EDO State Assembly Governor Philip Shaibu has emerged as the winner of the People’s Democratic Party’s governorship primaries.
The primaries conducted on Thursday, February 22, 2024, produced Shaibu as the candidate for the September 21 governorship election.
While some delegates were being accredited at the Edo Hotel Marquee before proceeding to the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium for the primary poll, another group of delegates convened in a facility on Commercial Avenue and declared Shaibu as the PDP’s candidate.
They stated they went to the location for accreditation but were chased away by security personnel.
They further claimed that the list of delegates provided by the party’s national leadership was not real, citing the presence of names from Bayelsa State and members of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Announcing Shaibu as the winner of the election, Bartholomew Moses said, “During the counting of this primary election, Philip Shaibu has a score of 301 votes, and therefore, we hereby declare Philip Shaibu as the authentic elected candidate for this election in the PDP.”
The people had just concluded their exercise when gunmen stormed the venue.
They were dressed in vigilante attire and arrived in a variety of cars, including two black unmarked Toyota Hiace trucks, an unmarked white Sienna, and a white Hilux, among others.
Before the election, delegates led by Festus Owu protested at the deputy governor’s official lodge, complaining to him that they had been disenfranchised.
While speaking to the protesting delegates, Shaibu said, “I appeal to all of you to be peaceful. I don’t want anybody to be injured, I don’t want anybody molested, and I am happy with the way you have conducted yourselves peacefully and have come to report to me that you were not allowed to be accredited, but I want to tell you that no one man can determine the destiny of a people, and by the grace of God, they cannot disenfranchise you, people.
“The law makes it clear that you people are the authentic delegates. Now that they have pushed you away, they want to go and replace you, but I assure you that your votes must count; they cannot change or replace your names.
I assure you that I will take your protest to the committee that is coming, but you must remain peaceful in everything you are doing.”
Addressing journalists later, Shaibu said, “I saw the crowd outside, and I asked who they were, and they said they were delegates.
“I said they should be directed to the venue of the accreditation, but they said they were protesting because they had been sent away from the venue of the accreditation, they won their election, and they had their results.
“The election will hold, and if a winner emerges with fake delegates, the election will not see the light of day, but if a winner emerges with authentic delegates, there will be no problem, I am sure.”
