Edo State Deputy Governor Philip Shuaibu has revealed that he will hand over his duties to the newly elected governor and deputy governor of the state with or without the presence of outgoing Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Shuaibu said this in an interview with Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday.
Shuaibu’s clarification came after rumors that Obaseki was nowhere to be found in the state.
Obaseki on Monday granted pardon to 10 inmates who have served less than a year in the state’s correctional facilities.
The pardon was issued under the governor’s pardon power and was contained in a statement by the Office of the Special Adviser on Media, headed by Crusoe Osagie. Obaseki completed his term as governor on Monday and will hand over powers to the next Edo State governor, Okpeboro, today, Monday.
Okpeboro rise comes after he won the September 21, 2024 gubernatorial election, beating his closest rival and Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Asue Ighodaro.
But as news of his alleged disappearance from the state spread fast, Shuaibu said he was “really happy” to hand over Okpeboro and his deputies.
He said: “I am very happy to see today come and hand over powers to the new deputy governor.
“The governor and I have parted ways. He has no contact with me and we do not speak to each other, which is very unfortunate. I have not been able to see him for the last four days. Normally, when the governor is absent, the lieutenant governor takes over.
So, whether he is there or not, I am ready to hand over.” Asked what his interactions with the outgoing governor were like, Shuaibu said that although he was loyal to Obaseki, he “went through a lot” during his term. “Yes. I came back to APC. I am one of the very young ones who founded APC in Edo State.
Out of loyalty, I went with the governor.” I switched from APC to PDP not because I wanted to, but because of my loyalty to Obaseki. It was because of him that I left APC and it was because of him that I returned to APC.
“I am grateful to him for giving me the opportunity to reunite with my father, Osimole, with whom we had a falling out over Obaseki.”
Okpeboro will be the fifth state governor since the inauguration of the Fourth Republic in 1999.