Ahead of the June 22 governorship primary election in Edo state, the All Progressives Congress APC on Wednesday screened its six aspirants, with the screening committee receiving six petitions against the governor and one against Mr Mathew Iduoriyekemwe.
The governor who came out of the screening room around 10 pm expressed misgivings at the operations of the committee, saying that with Adams Oshiomhole dictating affairs of the party, he knows he cannot get justice.
He said; “The last time I came here, I asked that Oshiomhole recuse himself from the process in the interest of peace and justice. But as a party man, I have had to go through the screening like everybody else. Since he is the judge and the jury in this matter, I will just wait for the outcome of the screening. I have given them all the information they need; the controversial certificate from the University of Ibadan has been tendered.
“Like I said, as a party man I have engine through the screening process but I do not believe that I will get justice because Comrade Adams Oshiomhole is an interested party in the Edo process.
One of the questions that were asked was why did I issue a gazette that will prevent the party from performing direct elections in Edo. That did I not see it as an anti-party activity? I just felt that if we put politics above the lives of the people of Edo State, we may be missing the point”. Multiple party sources who confirmed the number of petitions against the duo, however, declined to reveal the identities of the petitioners or the contents of the petition. Obaseki had stormed the national secretariat with his supporters at about 1pm, but no sooner had he entered the secretariat than he rushed back into his car and left the premises.
Gov. Obaseki, however, returned to the national secretariat of the APC at 7.59pm to be screened. He was accompanied by his associates, including Sen. Domingo Obende. Minutes before he returned to the Secretariat, the governor had raised an alarm about alleged attempts by the committee not to screen him. At about 9:15 pm, Mr Iduoriyekemwe arrived at the party secretariat for screening.