Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole was conspicuously absent on Thursday, when President Muhammadu Buhari met with progressives governors in the State House, Abuja.
The two-hour meeting held at the conference room of President Buhari, had in attendance Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo; chairman of progressive forum and Governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Bagudu; governors of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi; Borno, Babagana Zulum; Edo, Godwin Obaseki; Kaduna, Nasir El-Rufai; Gombe, Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya; Ogun, Dapo Abiodun; Nasarawa, Abdullahi Sule; Plateau, Simon Lalong; Osun, Gboyega Oyetola; Jigawa, Badaru Abubakar and the deputy governors of Niger and Kogi states.
They governors arrived for the meeting scheduled for 3pm way before time but declined to speak when they left the meeting at about 5pm.
Recalled that the crisis in Edo State House of Assembly worsened wednesday as the seats of 12 members-elect, who had failed to present themselves for inauguration, as well as two others, who didn’t meet mandatory sitting requirement to continue as members of the House, were declared vacant.
In a related development, the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Idris Wase, also held a separate meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari.
Omo-Agege and Wase arrived at the Presidential Villa, shortly after Buhari’s meeting with the governors ended.
They met briefly with Kyari and soon drove out the Villa in the same vehicle at 6.31pm.
Both presiding officers from the National Assembly also declined to speak on their mission to the State House.
It was not immediately clear if their meeting with Kyari was connected with the earlier meeting with Buhari.