KOGI POLITICS HEATS UP: Protests in Kogi over Audu’s replacement

Protests rocked Kogi State, yesterday, following a report that a candidate had been picked by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Saturday’s governorship supplementary election outside Kogi East, dominated by Igala people where the Prince Abubakar Audu, the late candidate of the party, hailed from.

The report had said, yesterday, that the APC leadership had picked Audu’s closest rival in the party’s primary ahead of the Kogi governorship election, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, to replace the deceased in the supplementary election.


Separately, the APC leadership denied that the party had given the governorship ticket to Bello.

Bello is Ebira, from Kogi Central, while the Igala people are rooting for one of their own and Audu’s son, Mohammed, to pick the APC ticket.

Protesting youths of Igala extraction, yesterday, blocked River Benue Bridge, to drive home their demand that Igala should get the APC ticket.

They threatened to destroy the bridge at a location called Itobe.

There were similar protests in Ochadamu in Dekina Local Government Area and Idah.

Meanwhile, youths of Kogi West, under the aegis of Okun Youths Forum, cautioned against throwing the state into crisis on the grounds of a non-Igala emerging as the APC candidate for the supplementary election.

At press time, police were said to be battling to disperse the protesters who took over River Benue Bridge as they grew in number.

The protest caused traffic gridlock on both sides of the bridge as motorists could not proceed.

One of the leaders of the protesters said any attempt by the Ebira to take power through the backdoor would be vehemently rejected.

“We voted for the late Prince Abubakar Audu, an Igalaman. We didn’t vote for Yahaya Bello. Bringing in an Ebira man to replace an Igala will lead to chaos. The Okun and Ebira will need to wait for their time. APC should retrace its steps”, he said apparently referring to the purported nomination of Bello as the APC candidate.


At Ochadamu Junction leading to Anyigba, the nerve centre of Igala commerce, bonfires were seen on the road.

Some youths were also sighed protesting on the streets of Anyigba, Ajaka, Abejukolo, Ankpa and Ogbonicha, the home town of Audu.

The protest assumed riotous dimension at Idah where the youths were heard chanting, “No Mohammed Audu, no supplementary poll,” in their local dialect.

Also, the homes of those they claimed were trying to trade Igala interest were targeted by the protesters.

A leader of the youths revealed that they will make Kogi ungovernable if Mohammed did not replace his late father as the APC governorship candidate.