Barely 24 hours after the Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) wrote to the State House of Assembly indicating its interest in nominating new principal officers to become the party with the majority members in the house, a group, Edo North Conscience (ENC) on Wednesday said the Speaker, Rt. Hon Blessing Agbebaku should no longer continue in office as the Speaker.
They also said that in addition to his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), becoming the minority party in the house, members and leaders of the APC worked to ensure victory for the party and its candidate, Sen. Monday Okpebholo.
Recall that four members, one from the Labour Party (LP) and three from the PDP, last week defected to the APC. This makes the APC the majority party with 13 members in the 24-member house, while the PDP now has 11.
The ENC’s position was contained in a communiqué issued after their meeting in Auchi, the headquarters of Etsako West Local Government Area.
The communiqué, signed by the group’s Leader, Oshioke Aledeh and Secretary, Tunde Balogun, said the “Speaker orchestrated a brutal campaign that left APC members reeling in pains and discomfort during the tumultuous state assembly elections that paved the way for his ascension to power.
“The ENC also recounted the harrowing tales of assault suffered by some prominent APC leaders and members in the hands of the Speaker and his army of thugs, resulting in multiple injuries, the loss of properties and other valuables.
These, the group added, are in addition to the deafening war-mongering songs from the PDP across the state prior to the September 21, 2024, election with erstwhile governor Godwin Obaseki “threatening to burn down the entire country if attempts are made to arrest notable and arrant political thugs traceable to the PDP.”
They, therefore, questioned why Agbebaku should thrive where he sowed discord, alleging that the Speaker still owed his loyalty to the PDP while pretending to be at home with incumbent Governor Okpebholo.
Several calls to the Speaker’s number for his response were not picked up, and checks at his office indicated that he was out of town, but a senior aide who does not want to be mentioned simply said, “It is only the members that can remove the speaker if they so desire and not any group.”
