Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has said that he has no interest in replacing former All Progressive Congress (APC) National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole as the new godfather of Edo politics.
He said this when he paid President Muhammadu Buhari a thank you visit at the State House.
Obaseki said that he should be dealt with accordingly if he attempts to become the new godfather of Edo politics.
the governor who dumped the APC for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) prior to the Edo State governorship poll while responding to questions from journalists after the meeting with Buhari debunked claims that he was set to dump the PDP for the APC, saying it would amount to going against the President’s stance of integrity.
He said, “We were privileged to meet with the President, essentially to express the gratitude of Edo people, myself and my deputy for his role in the conduct of the election. He insisted that Nigeria should have proper, credible, free and fair elections, and that was what happened.
“So, this morning, we are in the Villa to show our profound gratitude and appreciation for this, which on the surface will look normal, but the implications are very far reaching, because this is a sitting President whose party was contesting an election and who insisted that the right things be done and a level playing field be created for contestants.
“This could not have been possible without your insistence that the right things be done, and for that, we want to say thank you very much.”He also commended the President for his congratulatory message, assuring him that the message has been internalised, adding: “It is God that made this election possible. Therefore, I should be humble about the election and also magnanimous in victory.”
The governor added that idea of godfatherism was without constitutional backing and very dangerous to democracy, saying, “That is why when we came into the political fray in 2006/2007, the mantra then was to get rid of godfathers from our political life.
“The reason is simple; the godfather has no constitutional responsibility and acts outside the constitution and controls people who are constitutional players. So, if we allow that sort of situation to continue, it will be worse than military rule.