Edo APC guber primaries: Senator Okpebholo in early lead, party leaders raise alarm over plans to disrupt process

Few hours into the governorship rerun primaries of the All Progressives Congress (APC), early results have shown that the senator representing Edo Central, Monday Okpebholo is in early lead.

This is even as leaders of the party in the State have raised the alarm over plans by Adams Oshiomhole, a former governor of the State, to manipulate the process.

The leaders who are members of Edo APC Elders’ Stakeholders Forum, in a statement released in Benin, the Edo State capital, called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the national chairman of APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, to call Oshiomhole and his desperate boys to order.

Pascal Osadolor, one of the leaders who signed the statement, said Oshiomhole, in company of Dennis Idahosa, another aspirant, arrived at the venue of the collation centre, Lushville Hotel in Benin in the early hours of Thursday.

He said Oshiomhole who was sighted inside his Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV), didn’t alight, but his political godson, Idahosa was seen with thugs moving into the venue.

Mr. Osadolor said Oshiomhole’s desperation to flout the order of President Tinubu that the process should be fair and zoning must be respected, must not go unpunished.

He said any attempt to manipulate the process will be resisted by members of the APC in Edo State, who are tired of Oshiomhole’s shenanigans and desperation.

He said: “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has made it clear that the process that will produce the governorship candidate of the APC in Edo State must be free and fair. He also said zoning must be respected.

“But Oshiomhole believes that he’s bigger than President Tinubu and he’s trying to undermine him. His foot soldiers are desperate in Benin to disrupt the process. We’ll resist him.

“We’re sending out this statement to alert President Tinubu and the national chairman of the APC to call Oshiomhole to order. He wants to throw Edo APC and the entire State into chaos just to have his way. This time, he will fail,” Osadolor noted.

Meanwhile, results from some of the Local Government Areas of the State, have shown that Senator Okpebholo is leading by a wide margin, especially in Edo South and Central.

A winner is expected to be announced later today by the new chairman of APC Election Committee and governor of Cross River State, Senator Bassey Otu.