By Onome Oghenetega
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Cromade Adams Oshiomhole seems to have drawn the battle line with Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State over the crisis rocking the State House of Assembly over the purported inauguration of only nine members of the house.
Oshiomhole, who is the immediate past governor of the state, is reacting for the first time to the crisis enveloping the state legislature, describing the inauguration of the seventh assembly by his successor as shameful and unacceptable.
Speaking in Abuja on Friday with newsmen at the national secretariat of the APC, he noted that the said inauguration and election of a new speaker was null and void since minority cannot rule over majority.
The APC chairman stressed that someone, whom he, however, did not mention was trying to fierce a member-elect which majority of his colleagues had already reject as speaker of the new assembly.
National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC has expressed shame over the purported inauguration of the Edo state House of Assembly by Gov. Godwin Obaseki, saying the minority cannot rule over the majority.
Oshiomhole said, “Unfortunately, the situation in Bauchi is also similar to the one that is happening in Edo State. I am ashamed to talk about it but there is nothing to hide.
“We have a similar situation in Edo where in our own case we have 24/24 all of them APC but somebody wants a particular person as a Speaker, 19 out of 24 are opposed to this person.”
Speaking similarly on the crisis engulfing the Bauchi House of Assembly, the APC National Chairman said he and members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC had met with the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Adamu not to provide security for members of the assembly.
He said the APC would vehemently opposed attempt to take what is rightly the property of his party by the state governor to his party when APC members-elect in the house were the majority in the assembly.
According to him, “The attempt by the Governor of Bauchi State to illegally resort to nocturnal tactics at nocturnal hours to purport to inaugurate the house…I have briefed the President in full having met with you earlier in the day when you shared with me the details.
“I have had conversations with the Governor so I have all the facts. We members of the NWC have met with the IG after deliberating on the issues. We will prevail on him to ensure that the police do not provide security for an illegal act. Because the worst form of robbery is political robbery, it is worse than robbing people of their property.
“If you rob people of their right to govern, the people of Bauchi in their wisdom have chosen to entrust the leadership of the Bauchi State House of Assembly in the hands of the APC by voting for 21 of you while they allow PDP Only 10. That is that APC should control the legislature.
“There is nothing anybody can do in a democracy to change the fact. The earlier the Governor of Bauchi comes to terms with this reality the better for him and for everyone. But I want to assure you that we are a party that believes in the rule of law.”
