Update: Obaseki sinks Oshiomhole deeper

• APC chairman trembles, but not giving up

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State is consolidating on the fight in Edo All Progressives Congress (APC) with the National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, strengthening his forte to ensure the removal of Oshiomhole at the APC NEC meeting on March 17. The Edo Governor is mobilizing all political forces within his reach to deepen the pit towards sinking the embattled APC national chairman to the irredeemable bottom.

Governor Obaseki has consolidated with his allies outside Edo State, particularly, from the southwest and the north, who have vowed to unseat the party chairman. The external forces have successful caged Oshiomhole through suspension order of the Abuja High Court with reference to the suspension by his Ward in Etsako, Edo State.

Attempts by Oshiomhole often hit the rock. The President also appeared to have dumped the chairman; thus, consolidating the Obaseki bloc.

Obaseki had returned home to perfect the plot for the removal of Oshiomhole, summoning a meeting of APC leaders in the south-south for Thursday; the meeting is scheduled to hold in Benin City, Edo State.

The meeting appeared to be the advance stage mobilising party chieftains in the south-south to join the move to remove Oshiomhole as national chairman at the APC national caucus and NEC meetings in Abuja.

Report indicated that several APC stakeholders in the south-south have been in support of Governor Obaseki in the conflagration with Oshiomhole. They were said to be searching for a replacement already from the zone.

However, Oshiomhole through his loyalist in the zone, APC National Vice-Chairman South-South, Prince Hilliard Eta, is fighting back as usual, ordering APC leaders from the south-south to shun the consultative meeting convened by Governor Obaseki. Eta cautioned that the meeting is illegal, adding that the governor lacks the powers to call such meeting.

Eta declared: “I saw the invitation the governor is sending out to people inviting them for a meeting. But I am calling on all our party leaders to shun the meeting because he has no right to convene such meeting.

“I am the South-South Vice Chairman of the party and any APC leadership meeting is convened by me.

“I have also communicated to our political leader in the zone, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, and he is not aware of any such meeting. So, we are calling on all our leaders not to attend any such meeting because it is ill conceived and ill motivated.

“Governor Obaseki is not an officer of the party. He cannot call such zonal meeting without my office. Consultative forum meeting is alien to our party’s constitution. May be the governor is only calling his friends to come together, but not an APC meeting. For me no party leader from the zone will attend the meeting”.

The vice national chairman, south-south was of the view that all party members should be concerned about supporting leaders to strengthen the party.

“At this point in time, we are focusing on how to strengthen our great party under the leadership of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and not to destabilize the party.

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“We urge all stakeholders, including Governor Obaseki, to follow the constitution of the party which is supreme because any meeting called by him without the proper procedure is null and void,” Eta had declared.

The battle continues into the March 17 APC NEC meeting in Abuja.

Meanwhile, Oshiomhole has been on suspension since the Abuja court judgment and has not been allowed access into the party secretariat, Abuja.