AHEAD of this weekend’s House of Assembly election in Edo State, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) led administration in the state of intimidation and blackmail of market women in the state.
The PDP in a statement accused the administration of conniving with the APC leadership to coerce women traders in the state to support the APC in the weekend poll failing which their market shops would either be taken from them or demolished. The state government in a sharp reaction accused the PDP of sour grapes and hallucinating in the statement it issued.
The PDP in its statement issued by State Publicity Secretary of the party. Mr Chris Nehikhare said, “Their target this time are the hardworking traders in the markets especially New Benin, Oba Market, Etinosa Market and Ekiuwa market to mention a few in Benin metropolis. “After financially inducing the APC “Iye-Eki”, market leaders, they deployed them to these markets to threaten, intimidate and harass. The market women are been forced and blackmailed to join an “Apology March” to government house scheduled for Tuesday, March 5, 2019 to beg Adams Oshiomhole and Governor Obaseki for forgiveness.
” You will recall that all APC candidates especially President Buhari lost woefully on Saturday, February 23, 2019 presidential and national assembly polls. They are to join the Apology March and pledge loyalty to APC or they lose their stalls and in some cases markets! “Threatening a man’s means of financial survival for political compliance is reprehensible, irresponsible and condemnable.”
” It exposes this government and its party, APC, as hollow, wicked and devilish! Just like their counterpart in Lagos they are tyrannical, despotic and anti democratic”. Reacting to the allegation, Special Adviser to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie said, “It is a hallucination to imagine that the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration that has prioritised the wellbeing of our industrious market women and other business owners, through several reforms of trade practices in the state, would hurt their interest.
“It is still lost on PDP that they lost the war in the presidential and national assembly elections held on Saturday February 23. “They have depended on lies for decades as a strategy for accessing power and swindling people’s mandates, but Edo people and Nigerians now know them for what they truly are, mandate swindlers!
“Just like the several lies and falsehoods which Chris Nehikhare is notorious for propagating, the allegation of threat to market women is completely false, and the creation of Edo PDP.
Vanguard.
