Edo State Governor Monday Okpeboro has criticized former Aviation Minister Osita Chidoka for claiming that the 2024 Edo State governorship election was rigged in favor of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Naija News reported that Chidoka, founder of the non-profit organization Athena Center, had insisted that the September 21 Edo State gubernatorial election should not be held.
The former minister, in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the conduct of the elections.
The Athena Center has reportedly reviewed the election that elected APC candidate Mr. Okpebolo as South-South governor, claiming that the election was compromised.
Recall that Mr. Okpebolo secured 291,667 votes, defeating the front-runner, Mr. Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) (247,274 votes).
However, Chidoka, who released the Athena Center’s findings on the Edo State elections, said there was substantial evidence of systematic fraud.
“The evidence of systematic fraud observed in this election is so significant that we cannot judge the outcome,” Chidoka said on the show.
“The evidence of systemic fraud is so significant that we believe this election should not be allowed to take place. If things continue like this, there will be no elections in 2027. .”
However, in a statement to Naija News on Saturday, the Okpeboro Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, alleged that there was an elaborate conspiracy hatched by the PDP in collusion with Chidoka to bully and intimidate the judiciary and undermine the people of Edo. He said he tried to evade the will. .
He said the shameful display on Channels Television’s “Politics Today” extorted numbers bought from the “Oluwole market” and impulsively called the September 21 Edo State governorship election rigged. concluded.
According to him, Chidoka’s Athena Center was not covering elections in large parts of the state and they, under the supervision of former Governor Godwin Obaseki, sat in the Edo State Government House and manipulated the numbers to suit their views. He emphasized that he had fabricated and adjusted the figures.
The statement reads: “Firstly, the factional branches of the Peoples Democratic Party in Edo State have failed to see the obvious reality that the party was ousted by its own enemies, Edo people, due to their weaknesses in the last gubernatorial election. Looking around its messy and divided party, it is searching for non-existent evidence to overturn the will of the people in court. What is the purpose and interest of organizing a media trial like Chidoka’s? It amounts to a deliberate ambush attack. Although the PDP and its axemen understand that it is wrong to discuss matters that are against the judiciary, they have hatched a crude conspiracy to fabricate and replace facts in the hope of reaching a pre-planned outcome. It continues continuously.
“This case is already being heard in the courts and tribunals, and we need to allow it to run its entire course unimpeded. Thankfully, the courts are free from fabrications, bickering, emotions, bickering. We will focus on evidence and facts, not pandering to contradictions or schemes. We expect law enforcement to remain steadfast in the face of this extortion, intimidation and coordinated media attacks. I’m doing it. Recent attempts by the PDP and her serial defector, Chidoka Oshita, to twist logic and use demagoguery to whip up sentiments all at once, are no different than when the butcher’s knife is serrating its strings. It’s like the last cry of a bull. Nothing more.
“We are aware that former Governor Godwin Obaseki and some PDP leaders in Edo State and their supporters held meetings with online retailers and editors of leading newspapers during the week. There, it was decided that media trials should be their current pattern of involvement in discrediting the highly credible Edo election on September 21st. , INEC The APC held a very free, fair and non-violent election, which national observers have acknowledged in various reports. has admitted that it won the election.Oshita Chidoka’s recent drama is just beating around the bushes in trying to rake in the mud by opposing the election. should enable courts to carry out their duties in accordance with established procedures.
“The idea of giving marching orders and deploying the activities of editors and senior journalists to discredit the administration of Governor Okpeboro on Monday by every means possible is outlandish and selfish. Their identities are now unknown. It is known and will be announced in the next few days. This shows that they are resorting to social media spaces, national newspaper print pages and flexible state television to push through their ugly claims that Governor Okpeboro did not win the September 21st Edo State gubernatorial election. Accordingly, we learned that Governor Okpeboro on Monday will I would like to remind everyone that I am making good progress in my role as a duly elected governor with an irrevocable mandate of four years.
“The trigger for these desperate moves was to identify state assets, recover stolen cars and other assets from Obaseki’s criminal allies and, if necessary, carry out financial heists orchestrated by state powers. It was the decision of Governor Okpeboro’s administration on Monday to investigate.”The last administration.
“As the duly elected Governor of Edo State, Governor Monday Okpeboro will not be intimidated by media propaganda or paid contractors on social media. I vowed to get it back.
“In the coming days, the people of Edo will be made aware of further revelations about financial robbery, contract fraud, abuse of power and destruction of the Edo state orchestrated by the Obaseki-led administration. This is necessary because when making decisions, one must ensure that one’s own progress and contribution to the development of the nation is measurable and fair.
“Governor Okpeboro has since been fully committed and will not be distracted by the shenanigans of paid PDP agents. We intend to rectify this mess in eight years.We will not sit back and allow a few who are too cowardly to carry out the will of the Edokko people to sabotage the nation.
“Anyone who violates the law will face the full wrath of the law. The moles and saboteurs planted in various government ministries by Obaseki and his associates will soon be exposed. And nothing will stop Governor Okpeboro from standing on the side of truth, fairness, honesty and progress.”
