From: Tony John, Port Harcourt
Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, has berated Governor Adams Oshiomhole over his penchant for lies and his inconsistencies and panic over the rejection of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State.
Governor Wike stated that it was completely untrue that he and his Delta State counterpart, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa mobilised militants to Edo State.
The governor also denied an allegation by Oshiomhole that he sent N2 billion to the Edo State PDP governorship candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu.
Speaking when he granted audience to the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Rivers State, at the Government House, Port Harcourt, yesterday, Governor Wike said that it was shocking that at his age, Oshiomhole still believed in drama and lies.
He said that he was shocked by Oshiomhole’s allegation because on the day of the campaign, he met with the outgoing governor alongside other APC governors at the Benin Airport where they all embraced.
“Oshiomhole even cornered me and said ‘don’t mind these people, they don’t know that we meet and talk.
“If Oshiomhole has lost the confidence of his people, he should not blame me. He brought the President and 10 APC governors and he was not satisfied. Only because two PDP governors visited Edo State, Oshiomhole is panicking.
“Oshiomhole at his age should stop dramatising and telling lies. What will his children say when they see him behave like that?
“If you cannot win election, you cannot win election no matter the number of security reports that you write.
“Oshiomhole doesn’t know when to stop lying. Why do you think that you will continue to deceive the people? This was the same man who praised former President Goodluck Jonathan for promoting free and fair election, one man, one vote, which saw Oshiomhole win a second term.
“Today, in his notorious inconsistency, anywhere Oshiomhole goes, he insults the former President. When President Buhari leaves office, Oshiomhole will do the same to him,” he said.
Wike noted that he was in Edo to campaign for the PDP the same way that Oshiomhole stormed Rivers State in 2015 to campaign for the then APC governorship candidate in the state.
He charged Nigerians to disregard Oshiomhole’s lies as he is no longer pro-people.
He said: “The Comrade in Oshiomhole has died long ago. There is no Comrade in him. From Khaki, he is now wearing costly imported Safari Suits.”
PDP, APC bicker as INEC dissociates self from any wrong
From Tony Osauzo and Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday threatened to resist and if possible make it impossible for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct the rescheduled September 28 election in the state, if the commission succumbed to alleged pressure from Governor Adams Oshiomhole to change the already appointed Electoral Officers (EOs).
The state chairman of the party, Chief Dan Orbih, made the threat while briefing journalists in Benin City
He said information at his disposal indicated that Oshiomhole has promised his party members he was going to influence INEC to remove the EOs in the 18 local government areas of the state and replace them with EOs from APC friendly states in his bid to compromise the election.
Orbih also accused Oshiomhole of allegedly using the governor of Kaduna State, El-Rufai to influence the postponement of the election from September 10 to September 28, using a female national commissioner of INEC from his state to enable him (Oshiomhole) to “perfect his evil plan to run the election”.
He said the plan is to allow the APC during the period of postponement, to buy all the unclaimed PVCs from the three senatorial districts with a view to bring in APC members from other states to rig the election.
“Part of the plot is to ensure that in the areas where APC is popular, the Card Reader would be made to function, while in areas they are not popular, Incidental Form will be deployed just to undermine the process”, Orbih alleged.
According to him, part of the reasons why the election was shifted was to enable the APC enough time to petition the police to arrest notable leaders of PDP on a trump up charge that they are militants.
Orbih said he is in possession of a letter, inviting one of the female PDP leaders and other long list of party chieftains to be invited by the Police with the aim of keeping them away from the election.
The PDP chairman said he was reliably informed that the state governor has allegedly paid money to militants from Delta and other APC controlled states to come and rig the election and when arrested, should confess they were sent in by PDP to justify his earlier allegation that it was his party that hired them.
“This is to perfect all their plans to rig the election and I want the security agencies to swing into action and arrest them (militants), and go further to find out who sent them for clarity so as not to make the governor achieve his purpose”, he said.
Spokeswoman for Edo State INEC, Mrs. Priscilla Imoudu-Sule, said such allegation was a mere political grammar to distract attention.
She explained that during the Sallah holiday, all the respective EOs went to their various local government areas of operation to retrieve all the materials already sent out for safe keep after the postponement.
“Politicians should leave INEC alone and concentrate on their electioneering campaign rather than dragging the commission along. They should try and make up with whatever ground they have lost in the past”, she advised.
Meanwhile, the Edo State government has described PDP’s allegations as mere lamentation which according to it was an indication that it has lost the election and looking for means to justify their loss.
According to the State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Kassim Afegbua, PDP’s lamentation is an obvious sign they are jittery over the elections because of their mosquito campaigns as opposed to APC community campaigns with a grand finale that shook the entire state at Ogbe stadium before the unfortunate postponement.
PDP plotting mayhem in Edo –Ogie, Obaseki’s campaign DG
Director-General of the Godwin Obaseki Campaign Organisation, Mr Osarodion Ogie, has raised the alarm over alleged sinister plans by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to create tension and possible mayhem in the state ahead of the September 28, governorship election in the state.
Ogie, in a statement said: “we have information on the plot by the PDP to acquire rickety vehicles in different parts of the state, brand them with PDP logo and posters and thereafter set them ablaze. They will then claim that supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were mobilised to attack them.
“The purpose of this evil plan is to portray the APC as a party which abhors opposition views and brand its supporters as violent, thereby causing public disaffection against the party and its candidate.
“We wish to inform the good people of Edo State that the All Progressives Congress has no plan to attack, vandalise or set ablaze any campaign vehicle of the opposition PDP because the APC is a peace-loving party.
“On the contrary, the PDP has a long history of attacking the opposition. We recall how the campaign train of the APC was attacked in Jattu and some vehicles were vandalised and some APC supporters injured.
“We also note how some thugs were deployed by the PDP to vandalise the campaign billboards and banners of the APC candidate, Mr Godwin Obaseki in several parts of the state.
“The APC will only engage the PDP and its candidate on the basis of ideas and present our scorecard to the electorate on what we have done in almost 8 years and what they did not do in 10 years.
“The PDP has devised this devious plot only because they have seen the handwriting on the wall that their journey is heading for imminent doom.
“We wish to alert the security agencies of this latest plot by the PDP and ask that this is nipped in the bud as the PDP plans to use this as an excuse to attack APC supporters across the state”.
We’ll not be distracted by APC’s devious plot, says Ize-Iyamu
The Edo State candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, has urged the Edo people to remain focused and refuse to be provoked by the tricks and devious plans of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He advised the electorate to remain resolute in their determination to kick out the All Progressives Candidate (APC) from the state in the coming election.
The Media Unit of Ize-Iyamu campaign organisation stated this on Wednesday while reacting to a statement credited to the Director-General of the Godwin Obaseki Campaign Organisation, Mr Osarodion Ogie, who accused the PDP of planning to create tension and possible mayhem in the state., Ize-Iyamu said that its candidate would not be distracted by the ‘’senseless alarm’’ of Obaseki’s campaign organisation, saying it had succeeded in revealing its evil plot against the people of Edo State.
‘’We are used to APC’s ungodly strategy; when their leaders are plotting evil against the people, they will be the first to raise the alarm against themselves. The people are now used to their tactics; unfortunately, it is too late for them, and the people will punish them in the coming election.
“As Head of Economic Team of Edo State Government for over seven and a half years, Godwin Obaseki was seen as the brain box of Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole-led government. “The governor itself had admitted that many times. When the government was sworn in nearly eight years ago, the hope of the average Edo people was justifiably raised to the zenith.
“As former President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, many had believed that one of their own—-Oshiomhole, who knows exactly how things should work, had been thrown up by providence as governor. But, today, those high hopes have far dimmed as depression and hunger have been the lot of many Edo people”.
APGA promises to usher in new order
All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Osaro Onaiwu has called on all eligible voters in the state to have a rethink and embrace his party given the circumstances that led to the postponement of the election.
Onaiwu, in a statement said a critical look at the issues that led to the postponement of the September 10, 2016 poll in the state shows that the APC and PDP do not have the interest of Edo people at heart as they were only interested in winning the election at all cost.
The APGA standard bearer and former Director General, Nigeria Governors’ Forum therefore, urged all eligible voters to ensure Edo State gets a fresh breath in governance by entrusting their mandate to the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
Onaiwu, fondly called the SOLUTION, who further appealed to the electorate not to sell their votes, promised not to disappoint Edo people if given the mandate as governor.
