Leaked video: PDP seeks Gambari, Oshiomhole’s arrest

TRACKING ____The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has demanded the arrest and interrogation of the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari and a former National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, over an alleged plot to subvert the on-going electoral process in Edo State.

The two men featured in a leaked video, walking along the corridors of the Presidential Villa, discussing plans to deploy security operatives to arrest and detain prominent leaders of PDP in Edo State ahead of the September 19 governorship elections.

In the eight seconds video that went viral yesterday afternoon, Oshiomhole was apparently soliciting the support of Gambari in the said plot, while Gambari could be heard saying “we’ll go beyond….” It appears that a hidden boom microphone picked up both voices accidentally. However, the Presidency has described the short video as an ingenious patchwork of mischief and advised Nigerians to ignore it. The video clip had sparked an outrage on the social media as many Nigerians recalled that Oshiomhole was at the Presidential Villa on Monday and met with President Muhammadu Buhari behind closed doors.

Some political analysts were of the view that the discussion of the two men along the corridor might have been a follow-up to what was discussed during the earlier meeting with the president. National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, at a press conference yesterday, said the issue of plotting to deploy federal might and arrest political opponents to prevent them from participating in the election was too weighty to be ignored and demanded explanations.

Ologbondiyan noted that in the trending video, the former APC national chairman was telling the Chief of Staff those individuals to be arrested ahead of the September 19 governorship election. “Nigerians were alarmed by the video in which Oshiomhole was seen emphatically urging the Chief of Staff to Mr. President on the need to clampdown on certain unnamed Nigerians to achieve political suppression and submission ahead of the Edo election,” he said.

Ologbondiyan, who also doubles as Secretary, Publicity Sub-committee of PDP National Campaign Council on Edo Governorship Election, stated that the involvement of the Chief of Staff to the President and the fact that the discussion held within the precincts of the Presidential Villa, have made the Presidency complicit.

He said that this incident had placed a huge burden on President Buhari to demonstrate that he is impartial and will not subvert the will of the people. “Already, there is anxiety in the public space that the discussion between Oshiomhole and Prof. Gambari as captured in the video is an extension of discussions that must have held behind closed doors in the Presidential Villa.

“The video has validated earlier revelations of plots by Oshiomhole and the APC governorship candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, to use compromised security operatives being mobilised by certain individuals in the Presidency, to arrest innocent Nigerians, including traditional, faith-based and community leaders on trumped up charges, ahead of the Edo election. “It also confirms our stance that Adams Oshiomhole and the APC candidate have completely lost ground in Edo State, hence the plot to clamp down on the people,” he said.

Ologbondiyan said Nigerians and the people of Edo State now know those to hold responsible should there be cases of illegal arrests, assassinations and unexplained killings, sudden disappearances of prominent people, accidental discharge by security operatives and mysterious accidents in the course of this Edo governorship election.

He urged President Buhari to reassure Nigerians of his neutrality in the matter by immediately ordering the arrest of Oshiomhole and Gambari for questioning over the video. “Anything short of a decisive action on this matter will further indict the Buhari presidency, especially coming on the heels of public anxiety over Mr. President’s widely condemned comment on the use of security forces for elections.

“Our campaign however wants APC and Oshiomhole to know that their ignoble plots against the people of Edo State have come to naught as the people are at alert and will use every legitimate means available to defend their already expressed will in support of the candidate of our party, the PDP, Governor Obaseki in this election,” he said. Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, who dismissed the video as a ploy to create something out of nothing, said it was not true that Oshiomhole and Gambari were plotting to arrest any one from the main opposition party.

“It is very important to strongly dispel misguided messaging amongst commentators, rights activists, advocates and journalists who have been reacting to a trending short video clip, alleging that the Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari and Chief Adams Oshiomhole, the former APC chairman had hatched a plan to arrest opposition individuals ahead of the September, election in Edo State. “First, it is important to state that the video was an ingenious patchwork of mischief, extracted from an innocent conversation focused on the emerging incidents of violence in the run up to the election.

“It is equally a fact that various political parties campaigning in Edo have levelled accusations of violence against one another. In such a heightened state of uncertainty, responsible leadership must ensure that elections are conducted in a peaceful manner and if warranted, judicious use of law enforcement to protect lives and properties of citizens is mobilized, thus preventing criminal elements from subverting the democratic process.

“This message has consistently been repeated by Mr. President. He does not support violence of any sort and its propagators will be brought to justice. Elections must reflect the will of the people. “Equally important is that the persons in the video, Prof. Gambari and Comrade Oshiomhole have a history and track record of working to protect the rights of Nigerians and humanity of all walks of life, especially the poor and marginalised and, as such,will not be found encouraging any conduct that runs counter to these values,” Shehu said. Meanwhile, the Edo State Deputy Governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu, has raised the alarm that Oshiomhole was stockpiling arms and importing thugs into the state with the intent to cause mayhem and disrupt the election.

Shaibu, who spoke with journalists in Benin, the state capital, also called on President Buhari to rein in Oshiomhole and his followers so as to stop them from causing chaos and anarchy in the state. Shuaibu said that APC, having discovered that it cannot win the election in a free and fair contest, has resorted to violence and thuggery to set the state ablaze.

“I can boldly tell you without mincing words that Oshiomhole is arming youths in Edo. Oshiomhole is stockpiling arms ahead of the governorship election. “We have reported to the law enforcement agencies and we hope that they take drastic measures to protect the lives and property of Edo people. The last time we told the security agencies about the hired assassins that were brought into Edo State by Oshiomhole, they thought we were joking, so we gave them details of these suspected persons, which they confirmed. What happened during the campaign is a confirmation of what I just told you,” Shuaibu said.

In a reaction to these allegations, Chairman of APC Media Campaign Council in Edo State, Mr. John Mayaki, has also alleged that the deputy governor might be hatching a sinister plot to stage an attack on himself. According to Mayaki, information at the disposal of the APC camp showed that Shaibu will stage an attack on himself in a bid to appear as the victim of violence and political thuggery, which he would later blame on Pastor Ize-Iyamu, candidate of APC . “I know for sure that Shaibu is trying to shoot at his own convoy any moment from now, and thus give the impression that it is being instigated by APC,” Mayaki said. He alleged that the deputy governor had once plotted such an attack alongside his principal, during which they mobilised as many as 200 thugs on motorcycles to visit mayhem on some locations in the state.