Meanwhile, chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Chief Francis Inegbeniki, has described the burning of his residence by a faction of the party as “politics took too far”, calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the political squabbles before it goes out of hand.
Addressing journalists during a rally in his country home in Opoji, Esan West Council, Inegbeniki indicted his rivals in the ruling party in the arson.
The Edo Central APC leader called on Buhari to come to the aid of Edo APC, adding that members loyal to the national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, were under siege.
In a statement, Governor Godwin Obaseki’s Special Adviser on Media and Communication Strategy, Crusoe Osagie, described the violence as reprehensible and most condemnable.
He said, “The shameful resort to violence is the next move by the suspended national chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, and his cohorts in the Edo Peoples Movement (EPM) to create tension in the state with the intent of forcing the authorities to declare a state of emergency in Edo.”
The governor restated the state government’s commitment to the peace and safety of Edo people, warning that intent on exacerbating tension in the state to steer clear.
“It has come to our notice that explosives and other dangerous weapons were used by some politicians in parts of the state to cause mayhem, endangering the lives of law-abiding citizens of the state in the process.
“The Edo State government denounces the resort to such desperate and dangerous means for political reasons. This is reprehensible and most condemnable. It runs against the creed of our people to conduct their affairs in a peaceful manner; worse still, employing destructive means in politics is alien to Edo people.”
The state government further charged the presidency and the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to call Oshiomhole to order, “so that the destructive descent to violence does not erode the good legacies that have been built over the years by the APC in Edo.”
