Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship campaign council in Kogi State, Governor Ademola Adeleke, has said it was the turn of Kogi West senatorial district to produce the next governor of the state. The party’s candidate, Senator Dino Melaye is from Kogi West.
He stated this during the inaugural meeting of PDP Kogi State National Governorship Campaign Council at the party’s national headquarters in Abuja yesterday.
Adeleke, who is also governor of Osun State, said the PDP and its candidate, Senator Dino Melaye can defeat the incumbent governor Yahaya Bello, All Progressives Congress (APC) and the party’s candidate Usman Ododo.
He said, “I am from the west, and Dino Melaye is from the west of Kogi State, it is the turn of the west in Kogi state to produce the governor.”
He however urged members of the committee to be committed to the goal of ensuring Melaye is elected the governor of Kogi State.
He added, “I am bringing you the template of IMOLE from Osun State, I am bringing with me the secrets of a hard work success story. Let us work and deliver.
“Forget the fact that we are going against the incumbent, I have defeated incumbents several times.
“If we focus our mind and we have faith anything can be done. We must believe in what we are doing,” he said.
On his part, the governorship candidate, Senator Dino Melaye, expressed confidence that he win the election.
Melaye appreciated PDP members from Kogi East and Kogi Central which are Igala and Ebira dominated areas, respectively, for their resilience and loyalty to the party.
However, in an apparent reference to the incumbent governor, who calls himself a white lion, Melaye said he will send the lion to the zoo where it belongs.
He said, “l appreciate our brothers from Ebiraland who despite having someone that calls himself a white lion, but I know there is no white lion, but my name is Daniel. I am used to kissing, taming and subduing Lions and by the Grace of God Lions are not supposed to live with human beings, they are supposed to be in the zoo. We will send the lion back to the zoo.”
He continued, “Kogi today in Nigeria is the only state where there is government without governance, as I speak with you permanent secretaries are taking Okada to the office in kogi, all our roads are death traps, the new specialist Hospital in Okene, no bed, no drugs, insecurity is pervasive, killing is the other of the day. But I want to announce to you that we trust and believe in God that we will build a new kogi state and do things differently. We are going to govern with the fear of God.”
Also at the event, former Senate President, Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki, urged unity among party members just as he said “A Dino as a PDP governor is hundred times better than any APC governor in this election.”
Saraki added, “This kogi election is not about Dino, we are not only voting for Dino Melaye, we are voting for ourselves, victory for PDP in the coming election is something we must all work to achieve.
“There is no state that there will not be crisis, post primaries, there is no state after eight years with the kind of governor that you have that after eight years, there will not be a crisis in the opposition.
“But if you sit down and look at where Kogi is today, we all have an assignment and it is not Dino’s assignment.
“What has happened in that state in the last eight years, there is no candidate on the APC ticket, it is Yahaya Bello that is on the ticket. So it is a simple question, if you believe that in kogi after eight years of Yahaya Bello, he should have another four years, then go and vote for APC, but if you know that kogi people deserve better, vote for PDP, because a Governor Dino will not leave the workers unpaid,” he said.
