The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Campaign Council for the Edo Governorship Election, has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Muhammadu Buhari of an alleged plan to clampdown on opposition party members in Edo State, after leaked video.
The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan taking to their official Twitter handle of the party on Wednesday 19th August 2020, stated that the leaked video where Adams Oshiomhole and Chief of Staff, Gambari where caught on tape supposedly speaking about arresting opposition members confirms their worst fears ahead of the Governorship election in Edo state.
He said:
“The brazen admission by the Buhari Presidency that the sacked national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole and the Chief of Staff to Mr President, Prof, Ibrahim Gambari, met at the Presidential villa, during which, as shown in the trending leaked video, they discussed the arrests of certain individuals ahead of the September 19 election has confirmed our nation’s worst fears,” he stated.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary stated further by adding that:
“It indeed speaks volumes that the Buhari Presidency is trying to rationalize the plot by the godfather of the APC
candidate, pastor Ize Iyamu, Adams Oshiomhole, who was captured on the trending leaked video, plotting to use compromised security operatives to clamp down on certain unnamed Nigerians to achieve political suppression and rig the Edo governorship election.
“Of course, the Presidency and the APC cannot post a denial because they have been caught and exposed by the Nigerian people, who generally detest their lies, propaganda, underhand methods, resort to violence and rigging of the election.
By describing the discussion by Oshiomhole and Prof. Gambari, in which Oshiomhole was heard finalizing a plot to clampdown political rivals, as “an innocent conversation”, the Buhari Presidency has further exposed its complicity.
This convoluted admission by the Presidency speaks more of the conversation that must have held behind closed doors with President Muhammadu Buhari, Nigerians were further alarmed by the admission that Oshiomhole, the face of the APC campaign, was at the Presidential Villa for discussions on “emerging incidents of violence in the run-up to the election” as well as the “use of Law enforcement”, in an election in which he and the APC have displayed desperation to grab power at all costs” he said.
The PDP in their statement further raised some questions, where they asked:
“The question is: when did Oshiomhole become the National Security Adviser (NSA). When did Oshiomhole become a service chief? Is Oshiomhole holding any statutory position in the government or even in the APC, as a party, to warrant a security meeting with the President, if the meeting was not for ulterior partisan purposes on the Edo election?
This development also points to the obvious fact that the security architecture of our nation has been abandoned by statutory officials and now vested in political hooligans as well as characters like Oshiomhole for suppression of innocent Nigerians and rigging of elections.
If the meeting was indeed focused on genuinely curbing violence, as being claimed by the Presidency, why were leaders of other political parties and other stakeholders in the Edo governorship election not invited?
Why was this meeting centred on the arrest and clampdown of political rivals?
Our National Campaign on Edo State Governorship Election is worried by the discussion between Oshiomhole and Prof. Gambari because of the history of electoral violence that has characterized elections under this administration.
Already, our National Campaign has been made aware of plots by Oshiomhole to design fake military, police and other security agencies’ uniforms for APC thugs with the view of using them to unleash violence and clampdown on traditional, faith-based and community leaders in Edo state on trumped-up charges.
While our National Campaign understands the pedigree of Prof. Gambari, we want to however caution him not to allow his record of service to be tainted with the violence being perpetrated by the
APC in Edo as well as Oshiomhole’s repeated calls for clampdown on the Edo people, ahead of the election. The world is watching!
Furthermore, it is ludicrous for the Presidency to conjure “facts” on parties levelling accusations of violence against one another while pretending towards the attack on the PDP leaders at the Oba’s Palace in Benin, which has been in the public domain.
Till date, the Presidency has said nothing over the meeting held between the APC candidate, Ize Iyamu and some thugs, where he was seen on a viral video, giving instructions to them to break electoral laws and use violence to rig elections for him.
As at the moment, nobody has been arrested or questioned by the security agencies and nothing has been heard from the Presidency on that callous invitation to public violence.
Recently, the campaign train of our candidate, Governor
Obaseki had suffered several attacks from APC thugs. In these attacks, Obaseki was firmly defended by the people of Edo state, who had vowed, in their majority, to re-elect him because of his performance and personal integrity” the PDP added.