submit another petition against the rerun poll, having first asked the commission to cancel it.

The rerun between Melaye and Smart Adeyemi of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was inconclusive, and the electoral umpire fixed a final match between the duo for Saturday.

Melaye said he returned to the commission because it is yet to respond to his petition and that no panel has been set up to investigate his allegations.

“What is new in what we have submitted today is that we have attached a copy of form EC8B of ward A in Lokoja Local Government area, where INEC, during collation, had cancelled results of nine out of 23 polling units in the LGA,” he said.

“What we are saying is; how can INEC cancel these polling units during collation process and they will not be captured in places where rerun will take place?

“We believe this is an aberration, and the INEC chairman cannot know about it and allow it to stay.”

Melaye also accused the commission of turning a blind eye to irregularities in some other places during the rerun election.

“Unfortunately, results were returned in those places,” he said.

“We are saying that INEC must be neutral and cancel elections in areas where there were violence.

“I want to say that with all these fractions put together, INEC must, as a matter of transparency and national interest, postpone the Saturday supplementary election.”