On Tuesday, Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello publicly acknowledged and accepted the verdict from the Appeal Court, which affirmed Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of the Peoples Democratic Party as the legitimately elected Senator for Kogi Central.
Speaking to State House correspondents following a Police Council meeting at the Aso Rock Villa, Bello stated, “I accept the decision of the appeal court, and I take this opportunity to congratulate my colleague, Barrister Natasha, as the senator of the Kogi Central Senatorial District.” He continued, “As the Governor of Kogi State, I received the news of the Court of Appeal’s decision that nullified Senator Abubakar Ohere’s election and upheld Barrister Natasha Akpoti as the senator representing Kogi Central.”
The court had previously dismissed the appeal filed by Abubakar Ohere of the All Progressives Congress, deeming it lacking in merit. In September, the state Election Petitions Tribunal had already declared Akpoti-Uduaghan as the winner of the Kogi Central Senatorial election, and it had invalidated Ohere’s victory. The tribunal’s chairman, Justice K. A. Orjiako, delivered a unanimous judgment, revealing that Ohere’s election results had been fraudulently inflated in nine polling units in the Ajaokuta Local Government Area, leading to the ruling in favor of Akpoti-Uduaghan.
