Osagie Ize-Iyamu, a governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo, has taunted Godwin Obaseki, governor of the state, over his exit from APC to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The APC had disqualified Governor Obaseki from the governorship primary over alleged faulty certificates.
Subsequently, the Governor defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on June 19th, which granted him waiver to seek its ticket for the election.
Read Also: Breaking: Edo Election: PDP Grants Obaseki, Deputy Waiver To Contest
In an interview with The Sun, Ize-Iyamu said Obaseki attempted to impose himself as the candidate of APC before he was disqualified.
Ize-Iyamu declared that he is confident of defeating the governor who defeated him in 2016 to be become Edo state Governor when he was the PDP candidate.
He expressed;
He (Obaseki) has now left the party, following his rightful disqualification. Many party members heaved a sigh of relief when he left and currently, we are closing ranks and unifying the party for the election.
Should my party elect me at the primaries on June 22, all the issues you speak of will be resolved in no time because really, they are all political. As aforementioned, we are already reaching out to everyone involved now that the bad apple has voluntarily taken itself out of the bag.
According to him, the people of Edo state are unhappy with Obaseki and are ready to send him out of office.
Ize-Iyamu emphasized that;
Whether in the APC or any other platform, as long as the contest will be determined by Edo people, I am confident of victory against him. If you drive around the state today and feel the pulse of the people, you will understand why I am that confident. The verdict is out on Obaseki’s term as governor. In summary, the people are tired of his problematic leadership, which has focused only on personal battles and needless confrontations.
These contentions are not unusual during election campaigns and processes. Nevertheless, there is a feeling of peculiarity with that of Edo State at this time largely due to desperation of the incumbent Governor Godwin Obaseki, who was determined to impose himself on the party in ways that were undemocratic before his exit.
The governorship aspirant added that;
You saw how he attempted all kinds of tactics, including restricting membership of the party only to those who shared his view, making his personal wishes the law, and devoting resources into brewing confusion and chaos across all levels of the party’s leadership just to have his way.
