Dino Melaye candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship in Kogi State, has accused the incumbent Governor Yahaya Bello of the All Progressives Congress (APC) of deterioratring the condition of the state’s capital city, Lokoja, to the level of a local government area.
Melaye recently won the PDP governorship primary in an election he overwhelmingly won to emerge the party’s candidate.
Speaking to Arise TV on his victory and plans for the state if he wins the election in November, he assured the people of Kogi State of increased Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), increased support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and a boost in employment.
He said, “I scored 313 votes, the person who came second scored 124 votes. So it’s time for myself and my co-aspirants to come together and deliver Kogi state from what we are going through. And already, we’ve started our reconciliatory moves. I’ve met with about five out of the eight aspirants and we are having an understanding. I’ve gone to the leadership of the party in the state.
“The responsibility before us is to rescue the people of Kogi State from maladministration, from insecurity, from corruption, and all the other vices bedeviling us as a state. We will improve Kogi state and make sure that Lokoja, our capital city, is being lifted from these. If you go to Lokoja today, it’s like a glorified local government area.”
Reacting to the statement of the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, who had criticized his emergence as the winner in the party’s primary election, Melaye said he had no response to give to a man who was suffering from post-election trauma.
Melaye added that regardless of the governor’s support for him in 2019, he owes the party a lot.
He further said he was being witch-hunted by Wike because he refused to support his 2023 presidential ambition.
Efforts to get the Commissioner for Information in Kogi State, Kingsley Fanwo, to respond to Malaye’s claims regarding Lokoja was unsuccessful as he did not respond to phone calls