Shaibu Backs APC Candidate Okpebholo For Edo Poll

Former Deputy Governor of Edo State Philip Shaibu has hinted that he will be supporting the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Monday Okpebholo, for the September 21 governorship election in the state.

Recall that Shaibu was impeached by the state House of Assembly on April 8 following a protracted battle with Governor Godwin Obaseki over his succession bid.

Shaibu who spoke with journalists on the occasion of the Father's Day Celebration at the St Paul Catholic Church in Benin City, said Okpebholo had the characteristics of the ‘homeboy’ needed to take over governance in Edo State.

He described the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Asue Ighodalo as a product of godfatherism.

He said a former governor of the state, Adams Oshiomhole, preached against godfatherism and he joined Obaseki to fight against godfatherism during the 2020 election, adding that he had also learnt new political strategies from the governor.

Shaibu said, “I am a very good learner and learning is what is most important in our lives and we must continue to learn till we die.

Governor Obaseki said he has the right to support whoever he wants to support but he also forgot that he doesn’t have the right to stop anybody from supporting whoever they want to support. So, it is my right to also decide who I want to support.

“I will support a homeboy. I came into the contest to be governor of Edo State because I needed governance to return to a homeboy, somebody who understands our plight and somebody who understands what the people are feeling.

“We don’t want an outsider. We have experimented with an outsider and it is not working, so this time, we want a homeboy. We have only two home boys in the major political parties; one is in the Labour Party and another is in the APC.

“I chose to follow the homeboy in the APC. The man they are parading in the PDP is an outsider and we have also agreed that no more godfatherism in Edo. The man the PDP is parading is the godson of Obaseki and there is no way a godson can be governor of Edo State again.”