Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has explained why he asked outgoing political office holders in the state for election results in their polling unit.

Bello explained that results were requested purely for research and planning purposes and not for the sake of vendetta as widely circulated.

The governor, who spoke through his Director-General of Media and Publicity, Kingsley Fanwo was reacting to a memo circulating requesting political office holders to show the election results of their Polling Units.

Addressing reporters in Lokoja, the state capital, Fanwo said the hues generated by the memo was “unnecessary”.

He said:” Our attention has been drawn to an internal memo illegally circulated on the social media and the mischievous meanings read into the memo.

“We wish to make it clear that the memo was nothing but a routine data collation for the purposes of research and planning. It has nothing to do with the falsetto of a falsehood that the memo was aimed at political vendetta.

“The Governor has intrinsic confidence in his outgoing aides as people of impeccable loyalty to the development of our dear State. Their incredible contributions to the electoral success of the Governor and the All Progressives Congress are not in doubt.

“Our research office will collate all the results and analyze them for planning. All the three Senatorial Districts gallantly stood in defense of our EBIGO concept as they saw a bigger picture of a united Kogi State.

“It was unscrupulous and petty for career pull downers to attribute such call to political vendetta.

He insisted that the claim was part of the opposition’s larger plan to “discredit our hard-earned victory”.

“We know they have been striving to justify their historic failure at the polls. They said we were violent when they were the real perpetrators of violence. Their next line is to cause dissatisfaction among APC leaders and members, a plan which is dead on arrival”, he said.