The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Vice Chairman, South-South, Chief Dan Osi Orbih has revealed that Governor Godwin Obaseki didn’t pay for the 2020 Edo PDP gubernatorial ticket, challenging the governor to release the name of the person he paid $300,000 for the PDP ticket.
Truth Live News recalls that Obaseki decamped from APC to the PDP a few weeks before the primary elections after he was disgraced by the All Progressive Congress, APC, by being disqualified from contesting in the APC primaries – the Edo PDP took him in and covered his shame and gave him a platform to contest even though there were other party members who had shown interest in contesting in the governorship elections and had already bought interest and nomination forms and were ready to battle for the ticket at the primaries.
It became necessary for the PDP South-South Leader, Orbih on Tuesday, to reveal this to the party leaders, like Senator Ehigie Uzamare, party faithful, and stakeholders to clear himself of the rumors and stories making around that Obaseki paid the money for the ticket to him.
Chief Orbih Said: “After that meeting, it was agreed that we come to Benin. I took a flight to Benin, the governor came to Benin, and the deputy governor came to Benin. And I must say at that meeting for the first time, God gave me an opportunity to look at Governor Obaseki in the face and I challenged him, I’ve heard stories that you said you bought the ticket of PDP.
“Did we exchange hands, did money exchange hands between us and yourselves in your coming to PDP?, Orbih asked Obaseki.
“I said, your deputy governor, Philip Shuaibu sitted here told me that you asked him to contribute three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) in settling the issue of your coming to the PDP and I said, Philip Shaibu said he gave you three hundred thousand dollars to add to the money to give to give to Ogbeide-Ihama and myself.
“I said, Governor Obaseki, can you tell us in this gathering whether you gave 1kobo to me or Ogbeide-Ihama, he said, he did not give us money and he did not tell any person to give us money.
I said Philip Shuaibu you’re seated there, did you not tell us that you gave three hundred thousand dollars to Obaseki to add to the money to settle for the ticket for PDP? He said, he said he settled, in the presence of Obaseki and the other governors looked at themselves, they shook their heads.”
Chief Orbih revealed his efforts to see that the PDP crisis in Edo State is resolved saying that even though the resolution wasn’t fair to him and the party members Obaseki met at the party, they took the resolution in good faith to ensure peace and unity in the party.
He said, “A committee was set up by the party comprising Okowa of Delta State which is the vice presidential candidate, Bala Muhammed of Bauchi state, Darius, and Ortom. Ortom was the chairman of that committee. We met in the early hours of the morning, we came out of that meeting feeling that we have addressed the issues in Edo State.
It was decided even though it was not fair to me and those Obaseki met in this party.
They said Obaseki should produce 13 members of the House of Assembly. The legacy PDP should produce 11 members.
The senatorial candidate ticket of Edo South was agreed by the party at the national level that it should be given to Ogbeide-Ihama so the remaining two should be given, one to Legacy, and one to Obaseki.
National House of Representative candidates, five to legacy PDP, four to Obaseki.
We agreed. We came out of that meeting, we shook hands and we were celebrating the resolution of the problem in Edo State.”
See the Video of the exposure below;