Kogi Election: APC To Replace Audu With Bello

There are strong indications that Alhaji Yahaya Bello,
the runner up in the All Progressives Congress (APC)
governorship primaries last month, will likely be
nominated as the party’s candidate in the Kogi state
supplementary polls slated for next week, Daily Trust
reports.
However, this contradicts the APC national chairman
John Odigie-Oyegun’s remarks, who had earlier
suggested in a statement that the party will organize
new primaries to pick a replacement for Prince
Abubakar Audu who died on Sunday, November 22,
shortly after the election was declared inconclusive.
Days after Audu’s death was made public, the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)
handed APC a deadline of December 1, to nominate a
replacement for Audu.

This has stirred controversies in the party as some
party leaders believe, there should be a new primaries
to pick Audu’s replacement why others believe the calls
for a new primary is not needed as Audu should be
automatically replaced with another candidate.
Yahaya Bello and Audu Abubakar
The Party leaders in the second school of thoughts
believe it is in line with the letter of the Electoral Act,
which says a party would be allowed to make a
substitution if its candidate dies.
These APC leaders also kicked against the appointment
of James Faleke, Audu’s running mate as the party’s
substitute candidate because he did not contest in the
primaries.
It was also gathered that Faleke is a Lagosian of Kogi
ancestry who served as chairman of a local government
in Lagos state and is currently a legislator representing
a constituency in Lagos state, hence his rejection.
However, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who is Igbirra from Kogi
state’s central senatorial zone, had polled 703 votes to
finish second to Audu who polled 1, 109 votes in the
APC primaries.
Sources disclosed that Bello was actually preferred by
the top party leaders even above Audu, who did not
support President Muhammadu Buhari in APC’s
presidential primaries last November.
Audu was a loyal supporter of former Kano state
governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.
Bello comes from Kogi state’s second largest ethnic
group which APC leaders believe is more advantageous
politically.

Twenty seven aspirants contested the APC primary
elections in Kogi with late Prince Audu scoring 1,109
votes to emerge victorious.
Other aspirants were Alhaji Yahaya Bello, 703 votes;
Senator NurudeenAbatemiUsman (400), Sanusi
Abubakar (309), Air Vice Marshal SaliuAtawodi (183),
James Ocholi (90), OlusolaOlumoroti (58), Suleiman
Baba Ali (28), RotimiObadofin (16), Dr Tim NdaDiche
(13) and Abdullahi Suleiman (11), Clarence Olafemi, the
former acting governor of Kogi State, (7), Senator
YahayaUgbane (8), YakeenAbdullahi (8), Idris Danjuma
(5) and Col. Ahmed Usman(6).
In practice, whoever APC nominates has already
become the Governor of Kogi state since PDP’s
candidate Governor Idris Wada cannot possibly close
the gap in the supplementary election, hence the high
stakes.