THE rift between the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, and his deputy, Philip Shaibu, worsened on Monday, September 18, following the decision of the governor to lock out his deputy from the Government House.
A report stated that when the deputy governor arrived at his office today, the main door and gate leading to his storey building office were locked with chains and large padlocks.
It was also reported that Shaibu contacted the Deputy Commissioner of Police and the Director of State Services, informing them that he had been locked out of his office.
In a viral video seen on social media, the deputy governor was seen making calls outside a locked gate.
The crisis between Obaseki and his deputy is over who succeeds him as governor in 2024.
The crisis assumed a new dimension when Shuaibu went to court to obtain an injunction against an alleged impeachment plot against him.
Following the suit, a Federal High Court in Abuja in August restrained Obaseki from instigating any alleged impeachment process against his deputy.
The court gave the ruling pending the determination of the matter.
Additionally, Shaibu was prevented from being detained, arrested, or subjected to harassment by the Inspector General of Police or Department of State Service (DSS).
The Deputy Governor had submitted an ex parte motion and a move on notice to the court, asking it to halt the alleged impeachment proceedings against him.
Obaseki, the Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, and the Chief Judge of Edo State are the first through fifth defendants in the lawsuit with number FHC/ABJ/ CS/1027/2023.
In his earlier ruling on Friday, August 4, Justice Ahmed Ramat Mohammed had instructed the parties in the lawsuit to maintain the “Status quo ante bellum”.
Additionally, he ordered the defendants to justify rejecting the plaintiff’s request for interim orders.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance