The Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, is insisting that he won the Edo State Governorship primary election under the Peoples Democractic Party (PDP) and should be given a Certificate of Return.
Shaibu, alongside his team members stormed the National Secretariat of the PDP on Wednessday, to demand for certificate of return.
Recall that Shaibu emerged as winner of a parallel primary election in the state while the party’s Acting National Chairman, Amb. Umar Damagum and the party leadership issued a certificate of return to Dr. Asue Ighodalo, who won the primary recognized by the party.
The Deputy Governor who was at the Secretariat with a handful of his aides, did not meet any member of the National Working Committee on seat.
He, however, insisted that the party must abide by its own rules or be prepared to face legal action.
Speaking to reporters shortly after exiting the office of the Acting National Chairman of the party, Shaibu said, “Today is 28th of febraury, 2024 by the PDP guidelines approved by the NWC on the Edo 2024 governorship primary.
“Today is the day set aside by the electoral guidelines to be the day that the certificate of returns will be issued, so it is not surprising that I am here today.
“ I am here to receive my certificate of return because I won the primary in Edo conducted and the authentic delegates voted.
“If you look at the board of the party office here, you will see the name of all the delegates that voted for me.
“Today is presentation of Certificate of Return according to the party, so PDP must follow its rules and guidelines, this is what we are talking about.
“The process of producing a canfidate has been compromised from the onset and we ask that those things be corrected. Even the committee that recommended political solution is fully aware that there were abnormalities in the process that led to my emergence and whoever.
“But why I am here is to obey the guidelines to come and receive the certificate of return and I was told that somebody else came here yesterday and was given the certificate.
“I think the court will tell among us who is the real candidate, but I am here in fulfillment of the electoral guideleines of the PDP to receive my certificate.”
He further said, “I have a document here where those that conducted the primary submitted to the office of the National Organising Secretary, from this document you will see the mess that took place in Edo state. This primary cannot be put aside.
“ I am ready for us to correct the abnormalities in internal party democracy, because that is the beginning of he sustainnce of Democracy, if the party does not get it right , the foundation of our democracy is laredy been threatened and we wil not fold our hands to watch what we laboured for, fought for, some people died in the process.
“Those that conducted the primaries and wrote this report are being threatened, they tried to procure them and many of them refused, now they are being threatened to write another report.
“This is a committee that was put together by the NWC. If the PDP is serious, ready to win Edo state, they must do what is right and I am telling our members in Edo, not to be worried we will get to the promise land.
“Edo will be the place where we will reset how internal democacrcy can be strengthened so that the foundation of democracy is not destroyed.
“I told them that I was coming, but none of them has come to work, only the staff of the secretariat are here, I don’t know why they are not here that is strange and that is in line with why will they be in a hurry to give the certificate yesterday, when today was what was approved for the certificate to be given to the winner. I must be on the side of the people, streghentening the foundation of our democracy which is party politics.”
