By Jethro Ibileke
The Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has refuted claims by the the national vice Chairman (South-South) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dan Orbih, that he (Philip), contributed $300,000 to buy the Obaseki/Shaibu governorship ticket in 2020.
Orbih had in a viral video claimed that Shaibu told him that he gave the money to Governor Godwin Obaseki to make up funds to settle Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama who stepped down for him (Obaseki) to contest the Edo State governorship election on the platform of PDP in 2020.
“Shaibu told me that Governor Obaseki demanded $300,000 from him to make up funds to settle Ogbeide-Ihama for the governorship ticket which he gave his boss, Governor Obaseki, only to discover that no penny was given to Ogbeide-Ihama neither did he demand a dime for stepping down”, Orbih had said.
But, Shaibu, in a statement on Friday, described the allegation as false, saying that there was no transactions of such.
Shaibu’s statement read:”It has come to my attention that the National Vice Chairman, South-South of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dan Osi Orbih, has made an absolutely false allegation purporting that I had given the Governor of Edo State, His Excellency, Godwin Obaseki, the sum of $300,000 to hand over to Orbih as part of some sort of political settlement regarding the Edo State chapter of the PDP.
“Nothing can be farther from the truth. I want to state without equivocation that no such transaction ever occurred. It even betrays reasons that I, as Deputy Governor, would have to send the State Governor, my boss, on an errand to hand money to a party leader. It is an aberration of the highest proportion that deserves no contemplation.
“I therefore condemn the rumour in its entirety and urge that the insinuations be disregarded as it has no basis in facts.”
Effort to get Orbih comment on Shaibu’s statement failed as he failed to pick calls made to his mobile phone by our Correspondent.
