The All Progressives Congress, APC, in Esan North East local government area of Edo State has protested the composition of the governor-elect, Sen Monday Okpebholo’s 24-member transition committee, claiming that some names in the team were not members of the party.
In a press briefing on Sunday, chairman of the party in the local government area, Emmanuel Ibhagbemien singled out a former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Matthew Egbadon who is a member of the committee.
He accused him of working against the party during the September 21 governorship election being a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
He alleged that a business mogul and a traditional ruler from Edo Central masterminded his inclusion.
According to him, “This inclusion is not only unusual but is a blatant affront to the integrity of our party. It is clearly a calculated attempt to infiltrate our ranks and install individuals in key positions within the incoming administration.
“Let us be unequivocal: we will not tolerate intruders or opportunists attempting to hijack the internal workings of our party. Those who have not contributed to our success cannot be allowed to benefit from it.
“We have now identified those who sponsored this underhanded maneuver. We wish to send them a stern warning: for their own sake, they must cease these unholy attempts to meddle in our party’s affairs.
“To be specific, we have confirmed that a prominent business mogul from Ewatto, alongside a traditional ruler from Esan land, are behind the inappropriate inclusion of Rt. Hon. Matthew Egbadon on our transition committee list for their own selfish motives. We strongly condemn these actions and view them as an affront to the values of our party.
“We advise these individuals to allow the Governor-elect to govern without undue interference and to let our party form a government without external meddling.
“Finally, we admonish these intruders who inserted the name of Rt. Hon. Matthew Egbadon into our transition list to immediately disengage from our party’s affairs or face severe consequences. We stand ready to defend the integrity and core values of our party, and we will not hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to protect our mandate. On this, we are unanimous and resolute.”
