A former governorship aspirant in the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) recently conducted governorship primary election and a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon Omosede Igbinedion has expressed reservation on the way Governor Godwin Obaseki has piloted the affairs of the party as its leader since he joined at the eve of his re-election bid in 2020.
In a statement by Igbinedion titled “The hypocrisy of politics”, she said the old members of the party that Obaseki came to meet in the party have been pushed out of the scheme of things as principal offices in the Obaseki administration were taken by himself and those who came with him from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Igbinedion said she expected that the running mate to Ighodalo should have been ceded to the old PDP to give them a sense of belonging.
She also criticized those who have been claiming that she was on her way to the APC because of a recent visit to his Abuja home by the APC governorship candidate, Sen. Monday Okpebholo.
According to Igbinedion “The Governor we have today, only joined the party along with his SSG and a host of others, simply because they had issues in their own party and needed a platform, which the PDP gave them.”
She said some of the people criticizing the picture that surfaced after Okpebholo’s visit “only attend campaigns when and if they are given transport fares, or else they choose not to leave their houses and use money sent to them for data to write rubbish online, same people who demand to be paid to remain in a political Party.
“Go and look at the results from the last federal elections where PDP in Oredo lost to Labour by 37,994 votes, PDP in Egor and Ikpoba Okha lost to Labour by 19,777, PDP in Orhionmwon and Uhumwonde lost by 2,986, whilst PDP in Ovia North East and South West lost by 1,455 votes. We lost all the seats in Edo South at the National. Oredo produced the poorest results for PDP, with only 11,899 votes, compared to the 18,396 votes pulled for PDP in Ovia.
“It is on record that I have never lost Ovia North East, since 2015 till date to any political party. The records are there to show.
“If Anyone has issues with me speaking against the injustice done to the original PDP members who had sustained the party till now and made it formidable enough for the governor to seek reelection in 2019, then I am sorry but I owe you no apology.
“I stepped aside my ambition for governorship on the grounds of equity, fairness and justice for the Esan people and now the question we must answer is; when choosing a deputy governor was it equitable, fair and just to not consider age, gender, the old PDP and the Ovia Constituency, that has never had governor or deputy governor before, but always given block votes to PDP ?
“Do not be deceived, most old PDP Members are silently protesting and ready to either work for Labour or decamp to APC. My appeal as a bonafide PDP Member is that we should settle the House before it’s too late.”
[Vanguard]