Obaseki cautions Oshiomhole over Edo APC primaries

SDP hopeful of producing governor on September 19
Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki has asked the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, to take a safe distance in the party’s primaries of June 22, 2020 to avoid problems.

Fielding questions from reporters after submitting his expression of interest and nomination forms, the governor maintained that the call was aimed at ensuring a level-playing field for all aspirants for the governorship race.

Reiterating his commitment to the pursuit of peace and harmony in the party, he expressed preference for indirect mode of primaries to determine the party’s flag-bearer.

Faulting media reports that he was on the verge of defecting to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to seek re-election, he said it would be uncharitable for some party chieftains in Edo to accuse him of betraying Oshiomhole.

“I am using this opportunity to call on Oshiomhole to recuse himself from the Edo nomination process because he is an interested party. It is against natural justice for a man to be a judge in his own case. So I think the honourable thing for him to do is to recuse himself and let us have a free process and build our party,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the state has vowed to wrest power from the APC on September 19.

It based its optimism on the crisis rocking the party.

SDP equally declared its preparedness for the polls, stressing that the guidelines released by the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 would be strictly enforced during the party’s primaries.

In an interview in Benin City on the preparation for the primary election, state chairman of SDP, Felix Obayangbon, said the party was fully prepared for the primaries amid the ravaging pandemic.

Obayangbon added that the party’s doors were open to those eyeing its governorship ticket in the forthcoming election.

He vowed to help the party produce the next Edo governor, adding that it would be achievable, as the political actors in the state were enmeshed in crisis leading to the factionalisation of the ruling party.

According to him, SDP is fully on the ground to take over Dennis Osadebey Avenue after the gubernatorial election on September 19.

The disagreement in the ruling party over who gets the ticket has continued to cause dissatisfaction among its members, he added, calling on aggrieved politicians from others parties willing to join the SDP not to hesitate to pitch tent with it, as it had fixed its gubernatorial primary election for June 25.