Twenty four hours after the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Campaign Council for Edo gubernatorial election, Governor Abdulahi Ganduje of Kano State boasted his party will carry the day on 19th September, his opposite number in the Peoples Democratic Party, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State is trumpeting the chances of his party’s candidate, Governor Godwin Obaseki.
He has also reacted to Ganduje’s boast to ensure he (Wike) is caged. “Yesterday I was told and today I read on the pages of newspapers that one Gov. Ganduje said that he was going to isolate me until the election is over. If Nigeria is supposed to be a country, who is supposed to be isolated?”
He adds shortly after the PDP Campaign Committee for the Edo election was inaugurated in Abuja: “A man who pockets dollars in babanriga (robe) from contractors is not isolated and you say that me should be isolated. In this country where are we heading to?
“Let me tell you, why they made Ganduje the chairman of the campaign council is because of the dollar they saw. But for dollar, Ganduje could not have been made the chairman of the campaign council. But what he doesn’t understand is that we from the Niger Delta, we shall chop his dollar and we will chop him into coma. So Ganduje, your dollar will not work in Edo state, we have integrity in our party.”
On Monday, Ganduje said concerning Wike: “We know PDP made Wike their chairman, I assure you, we will isolate Wike in an isolation centre and before he recovers, the election is over. The PDP decided to accommodate our former Governor in Edo State not because they have anything in common, not because they share some feelings, but simply because he is managing the treasury of Edo State and they want him to use that treasury in order to win the election. But I assure you the people of Edo State are watching they know that somebody who as assisted in 2016 to win an election, somebody who was given every cooperation to succeed in Governance of Edo State without doing much for the people, at the end of it, he’s taken the treasury and now handed it over to PDP in order to win the election.”
Wike said Tuesday he accepts to head this campaign council and make sure that PDP wins election come September 19, 2020.
He said further: “Let me state that the terms of reference is very clear that we should make sure that the result is according to the will of Edo people, I want to assure you that by the grace of God nothing will stop us from victory.
“Let me commend the aspirants for accepting to work together and that is why today our candidate is not having sleepless night, he can now rest well, no litigation and that is what is expected of an opposition party, and I urge the leadership of the party to make sure that we have the same thing in Ondo state so that Ondo will be in the kitty of PDP come October.
“Nobody can intimidate us for this election.
How do you think we shall lose election in Edo state. In 2016, we never knew the candidate had a lot of problems and that was why the people of Edo state listened to Oshimhole at that time, you can see a party that has no principle.
“A man that they said poured acid on another persons manhood, I didn’t say so, it was Oshimhole that said so. And to tell you that you can never trust this government, and they said that the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Anti Corruption was the chairman of the panel that indicted their so called candidate now. Prof. Itse Sagay, speak up now, tell Nigerians whether you ate the one that indicted him or not. Oshimhole said that this man that called himself a pastor is a terrible liar so they know that they have no candidate.
“But let us understand the statement made by Ganduje, don’t look at it ordinarily. What Ganduje said is that they have concluded with security agencies to make sure that the people of Edo state do not protect and defend their votes, that they will not allow them to come out and before you know it, they will announce the result. So he just used me to say that they will isolate me, no I am not at his level.
“What he was telling Nigerians is; look in this election, we shall make sure that Edo people come out to vote, even if they vote, we will not allow them to protect and defend their votes.
“Edo people, now they have told you that they will not allow you to vote and even if you vote, they will not allow you to protect and defend your votes. It is a direct challenge to all of you leaders here from Edo state, because we members of the campaign council, we cannot vote because we did not register to vote in Edo state.
“To the security agencies, any attempt to rig this election in Edo state then we will all know whether it is better for us to remain here or not because Edo people have spoken and it is very clear. Let nobody make any attempt, Edo state has come back to the PDP.
“This election we will win it and win it very well.”
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