By Elizabeth Chukwuma
The political crisis which had engulfed Edo state House of Assembly over the last two years have taken a new dimension with the recent take- over of Adams Oshiomhole , a former governor of the state and now National Chairman , of the All Progressive Congress, APC, private residence in Benin, the state Capital , ostensibly to embarrass him.
The invasion of the former Edo state governor, and Labour activist’s House , who pride himself as the godfather of the APC politicians in the state , may have sent a signal to other Chieftains of the party that it is no longer going to be business as usual. The argument in APC circles now , is that if the former governor of the state , who wields enormous powers at both at the state and the national level’s House could be invaded, in spite of the tight security around him, it means , no highly placed government official in the state is save any longer .
Many believe that if the former governor, had braved the odds to rush out to confront the hoodlums, believed to have been sponsored by his political enemies, who had entered his premises when they were chanting ‘’songs to mock him’’, the treatment, he could have received , he may not have liked it.
Eyewitness, account, disclosed that the hoodlums who were armed with dangerous weapons were ready to create scene in his house should security Operatives attempt to frustrate their plan not to attack him.
The Value News learnt the aggrieved hoodlums, had waited for him for hours in his Compound but could not gain entrance into the building before information filtered out to Danmallam Mohammed, the state Commissioner of police, CP, who quickly dispatched fierce looking officers armed to the teeth to disperse them. The anti-riot policemen may have had their way in forcing the hoodlums out of the Okroutun, GRA, residence, of the APC, National Chairman, but they were determined to lay ambush for him on the road. They were said to have closed the road in the area for traffic for hours before it was finally opened.
The APC, National Chairman, may have known that his life is in danger that he had requested for security to be beefed up around his house to avoid a repeat of such embarrassment in the future. As at last Sunday, four police patrol vehicles had been dispatched there by Danmallam, the state Commisioner of Police, on the orders of Mohammed Adamu, the Inspector General f Police, IGP, to add up to the police Vans already stationed in front of the Oshiomhole’s GRA, residence.
He was said to have addressed some loyal Youths, who followed him to his house when the situation became calm that there was no cause for alarm. Information making the rounds shows that he was in the state to attend a Ceremony and spend the weekend before running into the embarrassment.
The APC National Chairman who could not hide his support for President Muhammadu Buhari , urged the Youths who were said to have formed a circle around him to ensure there was peace in the state by bot resorting to a reprisal attack on the alleged masterminds of the attacks.
His major worry was that ‘anything that happens anywhere in this country, they attribute it to the Katsina born Nigerian President. ‘’We must be seen to be behaving well , if other people are beating the drums of war’’, he charged the Youths.
Recall that in the 2016 governorship election in the state, the APC, National Chairman, who was instrumental , to the emergence of Godwin Obaseki, as the governor of the state, used to call the Youths the Infantry Division of the APC, who played a vital role to his emergence as the governor of the state, serving for an interrupted eight years despite efforts by Late Tony Anenih to truncate him. He knew what the boys , who served as the party agents in 2016, governorship election in the state could do by taking the laws into their hands by calling for calm. ‘’We have to take it easy so that there would not be breach of peace in the state’’, he advised.
Simon Ebegulem the Chief Press Secretary to Oshiomhole, may have spoken his mind when he said the hoodlums who invade the APC National Chairman’s house were sent Obaseki, the state governor, and one of his one –time political ally because of his desperate moves to secure a second term, which was said to haven opposed by him.
Efforts by The Magazine to reach out to the governor proved abortive even as Taiwo Akerele, his Chief of Staff, claimed he was attacked on Sunday, by an APC Chieftain, popular, Kabaka, in Protea Hotel in Benin, during a meeting with some foreign investors. The APC Chieftain was said to be an ally of the loyalists of Oshiomhole.
In apparent reaction to invasion of Oshiomhole ‘s house in his GRA residence I Benin, Ovie Omo-Agege, a Senator of Federal Republic of Nigeria, and incidentally the Deputy Senate President,has condemned the action of the hoodlums, describing the development as ‘’callous, cowardly, inhumane and totally unacceptable ‘’.
He noted that political practice in the country should not be allowed to degenerate to a situation where’’ violence becomes the language of activism by both politicians and their supporters no matter how disgruntled such persons may be’’.