Senator Dino Melaye (APC, Kogi West) has dragged the Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, and others before the Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja over alleged failure to conduct local government elections in the state.

Dino, in the suit, was asking the court to declare the composition of caretaker committees for the 21 local government areas of the state illegal, null and void.

Those joined as defendants in the suit included the Kogi State House of Assembly, the state’s Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs; the Local Government Service Commission and the Kogi State Independent Electoral Commission.

Others were the Joint Local Government Accounts Allocation Committee, the 21 local government areas of the state, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Minister of Finance, the Federation Accounts and Allocation Committee and the Inspector General of Police (IGP).

The suit, supported by a 30-paragraph affidavit deposed to by Melaye, sought 13 reliefs which included a declaration that the governor, in pursuance of Section 56(1-6) of the Kogi State Local Government Law 2008, could not appoint local government transition committees or sole administrators for the local government areas.

He also prayed the court to declare that the governor, in line with Section 1(3) and Section 7(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria: “Cannot exercise its power in such a manner as to have delayed, refused or neglect to conduct local government elections for the purposes of constituting the various local government councils.”

The lawmaker, besides other issues relating to finance, also asked for a declaration restraining the governor, the House of Assembly, among others, from constituting or appointing any person as caretaker administrator or sole administrator.