Edo State’s Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, has raised concerns about alleged intimidation and harassment by Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Shaibu, speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, emphasized his constitutional right to run for the state’s top office, expressing disappointment that the matter wasn’t resolved through open dialogue.
Despite acknowledging Obaseki’s prior commendations of him, Shaibu urged a more inclusive approach, suggesting that the governor should gather all aspirants and discuss preferences rather than resorting to intimidation tactics.
He lamented the challenge of distinguishing between loyalty and constitutional rights, affirming his commitment to both.
In his words;
“He (Obaseki) said I am the type of deputy governor any governor will wish to have. So, what has changed? What has changed simply is that I want to be the governor of Edo State.”
“Possibly, maybe he (Obaseki) wants somebody else. In a situation like that, what you do is not intimidation, it is not harassment; you call a family together, you call all of us (aspirants) together and give us reasons why you feel certain things should be. Tell us what you want. You don’t intimidate, you don’t harass.”
“It’s my cross I am carrying and that is why I have refused. I don’t need to fight. I am loyal to the governor; it’s not disputed but my right to contest is mine. Loyalty is given and it is fully given even with the humiliations and everything I am still loyal but when it comes to contest, it is my constitutional right,” he said.
Shaibu, who has served as Obaseki’s deputy since 2016, acknowledged a strained relationship but reiterated his loyalty. He urged the governor to play a unifying role, saying;
“I have no problem but I beg the governor, the governor should know he is the leader, he must be able to organise all of us, he must not love one more than the other. If he must do so, he must humiliate one,” Shaibu said, adding that he has been “praying that this whole relationship thing comes to normal”.