From Tony Osauzo, Benin

South-South National Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dan Orbih, has warned members of the Edo State Caretaker Committee of the party, headed by Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, to stop parading themselves as leaders of the party.

He gave the warning shortly after he donated a new state secretariat to the party in Edo.

This is even as another member of the State House of Assembly elected on the platform of the PDP, Nicholas Asonsere, yesterday, defected to the APC and depleted the party’s members in the House to nine, while APC now has 15 members, a development that made the State Governor, Senator Monday, to predict the imminent collapse of the PDP in the state.

Chief Orbih alleged that members of the PDP Caretaker Committee connived with the former governor of the state, Godwin Obaseki, to destroy the party, but that he was determined to join hands with committed members to rebuild the party.

He explained that the donation of the secretariat, on 175 Airport Road, was in fulfilment of a pledge he made a few weeks ago when he promised some leaders and members of the party who have been calling him to show concern on the poor state of the party.

He, therefore, called on the acting National Chairman of the PDP to organise a proper congress that would bring a new state leadership to the party.

“A few weeks ago, I made a promise in one of our meetings that I was going to donate a secretariat to the party. I can tell you, after today, you can go back home and say it was a promise made and a promise fulfilled.

“You know, like I know that the PDP cannot be a homeless party. On January 17, our former state chairman. Tony Azegbemi, was chased out at an office along the Airport Road, Benin City, and from January to this very day, Edo, PDP has no state secretariat. I want to use this opportunity to say that with the official handing over of this secretariat to Edo PDP, we are going to put an end to that sad chapter, when we’ve been without a party secretariat for the past few months.

“I have been seeing some statements lately signed by one man who calls himself acting chairman of the party. The other one calls himself acting secretary of the party. I want to say here, in my capacity as the Zonal Vice Chairman, South-South, that those people have no standing in PDP, they are pretenders.

“I want to publicly declare that those who collaborated with Godwin Obaseki to kill the PDP in Edo State cannot be caretakers; they are undertakers. Undertakers cannot take care of anything. They are those who buried the party in Edo State. I want to use this event to tell them to stay away. It is time for us to rebuild, reconstruct and reposition Edo State PDP.

“I want to use this opportunity to send this message to the acting National Chairman of our great party. This is the time for him to rebuild our party. He should roll out a programme for the congresses that will throw up new leaders in Edo State. We can no longer tolerate these characters who collaborated with Obaseki to kill our party,” Orbih added.

Governor Okpebholo, while receiving the defected PDP member of the State House of Assembly in Government House, yesterday, thanked all new members who joined the APC from other parties and assured them that the party is a place of opportunities as they would not be discriminated against, but given a room to contribute to the development of the state.

“Thank you for the decision to join the APC and all of you that moved to our party. The winning party will not regret it. The party will stand with you as it is a place of unlimited opportunities. When I came into the APC, I never had the mind to contest for any position, but look at where I am today. I was pressured by people who love good things to contest as a senator and governor, and I won both elections, and today, look at where the state is.

“Very soon, the opposition PDP will collapse in Edo State because of what the APC represents. My idea for Edo people is development. My focus is on development, and I will not be distracted from making life better for Edo people. I will utilise Edo resources, which are obtained from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and Federation Allocation Accounts Committee (FAAC). The resources meant for Edo people will be used to develop the state and make life comfortable for the people,” he declared.

The governor said that since he came into office, he has not traveled abroad because he is serious with developing the state and making life better for the people. He said the former governor, Obaseki, cheated the people, claiming to be doing much in the education sector, while there was actually nothing on ground in schools in the state.

“A big thank you to President Bola Tinubu and God Almighty for the progress and development in Edo State, as God is using some persons as instruments to save the state. On Wednesday, I went to Army Day Secondary School in Ikpoba-Okah Local Government Area and noticed that Obaseki cheated Edo State as governor.

“JSS 1 and JSS 2 have just one classroom combined. We have just six classrooms in a whole school, and these structures are all dilapidated. With this school, I noticed that Obaseki cheated Edo people,” he said.

APC State Chairman, Jarrett Tenebe, who presented Nicholas Asonsere to the governor, said the member representing Ikpoba-Okah constituency voluntarily defected without pressure from anyone.

Tenebe said the developmental strides of Governor Okpebholo also wooed him to join the party, as the governor is working massively for Edo people, including Ikpoba-Okah people.