Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
Elder statesman and the immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has again chided his successor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, over the alleged role he is playing leading to the crisis in Edo State.
Apparently reacting to the recent outburst and indictment by Governor Godwin Obaseki and the House of Representatives ad-hoc Committee, Oyegun said he was yet to come to terms on why Oshiomhole had easily forgotten that he never interfered in Edo State affairs as the national chairman of the ruling party while he Oshiomhole held forte then as governor.
In a statement issued by his Public Affairs Adviser, Ray Morphy, Oyegun wondered why Oshiomhole had failed to realised that Governor Obaseki should be supported as the only APC governor in the South-South geopolitical zone rather than vilifying and destabilising his administration.
Reacting further, Oyegun, a former governor of Edo state, expressed shock at Oshiomhole for blatantly and brazenly engaging in anti-party activities to the extent that the party in Edo is now riden with confusion and division.
The disappointed Oyegun also wondered why a man who claimed to have buried godfatherism in Edo State politics could play God and become an agent of disruption to the smooth running of the state government.
He specifically urged the progressive governors not to stand aside and watch their fellow governor being hampered by a party chairman whose actions might lead to the political misfortune of the party.
“The recent outburst of Governor Obaseki and the report by the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee, indicting the current National Chairman of the APC, have confirmed my earlier claim that Oshiomhole is not only the architect but also responsible for fuelling the crisis in Edo State.
“In the face of these confirmations, I want to urge Oshiomhole to stop disgracing the ruling party and the good people of Edo State. I wonder how he could easily forget that I never interfered or bothered about how he ran the government as the then governor of Edo State all the while I occupied the position of the party’s national chairman.
“I am yet to come to terms why it has become difficult for Oshiomhole to realise that Governor Obaseki is the only APC governor in the entire South-South and should be allowed to concentrate on giving the people of Edo the dividend of democracy.
“It is shocking that a man who boastfully claimed to have buried godfatherism in the Edo State politics could become enmeshed in playing God to his successor. Oshiomhole is not only guilty of godfatherism but also guilty of anti-party activities considering the ignorable role he has been playing and his shameful involvement in the whole Edo crisis.
“Rather than dissipating energy in fomenting more crises, Oshiomhole should concentrate on ensuring that the Federal government policies conform with the party’s manifesto and campaign promises to the good people of this country.
“I appeal to him once more to stop disgracing the governing party, APC, and Edo State. He should give the governor a breeding space to concentrate on doing the job of serving the people of Edo State.
“I want to also appeal to the progressives governors not to stand aside and watch their fellow governor hampered by a party chairman whose actions may lead to political misfortune of the party in the state,” Oyegun appealed in the statement.