Stop misleading the public with perfidious allegations, focus on issues-based campaign, Police warn Kogi SDP guber candidate, Ajaka

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BY TIMOTHY AGBOR

The Kogi State Police Command has berated the Governorship Candidate of the Social Democratic Party in the state, Yakubu Ajaka, for accusing the State Commissioner of Police, Bethrand Onuoha of plans to attack his supporters in Kogi Local Government Area.

Onuoha warned Ajaka and his Campaign Organisation to desist from misleading members of the public with perfidious allegations, but rather focus on issues-based campaign ahead of the November 11 gubernatorial election in the state.

In a strongly worded statement issued on Monday by the Police Public Relations Officer, William Aya, for the CP of the Command, Onuoha dismissed the allegation and described it as fake, incendiary, perfidious, malicious and misleading.

While reiterating the commitment of the Police to providing a level-playing ground for all political parties in the state before, during and after the forthcoming poll, Onuoha declared that the statement credited to one Faruk Adejoh-Audu, Director Communications of Murtala Yakubu Ajaka Gubernatorial Campaign Organisation, was not only the figment of the imagination of Adejoh-Audu and Ajaka whom he said had mastered the art of political gimmickry and brigandage, but totally false, malicious, pretentious, and highly mischievous.

The police boss further warned the SDP governorship flagbearer against “resorting to cheap blackmail, bullying and arm-twisting for political sympathy from the public who already know their tricks, gimmicks and antecedents.”

He asked Ajaka not to drag him into politics and advised him to focus on issues-based campaigns and solicit for support from the electorate.

The statement read, “The attention of the Kogi State Police Command has been drawn to a fake, incendiary, perfidious, malicious and misleading allegations making the rounds by one Faruk Adejoh-Audu, Director Communications Murtala Yakubu Ajaka Gubernatorial Campaign Organization to the effect that, the Commissioner of Police, Bethrand Onuoha plans attack on Ajaka Supporters in Kogi LGA.

“The Command wishes to emphatically and categorically state that, the statement is not only the figment of the imagination of Faruk Adejoh-Audu and his Political Candidate Yakubu Ajaka who has mastered the art of political gimmickry and brigandage, but totally false, malicious, pretentious, and highly mischievous.”

“The Commissioner of Police who upon assumption of duty one month ago has so far demonstrated a high level of professionalism by providing a level playing ground for all Political Parties and their Candidates to operate in the State should not be dragged into Politics.

“The SDP Candidate and his Campaign Organization should leave the Police alone and focus on issues-based Campaigns and soliciting for support from the electorate instead of resorting to cheap blackmail, bullying and arm-twisting for Political sympathy from the public who already know their tricks, gimmicks and antecedents.

“The entire narrative to injure, assassinate and malign the hard-earned reputation and integrity of the Commissioner of Police is the height of insensitivity, callousness, self-serving and emblematic of desperation, vindictiveness, a propensity for destructiveness and to salivate the insidious and vaulting political ambition of a psychopath,” it added.

Recalling how Ajaka and his supporters attacked the convoy of the Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, the CP revealed that Ajaka had been dodging Police invitation to explain his own side of the onslaught which left many aides of the governor injured.

“It would be recalled that, on 3rd June, 2023 along Abuja-Lokoja road, the SDP Candidate, Murtala Yakubu Ajaka and his supporters blocked and attacked the Convoy of the Executive Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello at Banda some kilometers away from Lokoja. During the attack, some of the Governor’s aides sustained varying degrees of injuries. All efforts, invitations and entreaties to come and give his own side of the incident has come to nought. Yet, he has been moving around the nooks and crannies of the State without any molestation even when he has no immunity. The case is still under Investigation,” Onuoha disclosed.

Onuoha said, “In a democracy, freedom of expression is a right, but it must be accompanied by responsibility, not to hide under its guise to spin out lies, falsehood, innuendos and sensationalism. It shows the writer and his sponsors have no decorum, decency, intellect, and are oblivious of the legal consequences of defamation and assassination of character.”

“The Commissioner of Police hereby appeals to Murtala Yakubu Ajaka and his Campaign Organization to leave him alone, stop all the negative write-ups and frivolous allegations aimed at under-mining the spirited crime-fighting efforts of the Police in Kogi State and whipping up sentiment against them and heating up the State for no just cause.

“And to the good and peace loving, highly enlightened, politically sophisticated citizens of Kogi State, the Commissioner of Police urges you all to disregard and discountenance such mischievous and malicious information, and to be wary of being hoodwinked by merchants of violence, but instead gravitate towards issues that unite the State rather than those that divide you, please.”