Press Release
1. Obaseki is not a respecter of the Rule of Law. He is shopping for a Restraining Order to stop PDP Chairmen in the LGAs from going to the National Convention based on his purported appointments given to them before the 2020 Guber nomination and election even when there is a pending case restraining him from dissolving or acting in any capacity to stop them from seeing off their tenures. The PDP chairmen are in court already. The governor cannot remove them.
2. Obaseki is banking on the PDP Constitution, Chapter 6, RESIGNATION OR REMOVAL OF NATIONAL OFFICERS. PROHIBITION FROM HOLDING DUAL OFFICES 48(1). In this section, elected officers are not allowed to hold dual offices.
(3) Obaseki is claiming that prior to his Nomination as the PDP flagbear at the primaries, he had Appointed all the 18 LGA chairmen as Senior Special Assistance or Advisers, which amount to dual offices holding.
(4) Obaseki should, as a ‘technocrat’, know that for an appointment offer to be valid, there must be an acceptance of the offer. No PDP chairman accepted Obaseki’s offer. It is true the Governor paid them monthly stipend for 3months to run the party before election. He stopped paying them immediately after his re-election (what a pity) This same payments from the coffers of the state government were also being made to APC chairmen that decamped with him to PDP.
(5) Obaseki should know also that assuming these chairmen were appointed by him(which of course is not true), that invariably it means he is calling for the nullification of his own Nomination at the PDP primaries since the Chairmen, who he is seeking to remove from their positions based on his purported appointments, participated in the primary election where he was nominated. In law, you cannot build something on Nothing. His Nomination cannot stand in law if he was elected by party chairmen who were deemed to have resigned.
It is instructive therefore to let Obaseki know that instead of running from pillar to post seeking the removal of the PDP LGA chairmen and replace them with his APC members, and fighting the PDP that gave him ticket, he should channel this State funds and energy towards the development of Edo State that is in dire need of basic infrastructures.
The PDP Constitution has empowered the LGA PDP chairmen to see off their tenure. Harmonised excos is not known to PDP constitution. In the PDP, we elect members into Excos, we do not harmonize.
If Obaseki wish to opt out of PDP, he should rather do so for peace to reign in the party. Enough is Enough.
Isaiah Obagie
PDP Leader.