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ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT: Melaye knows implication of accusing me –Gov Bello

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ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT: Melaye knows implication of accusing me --Gov Bello

The Kogi State government says Senator Dino Melaye would not accuse Governor Yahaya Bello of being behind an assassination attempt on him knowing well the implications of such.

The government through Director-General, Media and Publicity, Kingsley Fanwo, said he did not believe that Melaye would “make such a sweeping statement on security matters.”

Melaye had told a group of women on Saturday who were protesting the alleged assassination attempt on him that the governor wanted him dead because he was fighting for workers and pensioners in the state.

The protestants carried placards with inscriptions such as; “We, Kogi West Women warn Yahaya Bello, Edward Onoja, Taofiq Isa; touch Dino Melaye and face our wrath”, “Do not kill the light, let the light shine”.

Responding to them, Melaye had said, “Yahaya Bello collected N20 billion naira from federal government as bail out fund, still he refused to settle workers. He also collected N11 billion naira from Paris refund money, still he refused to pay workers and pensioners”

The lawmaker who said “No amount of intimidation will stop me from fighting for the course of my people”, also noted, that “In the history of Kogi West, various political gladiators have, at various times, had their differences but none had ever been escalated to the level of attempt on life.

“The recent incident is alien to Okun people and to Kogi West. The advent of Yahaya Bello as Governor and Taofiq Isa as Local Government administrator in the political firmament of Kogi state has brought this unfortunate socio-political paradigm shift.

But the governor’s aide who would not believe the statements credited to Melaye said Melaye’s supporters, who he described as “largely ignorant about security matters,” might be the ones behind the allegations.

Read also:
Melaye uncomfortable with Gov Bello’s silence over assassination attempt

According to him, “Senator Melaye understands the implications of making such weighty allegations and would not try it.”

It would be recalled that some gunmen were said to have recently invaded the senator’s home at Aiyetoro-Gbede area and destroyed two of his vehicles, while his house was riddled with bullets.
Soon after, the Administrator of Ijumu Local Council in Kogi State, Taofiq Isah, was said to have been arrested in connection with the assassination attempt on Senator Dino Melaye. An eyewitness account said a special squad from the Police Headquarters, Abuja, arrested him at the premises of the Ministry of Education, Lokoja.

However, Isah, who is also the Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, Kogi State chapter, described as “malicious and a tissue of lies,” reports that he had been arrested and whisked away to Abuja over the purported assassination attempt on Melaye

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