Edo: PDP Stakeholders Call For Halt In Impeachment Of Deputy Governor, Shaibu

By Ayodele Oni

Stakeholders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo North axis have called for withdrawal of the impeachment notice issued by the House of Assembly on the Deputy Governor of the state in the interest of peace, unity, progress of the party ahead of the governorship election.

The stakeholders converged in Auchi, the administrative headquarters of Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, on Sunday to protest the plot to impeach the  Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu.

The Assembly has already served the impeachment notice, signed by 21 out of 24 members, on the deputy governor and gave him seven days within which to reply. The petition was based on two grounds of alleged perjury and revealing of government secrets.

The aggrieved PDP stakeholders went round the major streets of Auchi, with some of them carrying placards on which were written advice of caution to the major players in the impeachment plot, Governor Godwin Obaseki; the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Blessing Agbebaku and the other members of the House.

They stated that “we are bonafide registered and active members of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Edo State. We all are here today moved by the need to subsume our precious political differences arising from the that Governorship Primary Exercise especially as we approach the state election in few months time.

“We are most perturbed by the fact that the recent gains at reconciliation of the differences arising from the last primaries is again least complicated by the Notice of Impeachment served on the state Deputy Governor Rt. Hon Philip Shaibu by the Edo State House of Assembly.

“We have therefore as serious stakeholders in the PDP project in our various local governments and state resolved on the following:

“We hereby appeal to the Speaker EDHA, Rt. Hon. Blessing Agbebaku all the PDP members of the House to urgently withdraw and rescind the impeachment notice issued by the house on his Excellency, the Deputy Governor of Edo State for the sake of peace, unity, progress of the party in the pre governorship election time.

“That the withdrawal of the impeachment notice on the Deputy Governor shall go a long way to heal the wounds of the divisioness and exclusion in the party, galvanizing grassroot support for our eventual victory at the upcoming polls.

“That PDP remains the party to beat in the state and in fact the party of continuity at Osadebe Avenue for only the needful as stated above done.”