Governor Obaseki is expected to leave office by November, a few months after the Edo guber election.
Benin City, Nigeria – In the early hours of Sunday, Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, was forced out of the premises of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Benin City by Deputy Inspector General of Police, Frank Mba.
Governor Obaseki arrived at the INEC office at around 2:00 am and remained there until around 3:30 am when members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), led by Dennis Idahosa, the running mate of APC candidate Monday Okpebholo, protested his presence. The protesters demanded that Obaseki, who is not a candidate in the election, leave the premises.
As the tension escalated, a group of mobile policemen shouted at the governor to leave. Shortly after, DIG Mba arrived with a team of officers and escorted Obaseki out of the premises.
Speaking to journalists, APC National Secretary Surajudeen Basiru criticized the Governor’s presence, stating, “He is not a candidate. He has no reason to be here,” and described the governor’s actions as an abuse of office.
The Edo Governor was said to have entered the INEC premises under the cover of darkness, heading upstairs near the Edo Resident Electoral Commissioner’s office, where results from the ongoing election were being collated.
The protest led by APC supporters saw attempts to breach the INEC gate, with protesters banging on the entrance in frustration but being held back by security personnel.
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