Kogi 2023: Akpoti’s tribunal victory unsettles Bello, APC

<p>In a single day, two senators of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Kogi State were sacked by the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Lokoja.</p>, <p>In Kogi Central, the senatorial district of Governor Yahaya Bello, the tribunal sacked Abubakar Ohere and ordered that Natasha Akpoti should be given a certificate of return.</p>, <p>Meanwhile, in Kogi East, the court sacked Jibrin Echocho and declared a rerun of the election.</p>, <p>Governor Yahaya Bello, following the verdict, said he is optimistic that the Court of Appeal will reverse the judgement because of the manner the Appeal Court ruled on the presidential election case.</p>, <p>“I want to assure you that even judging from the pronouncements yesterday at the Appeal Court (Presidential Election Petition Tribunal), we are going to have our 3/3 Senate in Kogi State, I can assure you,” Bello said.</p>, <p>Observers in the State believe that the verdict could have some impact on the governorship election slated for November because it shows that the APC is not as strong as many believed it to be.</p>, <p>In this analysis, DAILY POST reviews the impact of this decision on the 2023 governorship election in the State.</p>, <p>So far, the race is between Usman Ododo of APC (Kogi Central), Dino Melaye of PDP (Kogi West), Leke Abejide of ADC (Kogi West), Muri Ajaka of SDP (Kogi East).</p>, <p>“We have a four-horse race that could swing anywhere. No one can predict the outcome of the race,” Al-Had Sonibare, a member of the ADC told DAILY POST.</p>, <p>“We know that during the last election, intimidation was deployed by the ruling party, and the tribunal is exposing that. BVAS is exposing all of them,” he added.</p>, <p></p>, <p>In Kogi Central, Governor Bello has been in a protracted fight with the Ohinoyi of Ebira Land, Ado Ibrahim. It would be recalled that Bello once threatened to discipline the monarch for insubordination.</p>, <p>During the last general election, the APC showed significant vulnerability in Kogi Central, particularly in the race