File photograph of Obaseki (left) and Shuaibu his Deputy
- It will be immoral to return to APC
- Oshiomhole, Tinubu can’t decide for Nigerians who should govern them
- Reconciliation is totally up to Oshiomhole
Newly re-elected governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki has drawn the battleline with Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, but has said that he would not carry out his re-election campaign threat of sending the deposed national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) out of Edo if he was reelected.
Obaseki who dumped the APC to run on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) when he fell apart with Oshiomhole should he (Oshiomhole) continue to be unruly and create problem for the Edo People he (Obaseki) would be merciless in dealing with him.
The brand-new governor who will serve Edo State for a second term in office spoke on Arise Television on Tuesday as guest of ‘The Morning Show.’ He made the declaration when he was responding to a question on his threat during electioneering to send the former APC chairman out of town if he (Obaseki) was reelected.
Speaking on the silence of the APC governorship candidate, Mr. Osagie Ize-Iyamu’s since his (Obaseki’s) victory and if he will accept President Buhari’s advice on being magnanimous, the governor expressed his willingness to be magnanimous to Ize-Iyamu if he comes through. He said he had no issues with Ize-Iyamu, rather the problem were factors outside of him, which were the people who lured him into the contest.
He said, “This is not the first time I’m contesting with Pastor Ize-Iyamu, we have family relationship, he’s a pastor and I go to church. We cannot live a life of acrimony or hate; he played his politics on how he knows how to, and I did mine. I will be magnanimous if he comes through, we will have the conversation, there’s enough room for us to have such conversation. I don’t think the problem is Pastor Ize-Iyamu, I know him. I think the problems are factors outside of him, the people who lured him into the contest, I’m sure they are the same ones who are trying to fester the acrimony.
“So, between us there are no issues. The day he calls or makes up his mind on what to do moving forward I’m sure we will be able to have that conversation. But there are people who work with him that know what they’ve done and have been very vicious and evil, I will be surprised if they have the courage to even come up and seek reconciliation,” Obaseki said.
When asked if he will apply that spirit of magnanimity should Oshiomole and some others come to him, the governor said he was likely to forgive others but not someone like Oshiomhole. He explained that Oshiomole, the national leader of APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and others like him were threats to Nigeria’s democracy. He said they cannot sit in the comfort of their houses and determine who becomes what and who gets into what office.
“Certainly, but for someone like Comrade Adams Oshiomole, I wouldn’t want to say much here but clearly when you find that you’ve been deceived, we don’t share the same values or trust at all, it’s his responsibility to build back the trust. As we say in Edo everybody should now maintain their lane, as whatever he is, and I will maintain mine.’
For us the challenge with people like Oshiomhole, Tinubu and others is that they pose a great danger to our democracy; they are extra constitutional players, they constituted themselves into what they say they are, they try to overlap themselves over people who have constitutional authority and if we allow them to continue, they will destroy our democracy. For me it’s straight forward, it’s not a personal issue but about their role in our democracy.
“You cannot have people who are guided by the constitution in office and people who don’t have such mandate or authority or any checks on their conduct come and say they want to control people who have been properly constituted in office. Oshiomhole and Tinubu are non-constitutional actors. They cannot sit in the comfort of their house or wherever they are and determine who becomes what and who gets into what office. It’s very anti-democratic,” he said.
On whether he will consider returning to APC, the governor said it will be immoral to do so. “At this point in time I have been elected on a platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and I have made promises to the people of Edo State, it’s not about me, I won election on the platform of PDP, it will be immoral and unfair of me to have any other consideration at this point about leaving the platform that gave me the mandate and there must be morals in politics and at this point in time I don’t think it’s right to jettison the platform, particularly when I have no issues with the party.”
When asked of his views about his deputy, Mr. Philip Shaibu, the governor of River State, Mr. Nyesom Wike and others who stood by him, Obaseki said: “My deputy governor and I share same values; that’s why through thick and thin he was there for me. For him it’s not about money, it’s about belief, truth, honesty and human values. You don’t have to be a crook, a fox to be a politician. You can be noble and straightforward person and still be a politician.”
On Wike, he said: If he’s not convinced about a situation or an idea, there’s no way you can bully him to, but once he’s convinced and believes in you, he will put everything into supporting what he believes in. He’s a very committed person, he’s committed to PDP and he’s also a very supportive and considerate person. He’s fearless, if he believes in a cause he will fight for it, you can’t cower him. It’s not true that he didn’t not support me, when I was first disqualified he was one of the first people I went to in Port Harcourt and he advised on what to do, all that time we were going back and forth, he was going to make sure that certain issues were cleared so that to avoid challenges in the future and glad he did.”
