Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has “suspended” the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole.
A statement Tuesday night by the Government House, Benin, said the APC in the state suspended Mr Oshiomhole following a vote of no confidence passed on him by 18 chairmen of the local chapters of the party in the state.
The local leaders reportedly blamed Mr Oshiomhole for the crisis that has rocked the party in the state.
“Consequent on the development, the State Executive Committee has adopted the vote of no confidence passed on him and the subsisting suspension order from the organs of the party in the state,” the Government House statement quoted the Edo APC chairman, Anselm Ojezua, and the party’s assistant state secretary, Ikuenobe Anthony, to have said in a statement.
“Comrade Adams Oshiomhole is the one behind the crisis in Edo APC. We have passed a vote of no confidence on him and he stands suspended from the party.
“We don’t want what happened in Zamfara State or other parts of the country to happen in Edo State,” Messrs Ojezua and Anthony reportedly said.
The latest development underscores the extent of damage in the relationship between the Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki, and Mr Oshiomhole.
Both leaders have been locked in an epic political fight that many fear may affect the APC’s political fortunes in the next governorship election in the state.
More than 10 lawmakers-elect of the Edo State House of Assembly who are loyal to Mr Oshiomhole have fled the state to Abuja for fear of their safety, after they were schemed out of the inauguration of the assembly.
It is unclear for now what impact the “suspension” would have on the APC national chairman and his supporters in the state politics.
