Edo Guber: Real reason PDP may not participate in peace accord signing – Gov Obaseki

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has raised serious concerns regarding the scheduled Peace Accord signing for the upcoming election.

Obaseki hinted that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) might not participate, citing alleged favoritism by the Police towards the All Progressives Congress (APC).

During a visit from National Peace Committee Chairman and former Military Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, in Benin City, Obaseki expressed his apprehensions about the role the Police have played since the start of the election campaign. He claimed that the Police had arrested several prominent PDP members, including Hon. Collins Aigbogun, chairman of Esan West Local Government Area, who was taken to Abuja despite Obaseki’s call for the case to be handled locally.

Adding to the concern, Edo State PDP chairman, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi, pointed to the appointment of individuals allegedly aligned with former Rivers State Governor and current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, to strategic electoral and security positions in Edo. He argued that these appointments could compromise the integrity of the election.

With accusations of selective targeting and the unresolved detention of key PDP figures, Obaseki questioned the impartiality of the Peace Accord process.

According to him, “You are very conversant with the politics of Edo State. You were here in 2020 and we had a very heated election. You know this is an off-cycle election and there is a lot of attention.

“Unlike 2020, I am very worried with the developments in the State today. The party met yesterday and we might not likely sign this agreement. This is the first time we are witnessing that the person who is supposed to keep and enforce the peace accord is now an active participant in creating a destructive environment.

“The opposition party in the State, the APC has always argued that they may not be as popular and didn’t win in the last election but however promised to use Federal might to determine the outcome of the election.”

He added: “We thought it’s just rhetoric but in the last four weeks, we’ve had a situation where from the office of the IGP, armed gang policemen have come into Edo State to invade, arrest and take away PDP members.

“As we speak there are 10 PDP members arrested and detained in Abuja without a trial. Two days ago, they came to pick up a local government chairman. The Chairman was going back home and was attacked and shot at. We reported and the police asked him to come and give evidence, he came and was arrested. As I speak, he is in Abuja.

“Even if an offense has been committed in Edo State, why will you not charge the offenses and try them here in the State. Why take them to Abuja, are the offenses of high treason? Why not charge them to court?

“The IGP’s office came in, issued a warrant to arrest 60 PDP supporters, driving all our leaders into hiding. My role as the Chief Security Officer of the State is being made nonsense of by the IGP. I heard somebody was arrested and I called the Commissioner to inform him. He said he will come back to me only to hear that he moved the person to Abuja.

“Tell me sir, how can we sign a peace accord in this situation? Clearly, what they are saying is that it’s going to be a violent election and that they are going to use the forces of coercion and intimidation to win elections in Edo whether we like it or not. That is the message.

Now that the IGP is in town, we say until everybody arrested is brought back to Edo and be tried here in Edo for whatever offences they have committed, we have no confidence that the police will protect us in Edo State during the Governorship election.”

On his part, the chairman of the PDP in Edo, Aziegbemi, said the party is raising dust over the involvement of Wike’s associates in the election because of the well-documented disagreement between the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, and the FCT Minister, Wike, noting that the party sees the involvement of the officials as a recipe for disaster as they share close links with the Minister and are wont to do his bidding before, during and after the elections.

The PDP chair also stressed that the close link between these officials and the minister means that the election may have been compromised even before it kicked off.

In a statement, Aziegbemi said: “We are worried that the election may have been compromised even before it starts. This is because we are certain that the officials responsible for conducting a free, fair and credible election are close associates of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.

“The INEC REC in Edo is Wike’s cousin and served as a Special Adviser on Lands to him in Rivers State. Everyone in Nigeria knows the antecedents of Wike and his conduct during elections in Rivers State. So we will not close our eyes and watch him deploy the same tactic in Edo State.

“The current Edo State Commissioner of Police, Nemi Edwin-Iwo, is also a close associate of Wike. We believe he would not act in the best interest of Edo people nor even in the spirit and letters of the electoral act.

“So, it is no wonder that the Police have been acting arbitrarily in the run up to the election. They have been after members and leaders of the PDP in the last few weeks, as a rogue team has been hounding, arresting and whisking PDP leaders away to Abuja in a gestapo style. So, for us, the precedent has been set and we will not sit and watch these men cause chaos in the State in pursuit of personal vendetta.”