Kogi state governor, Yahaya Bello has urged the embattled Kogi West representative in the Nigerian senate, Dino Melaye to wait for the July 3 commencement of signature verification by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The governor, alleged to be behind the ongoing move to recall the senator, said there was no need for Melaye to burn his energy on the authenticity of the constituents’ signatures, when the electoral body has already set date for the verification.
Mr Bello, through his media aide, Petra Onyegbule was reacting to the allegations that the process of collating the signatures needed for the recall of Dino Melaye was fraudulent.
But the governor said on Sunday that said facts about the constituents were with INEC, which had the responsibility of verifying the signatures.
“There is nothing for the distinguished senator to be worried about. We plead with him to calm down. INEC has set July 3 for the public verification of signatures and the date is around the corner; there is no point burning energies all over the place,” the governor said.
In a quick response however, Melaye through one of his legislative aides, Abubakar Sadiq, said: “Let me also sound authoritatively that here in Lokoja Local Government Council, several others whose names and signatures appeared on the list of the signatories to this failed exercise were identified and known to us as being dead long before now.
“Such people like late Abdullahi Abubakar, his immediate younger sister late Halima Lawal Abubakar and Ibrahim Adama of Unit Code 021, Adankolo Ring Road in Ward ‘A’, Lokoja Local Government Council.
“Also one late Salihu Black of Gegu-Beki town, Kogi Local Government Council who until his death was a biology teacher in Government Secondary School, Koton-Karfe, also appended his signature on the recall list.
“This recall exercise was hatched in Kogi Government House due to the manner in which Senator Dino Melaye consistently challenges and engages the government over non-payment of workers’ salaries and pensioners for over 15 months; and also the constant closure of tertiary institutions,” he stated.
