By Adesina Soyooye
Unless a miracle happens, the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, will be kicked out of his office within Government House in a few days time.
When that happens, it will mark the worst humiliation of Shaibu as a Deputy Governor by his boss and former political ally, Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Obaseki has, according to reports, ordered that Shaibu be relocated from the Deputy Governor’s office, located within Government House, to an office outside Government House. This relocation could mark the end of Shaibu’s access to the Governor.
In the past couple of weeks, Shaibu has faced public humiliation in the hands of the Governor, who according to Shaibu, is not happy that he dared have the ambition to succeed him in office as Governor.
In Nigeria, it is a cardinal sin for Deputy Governors to aspire to succeed their bosses in office.
Obaseki has, however, accused Shaibu of stabbing him at the back, an allegation the embattled Deputy Governor strongly denied, and, on, at least, two occasions, publicly proclaimed his loyalty to the Governor. But he, also, pointed out that his loyalty does not stop him from his aspiration to succeed the Governor in office.
His pledge of loyalty has cut no ice with Obaseki who, in the past couple of weeks, has publicly cut Shaibu to size.
For instance, at the Thanksgiving Service to mark the anniversary of the creation of Edo State, a Security Officer blocked Shaibu from his attempt to greet the Governor, who looked on, unconcerned, as the ugly drama played out. An Aide to the Governor justified the incident by saying “the Security officer was only doing his job.”
A couple of days later at another function, Shaibu’s entourage which included his Media people, was blocked from accompanying him to the function. The Deputy Governor, reportedly, stormed out in anger. In response, the Governor sacked Shaibu’s Media Crew.
Before now, sensing a plan to impeach him, Shaibu had ran to a Federal High Court in Abuja for protection. He was granted, but both the Governor and the House of Assembly denied there was any such plan to impeach him.
Obaseki and Shaibu were both of the All Progressives Congress, APC. They defected to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, when the APC, under the Leadership of Obaseki’s political mentor and predecessor in office, Adams Oshiomhole, denied Obaseki a second term ticket. Both Obaseki and Shaibu won the second term in office under the PDP. Recently, Obaseki accused Shaibu of plans to defect to the APC, but Shaibu dismissed it as a huge lie.
Shaibu’s new office, according to a report in Saturday Punch, is located at 7 Dennis Osadebey Avenue, close to the Government House.
Reported the Paper: “The building used to be the office of the Edo State Public Procurement Office which was inaugurated by former governor Adams Oshiomhole, on December 16, 2014. In fact, the plaque stating the inauguration date is etched by the entrance of the building.
“A signboard with the inscription, ‘Office of the Deputy Governor’ is erected at the entrance.”
The leadership of the PDP has not been able to successfully intervene in the rift between the two former allies which is likely to affect the outcome of the oncoming Governorship election.
