Melaye rejects election results, berates Adeyemi, Bello over violence

Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Kogi West senatorial district Senator Dino Melaye has rejected the result of Saturday's rerun election.

Melaye, who spoke to journalists at his Abuja residence, claimed that he won the election with a very wide margin but that the results were altered in favour of his APC rival in many places.

"I’m waiting to see what the INEC will do but I reject in totality this fictitious result. I won this election in the afternoon and APC won it at night. I won that election clearly; we have polling unit results with us, we have computed all our polling results and won with very, very wide margin but surprisingly, all the results have been jettisoned and fresh result released by INEC official.

"My polling unit was attacked, and I reported before the election that there is a plan to attack most of my political strongholds. My community was raided and my polling unit attacked.

“So, apparently election did not take place in those places and the plan was to reduce my votes by attacking my political stronghold, and then rig in their own strongholds,” he said.

Melaye, who contested against Senator Smart Adeyemi added that, "I want to see what INEC will do but I want to tell INEC and security agencies that in an unjust society silence is a crime. I repeat, in an unjust society silence is a crime.

"By the grace of God, the battle to deliver Kogi State from this king Pharaoh and Aaron, the battle to salvage the lives and property of Kogi people from this economic cankerworm and financial scavenger is a battle of no retreat, no surrender. The battle is on, victory is assured and God on our side.”

When asked whether he will go to court or leave everything to God if Smart Adeyemi is declared winner, he said: "When we get to that bridge, we will cross it".