The Kogi State Police Command yesterday confirmed that gunmen attacked the secretary of the state governorship election tribunal, David Umar Mike, and made away with sensitive petition documents on the just concluded gubernatorial election in the state.
The state police command’s spokesman, SP William Aya, who disclosed this in Lokoja on Wednesday, said the attackers carted away all the petition documents filed by four political parties at gunpoint.
The documents carted away by the attackers included petitions filed by the Action Alliance (AA), Action People’s Party (APP), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Social Democratic Party (SDP) as well as two record books and a bag containing his personal item.
The police added that the incident happened just before the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) office at about 1320hrs on Monday, while the victims were on their way to the tribunal venue at the state High Court complex, Lokoja.
The police said, “On Monday, 04/12/2023 at about 1820hrs, one Mr David Umar Mike ‘m’ Secretary to Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal along with Labode Apreala (f) Confidential Secretary and Hassimu Adamu Assistant Secretary, came to State Criminal Investigation Department, Kogi State Police Headquarters and reported that on the said date, three of them left their Hotel rooms in Lokoja about 1300hrs, heading to their Office at the High Court Complex driving in his (David’s) Peugeot 406 car.
“That just before the CBN at about 1320hrs, one SUV vehicle which had earlier overtaken him blocked his car with two other SUVs following behind.
“All of them surrounded and blocked him as he attempted to reverse. That he saw about seven hooded men all heavily armed and dressed in black attire who shot severally into the air and dragged him and his two other colleagues out of their car, ransacked the car and made away with all the petition documents.”
SP Aya added that the state Commissioner of Police, CP Onuoha Benthrand, had ordered a thorough and diligent investigation into the incident.
Meanwhile, the police command has advised the general public to avoid statements that may prejudice the ongoing investigation into the matter even as the command appealed to anyone with useful information on the incident to provide the same to it.
Daily Trust reports that a national socio-cultural organisation of the people of Kogi East Senatorial District in Kogi State, Uk’Omu Igala, on Tuesday called for the relocation of the Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal to Abuja.
Citing attacks on the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Lokoja, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state and the recent attack on the secretary of the election petition tribunal, the organisation said it was clear that the safety of the members of the tribunal could not be guaranteed in Lokoja.
While INEC had declared Usman Ododo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the keenly contested poll, his runner-up, Murtala Ajaka of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) alleged foul play and vowed to challenge the outcome before the tribunal.
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