- Demands investigation
By Chuks Okocha
The Peoples Democratic Party has described the clash between its supporters and those of All Progressives Congress at the gate of the Oba of Benin’s palace on Saturday as an orchestrated attempt by the APC to cause bodily harm and possibly eliminate PDP national leadership, including visiting governors, that were guests of the monarch.
The PDP wondered what the APC members were doing at the gate of the Oba of Benin’s palace on a day that the APC did not have any activity in the neighbourhood.
The party accused the APC of masterminding crisis with the prospect of setting up inter-state conflicts on the premise of threats against the visiting governors.
National Vice Chairman of PDP, South South, Chief Dan Orbih, while calling for a high powered investigation, flayed the desecration of the palace by those he called APC operatives.
Noting that the unfortunate incident that took place Sunday in the course of the official visit of the governor and members of the PDP National Campaign Council to the Palace of our Royal Majesty, Oba Ewuare II Ogidigan, the PDP national vice chairman said the attack was pre-planned as tthere was no official APC activity as to warrant the gathering of APC loyalists at the palace gate.
According to Orbih, “The invasion of the Palace Gate by armed APC Youths was a well coordinated assault by the leadership and sponsors of Edo APC to eliminate the national leadership of the PDP and all democratically elected governors of PDP that were expected to be with Obaseki.
“This action to my mind was aimed at throwing the country into crisis. The security breach must be investigated and all those connected with it must be arrested and tried in accordance with the laws.
“The APC organised attack at the Palace is in our view a political mutiny, against constituted authority, capable of causing interstate conflict and war between Edo state and the affected states of the governors that were marked down for elimination.
“There have been several videos in the cyberspace where these thugs have been instructed, directed and motivated to intimidate and cause chaos and mayhem in the state”, Orbih said. .
According to Orbih, “I want to place it on record that the visit was officially communicated to the Palace and the various security agencies as PDP leaders visit that included the party’s National Chairman, members of the National working committee, Governors of Rivers, Sokoto, Delta, and of course the host Governor Godwin Obaseki.
“I want to place it on record that there was no official APC event in the Palace or anywhere in Benin that was so communicated in accordance with INEC guidelines.
“There was no official communication to the security agencies and the palace that APC was also going to have event at the palace.”
He called on the security agencies to swing into action to bring all those connected with the incident to book., stressing that “Choosing the Palace to unleash their evil plans is an abomination and a total disrespect to our Royal majesty and highly respected traditional institution”.
According to Orbih, “We condemn the attack and wanton destruction of PDP members vehicles and property by these hooligans in broad day light in the vicinity of the Palace of our revered Oba.
“I commend the leaders and members of Edo State PDP and supporters for their maturity yesterday, who restrained themselves from retaliation in the face of unwarranted attacks and hostilities.
“I want to assure them that the party will not fold its hands and watch members attacked and killed because of their support for Governor Godwin Obaseki.”
