Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo state and his deputy Philip Shaibu have been issued their Certificates of Return by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) following their reelection victory at the September 19, 2020 governorship poll in state.
Speaking at the brief ceremony in Benin City, Obaseki said: “I want to use this occasion to call on the former National chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, that the fight is over.
“He should come and join in building the House where he was part of laying the foundation. We have no malice, the only thing we disagreed on is on the approach in moving Edo forward.”
The governor also expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari “for rising above partisan politics by allowing the will of the people to prevail.”
According to him, “Buhari would be remembered as father of democracy because he had a choice to make sure his party wins in the state, but insisted the right thing be done.”
The certificate was presented to the governor and his running mate, Philip Shaibu, by Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu, INEC National Commissioner – coordinating Edo, Rivers and Bayelsa states.
Obaseki who was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, polled a total of 307,955 to defeat his closest challenger, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who scored 223, 619 votes.
Agbamuche-Mbu stated that the presentation of Certificates of Return to the governor and his deputy was a statutory obligation of the Commission in fulfilment of the requirement of the Electoral law.
The National Commissioner thanked all stakeholders and Edo people for their contributions and commitment towards credible and safe conclusion of the election process in Edo.
