A group, Edo Youth Vanguard, has warned a former Governor of Edo State and the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to steer clear from the State.
The warning came on the heels of the APC rally scheduled for Friday, in Benin, the state capital.
The youth group also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to call Oshiomhole to order over his support for a rally that has the potential of creating crisis and breaching the fragile peace in the state.
A faction of the party in the state, which has the backing of Oshiomhole, had fixed Friday for a rally to receive defectors into the party without the knowledge of the state governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki and the party’s state chairman, Mr Anselm Ojezua.
Governor Obaseki travelled on Tuesday with President Buhari to Egypt on national assignment and they are expected to return today.
In a statement issued in Benin by its president, Nosakhare Oseghale and Secretary-General, Edward Ikhide, the EYV, said, “We are amused that some politicians are planning an ill-conceived political rally for Friday and it’s being done without the knowledge of the state’s Chief Security Officer, Governor Godwin Obaseki, who is on a national assignment with President Muhammadu Buhari.
“More curious in the ill-timed proposed rally was the complete and deliberate neglect of the party’s state executive led by its chairman, Mr Anslem Ojezua. So, the question begging for answer is who is the Abuja team organizing the rally for?
“This is the yuletide season and there are already movements within and outside the state, why the desperation to pull down the fragile peace in our state just to prove that a deteriorating influence is still potent?
“For all intents and purposes, this planned rally is provocative and highly susceptible to violence. How can you guarantee the safety of Edo people in a rally where neither the state governor, who is the leader of the APC in Edo State, nor other leaders of the party is aware of the purported declaration rally?”
He urged President Buhari to put a check on the activities of Oshiomhole, adding that, “Edo State is greater than any man or interest.”
