Meet the Most Likely Candidate to Replace Late Abubakar Audu At the Kogi Polls

 

Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who came second to the late Prince Abubakar Audu in the All Progressives Congress’ [APC] governorship primaries is likely to be nominated as the party’s governorship candidate ahead of the supplementary polls slated for next week, according to the Daily Trust.

The Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] has given APC up to December 1 to nominate a replacement for Audu, who died on Sunday shortly after the election was declared inconclusive.

Even though APC’s national chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun said on Tuesday that the party would organize new primaries to pick a replacement for Audu, Daily Trust learnt that party leaders do not intend to hold new primaries and would only make a “substitution.” Party leaders say this is in line with the letter of the Electoral Act, which says a party would be allowed to make a substitution if its candidate dies.

Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who is Igbirra from Kogi State’s central senatorial zone, had polled 703 votes to finish second to Audu in the primaries. In addition to that, sources told a correspondent that Bello was actually preferred by the top party leaders even above Audu, since the latter did not support President Muhammadu Buhari in APC’s presidential primaries last November.

 

Audu was a staunch supporter of former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.