Shaibu distances himself from PDP, announces backing for rival candidate.

Former Edo State deputy governor, Philip Shaibu, recently announced his decision to distance himself from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asue Ighodalo, in the upcoming governorship election scheduled for September 21.

Shaibu, speaking on the sidelines of the 2024 Father’s Day celebration at Saint Paul’s Catholic Church in Benin City, expressed his preference for supporting a candidate from his home region.

Shaibu, who faced impeachment by the Edo State House of Assembly a few months back, categorically stated that he views the PDP candidate as an outsider in the political landscape.

He mentioned that at the onset of the governorship contest, he, along with two other candidates from his region – Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Olumide Akpata of the Labour Party (LP) – were in the race.

Shaibu made it clear that he is throwing his weight behind the APC candidate and cautioned against the potential consequences of the victory of the PDP contender, suggesting that it could pave the way for a resurgence of godfatherism in Edo State.

He said;

“Today, I came in as a homeboy. We have only two homeboys in the major political parties in Edo State. One is in Labour, and one is in APC, and I choose to follow another homeboy in the APC.

“The man they are parading in the PDP is an outsider, and we have also agreed that there is no more godfatherism in Edo.

“So, the man the PDP is trying to portray in Edo now is the godson of Obaseki, and there is no way a godson will now be governor of Edo.”