I didn’t teach Obaseki, Shaibu how to lose elections —Oshiomhole

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, on Sunday reacted to comments credited to the duo of Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki and his deputy Philip Shaibu, that he taught them everything they are executing in the state presently, including the fight against godfatherism.

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Oshiomhole, who reacted to the duo’s statement in a television programme at the weekend, said he never thought them violence and how to lose elections,

 He said: “I have always been a winner.

 “I have read them severally, saying that I thought them all they are doing today. This is laughable because I never thought them how to lose elections. As we speak today, the governor (Obaseki) lost his ward, local government and senatorial district in the last presidential election. As we speak, the governor is being represented by the PDP in his federal constituency and senatorial district. These in my view were early morning signals about need to change tactics, stop threatening people, saying you will crush, who are you crushing?

“But I won my entire senatorial district for Mr. President and I am being represented by an APC senator and (at) House of Representatives. Then his Deputy Philip, in Jattu where he comes from, in his polling booth where he and his family voted, Philip Shaibu lost. He lost his booth during his own governorship election in which he was standing as deputy governorship candidate. So if he learnt from me, he should have learnt well because I never lost election in my village.

“There is no body in my village who can work against me because when I go home I relate with them, I am an ordinary man. You see when you have power and you don’t use it you are even more powerful. And you must know when to talk tough and when to talk soft. When I am in my village I am just like an ordinary man. I argue and play with my people. The only man that was doing PDP in my village, the youths said how can he be doing PDP but I said no, you have to persuade him to join us.

“And today that young man is one of my PAs. So he (Philip) is one of my very poor students, Kakhi is not a lesson and fighters must be tactful and strategic. No sensible man will fight people who vote for them. Those they are fighting now, some of them delivered 95 percent of the votes in their units while they lost their own areas.”

Regretting that Governor Obaseki and his deputy have unleashed mayhem on APC members in Edo State, Oshiomhole added: “Even as a professional fighter you choose your fight. The other day when Shaibu led thugs to my village with Okada riders and he said during my court case Okada people were following us. It shows how poorly he can interpret situations. Did we ever use Okada riders to intimidate ACN elements then, never?

“And those Okada riders were not hired by me, they bought into my vision. They have heard of me as the president of NLC and on that basis they all voted for me, so when I was rigged out they took the fight to the PDP. The problem is that Philip does not know the difference between family disagreement that can be settled through conversation and political opponents that need to be fought and defeated. But even my language is defeat my opponent and not crush my party members.”

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