Edo guber: Tension as IGP, Obaseki, PDP disagree over Police alleged bias
By Ozioruva Aliu
BENIN CITY—THE brewing tension over insecurity ahead of the September 21 governorship in Edo State deepened, yesterday, as Governor Godwin Obaseki and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Tony Aziegbemi bickered with the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, over alleged bias of the police against the PDP.
The bickering came as the IGP said 35,000 policemen would be deployed across Edo State for the September 21 governorship election and that another 8,000 from sister security agencies like the armed forces, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, to complement the police.
Egbetokun stated this at the stakeholders meeting organized by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, where its Chairman, Professor Mahmud Yakubu, disclosed that former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, retd., was already in town to preside over the signing of the peace pact by parties and their candidates, today (Thursday).
The event had representatives of the 18 participating political parties, the Inter-Party Advisory Council, IPAC, the palace of the Oba of Benin, civil society groups and others.
In his remarks, Egbetokun also said the suspension of the activities of quasi-security organizations like the Edo State Security Network, ESSN, and others set up by the state government to check insecurity remain suspended and that they have no role to play on the day of election.
He said security aides attached to VIPs would be withdrawn. He reeled out the various election offences and warned that anyone caught violating them would be treated according to the law.
His words: “It is the responsibility of all stakeholders to ensure that elections take place and the security of all is the responsibility of the police and we will be supported by other security agencies to ensure safety. We understand the importance of our role in this election and we will ensure that everything is done in compliance with that.
“We will deploy sufficient personnel for the election. For the Edo State Governorship election, we will deploy 35,000 personnel, there will be another 8,000 from other security agencies to complement us. We have undertaken several measures including a tour of hot spots, engaging stakeholders and operational visits and we will continuously engage all.”
He said all entry and exit points in the state would be manned while movements would be restricted between 6 am and 6 pm and urged the political leaders to warn their members against any form of violence.”
INEC chairman assures of credible poll
Also speaking, INEC chairman said the Commission has implemented 11 of the 13 activities on schedule and that “As of today, we have only two outstanding activities. These are the last days of campaigning by political parties which, according to law, ends 24 hours before the date fixed for the elections i.e. at midnight on Thursday 19th September 2024 and Election Day on Saturday 21st September 2024.”
H said the Commission made some adjustments to the final list of candidates based on court judgments which included the replacement of the running mate to the candidate of the Labour Party and the National Rescue Movement (NRM) which he said could not file its nomination on schedule, and obtained a court order to compel the Commission to include the party on the ballot which now increased the number of political parties in the election from 17 to 18.
He disclosed that 184,438 PVCs made of 119,206 new voters and 65,232 transfers had been sent to Edo. He said the Commission has accredited 134 groups (124 domestic and 10 international) that would deploy 1,836 observers across the state and has accredited 114 media organisations deploying 721 journalists.
INEC extends collection of PVCs
Meanwhile, the INEC yesterday said it has extended the collection of Permanent Voters Cards, PVCs from September 13 to 15.
A statement by National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, said the decision was taken to give voters more time to collect their cards and take part in the poll.
Why PDP may not sign Peace Accord – Obaseki
However, Edo State Governor and leader of the PDP in the state, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has indicated that the PDP may not sign the Peace Accord today on the grounds that the Police, who are responsible for enforcing the accord have, through their actions, shown that they are acting in the interest of the APC and waging war against the PDP.
Obaseki spoke when he received the Chairman of the National Peace Committee, NPC, General Abubakar, who was on a courtesy visit to the Government ahead of the signing of the Peace Accord.
Meanwhile, the Edo State Chairman of the PDP, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi, raised an alarm over the deployment of alleged associates of former Governor of Rivers State and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, to act as Edo Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, and Edo Commissioner of Police.
The governor, in a statement he personally signed on September 10, noted that since the commencement of the electioneering process in the State, the steps taken by the Police had shown that they were one-sided.
During his interaction with Abubakar in Benin City, Obaseki expressed worry that the Police under the manipulation of the APC, had arrested no fewer than 10 PDP chieftains who they perceived would be strong political opposition to them in the coming election, including the serving Chairman of Esan West Local Government Area, Hon. Collins Aigbogun, who was arrested and whisked to Abuja.
He noted that upon learning of the council chairman’s arrest, he reached out to the Edo State Commissioner of Police, asking that due process be followed and that the matter be handled within the state’s jurisdiction, a directive which was flouted, directly undermining his authority as the Chief Security Officer of the State. The governor also noted that the PDP chairman had written two petitions to the IGP over the harassment of the party’s leaders, which had not been attended to.
Obaseki therefore queried how one would enter a peace accord with an umpire who, from the onset, had shown bias in favour of one of the parties in the election.
The governor demanded immediate and unconditional release of the PDP chieftains, who he said were arrested in gestapo style by the Police and whisked to secret holding centres, noting that if the PDP leaders were legally arrested, they should be charged to courts in Benin City to answer for whatever infractions they are said to have committed.
He told Abubakar: “You are very conversant with the politics of Edo State. You were here in 2020 and we had a very heated election. You know this is an off-circle election and there is a lot of attention.
“Unlike 2020, I am very worried about the developments in the state today. The party met yesterday and we might not likely sign this agreement. This is the first time we are witnessing that the person who is supposed to keep and enforce the peace accord is now an active participant in creating a destructive environment.
“The opposition party in the State, the APC has always argued that they may not be as popular and didn’t win in the last election but promised to use Federal might to determine the outcome of the election.
“We thought it’s just rhetoric but in the last four weeks, we’ve had a situation where from the office of the IGP, armed gang policemen have come into Edo State to invade, arrest and take away PDP members.
“As we speak there are 10 PDP members arrested and detained in Abuja without a trial. Two days ago, they came to pick up a local government chairman. The Chairman was going back home and was attacked and shot at. We reported and the police asked him to come and give evidence, he came and was arrested. As I speak, he is in Abuja.
“Even if an offense has been committed in Edo State, why will you not charge the offenses and try them here in the State? Why take them to Abuja, are the offenses of high treason? Why not charge them to court?
“The IGP’s office came in, issued a warrant to arrest 60 PDP supporters, driving all our leaders into hiding. My role as the Chief Security Officer of the State is being made nonsense of by the IGP. I heard somebody was arrested and I called the Commissioner to inform him. He said he will come back to me only to hear that he moved the person to Abuja.
“Tell me sir, how can we sign a peace accord in this situation? Clearly, what they are saying is that it’s going to be a violent election and that they are going to use the forces of coercion and intimidation to win elections in Edo whether we like it or not. That is the message. Now that the IGP is in town, we say until everybody arrested is brought back to Edo and be tried here in Edo for whatever offences they have committed, we have no confidence that the police will protect us in Edo State during the Governorship election.”
REC, CP’s links to Wike worrying – Aziegbemi
On his part, the chairman of the PDP in Edo, Aziegbemi, who accused the IGP of bias, said the party is raising dust over the involvement of Wike’s associates in the election because of the well-documented disagreement between Governor Obaseki, and Wike, noting that the party sees the involvement of the officials as a recipe for disaster as they share close links with the Minister and are wont to do his bidding before, during and after the elections.
Aziegbemi, in a statement, noted that Anugbum Onuoha, the Edo State REC, was a special adviser on Lands to Wike when he served as Rivers State Governor, adding that the Edo Commissioner of Police, CP Nemi Edwin-Iwo, a close associate of the FCT Minister, was deployed to the State barely a month ago.
The PDP chair also stressed that the close link between these officials and the FCT Minister means that the election may have been compromised even before kick off.
His words: “We are worried that the election may have been compromised even before it starts. This is because we are certain that the officials responsible for conducting a free, fair and credible election are close associates of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
“The INEC REC in Edo is Wike’s cousin and served as a Special Adviser on Lands to him in Rivers State. Everyone in Nigeria knows the antecedents of Wike and his conduct during elections in Rivers State. So we will not close our eyes and watch him deploy the same tactic in Edo State.
“The current Edo State Commissioner of Police, Nemi Edwin-Iwo, is also a close associate of Wike. We believe he would not act in the best interest of Edo people nor even in the spirit and letters of the Electoral Act.”
IGP faults PDP
Egbetokun, however, picked holes in the allegations the PDP that the Police were biased.
Responding to Edo PDP chairman’s comments that “after the unfortunate incident at the airport, all hell was let loose.
The Nigerian police have been so biased under this IG,” Egbetokun said: “You accuse the IG of being partisan because I am bent on unraveling the killing of a police officer. If you hold the opinion that the IG is partisan for going after the killer of the policeman, I think you will remain with that opinion forever.”
NGO seeks REC’s redeployment
Speaking in like manner, the Coalition for Good Governance and Economic Justice in Africa, called for the immediate redeployment of Edo REC before the September 21 poll.
In a statement by its Country Director, Mr. John Mayaki, the group urged Yakubu to redeploy Dr. Anugbum Onuoha for alleged partisanship and affiliation with an interested party in the election.
Mayaki stated: “Onuoha serves as the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Edo State. He hails from Rivers State and had previously served as the Special Adviser on Lands and Survey to the former Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, and was an active card-carrying member of the PDP. These affiliations and backgrounds have raised concerns about his possible biases and conflicts of interest in the September 21 governorship election in Edo State.
“Prof. Yakubu should forestall an impending electoral crisis in Edo State by heeding the insistent outcry, petitions and protests by the people of Edo State, political parties and civil society organisations calling for the redeployment of Onuoha, who is seen as partisan and owing allegiance to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.”
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