Ahead of today’s screening of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senatorial aspirants in Lokoja, Kogi State, a strong contender in the Kogi Central, Ismaila Dankogi, has withdrawn from the race.
Dankogi said he withdrew from the race to support former governorship candidate, Chief Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
He made this known while interacting with party stalwarts and senatorial aspirants.
A statement from his campaign office reads: “He will be unveiling his support for his preferred candidate, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the next line of position towards the successful winning of the party in the general election.”
Stakeholders at the session, including two former deputy governors, Patrick Adaba and Philips Salawu, commended Dankogi’s decision and noted his courage and high level of intelligence.
Akpoti-Uduaghan recently defected from the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to the main opposition PDP to pursue her senatorial ambition.
She will be contesting against former Senator Ahmed Ogembe, who was beaten to the third position in 2019 by Senator Oseni Yakubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
FOLLOWING months of consultation with party stakeholders, a two-term member of the House of Representatives and an aspirant for Kogi West senatorial seat in 2023, Sunday Karimi, yesterday, became the first aspirant from the zone to purchase APC’s nomination form.
The Sunday Steve Karimi Media Team expressed confidence in Karimi to win the APC primary election and the general election overwhelmingly, with a call on other aspirants to rally behind him.
According to Karimi, with the massive support Governor Yahaya Bello enjoys across the country in the presidential race, he will also pick the APC ticket and win the presidential election.
Karimi represented Yagba Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives between 2011 and 2019.
Speaking with The Guardian, Karimi called on stakeholders from Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu and Lokoja/Kotonkarfe federal constituencies to support only candidates from Yagba for the 2023 senatorial election in the spirit of the rotation arrangement among the three federal constituencies in Kogi West.
“I know that rotation is not enshrined in the 1999 Constitution as amended. It is an arrangement of parties to give sense of belonging and Fairplay among the component parts of Nigeria, given our heterogeneous mixtures.
“So, if we, in Kogi, are demanding rotation of the governorship to Kogi West, our elders used to say ‘charity begins at home’. So, in the spirit of brotherliness, I believe Yagba deserves to be considered this time around. If we can’t allow gentleman agreement within Kogi West, how much more calling for equity at the governorship level,” he said…. Continue reading