TheCable

Dino Melaye, lawmaker representing Kogi west senatorial district, will not be contesting the state governorship election after polling only 70 votes in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary election held on Wednesday.

He came a distant fourth in the election which was won by Musa Wada, brother of Idris Wada, ex-governor of the state.

Wada polled 748 votes to clinch the opposition party ticket for the November 16 governorship election.

Abubakar Ibrahim, son of a former governor of the state, came second with 710 votes. Idris Wada came third with 345 votes.

Others aspirants who contested the primary are Aminu Suleiman (55 votes), Victor Adoji (54 votes), Erico Joseph (42 votes), Saliu Atawodi (11 votes), Emmanuel Omebije (9 votes), Mohammed Shuaibi (4 votes), Bayo Michael (2 votes) and Jabiru Haruna (0 vote).

Musa Wada will now lock horns with Yayaya Bello, governor of the state, who is the flagbearer of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the election.

Melaye’s loss in the election comes less than two weeks after the election tribunal sacked him as a federal lawmaker and ordered a fresh election in his senatorial district.

Reacting to the ruling, Melaye had said there would only be another election in Kogi west after he had been sworn in as governor of the state.