By IDEDE Oseyande
When a child starts debating history with those who told him the story of his birth and how his father whom he never knew died, then you will know the child is heading towards destruction. This seems to be the fate that awaits the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Hon. Philip Shaibu. I watched with great amusement and to an extent, pity, the verbose vituperations of the sinking estranged political godson of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, and how he tried with much difficulty and wimp success whip to up sentiments with incongruent lies of an assassination attempt on him.
Facts stand tall before lies, so I will not want to tow the path of tattling like Hon. Philip Shaibu.
Firstly, let me start with the lie where he accused Adams Oshiomhole of plotting to impeach Governor Obaseki and install him, Hon. Philip Shaibu as the governor. For those of us who have closely followed the political power play from the inception, you will recall that one Akemokue Lukman, that runs the propaganda machinery for Hon. Philip Shaibu with the code name “Bullets from the Harmless Rabbit”, had earlier in his image laundering for his payment explained how Hon. Philip Shaibu became the Deputy Governorship candidate of the APC in 2016. In his article titled “THE EDO POLITICAL UPHEAVAL: THE DILEMMA OF PHILIP SHAIBU (Part 2)”, he narrated how Philip became the deputy against Oshiomhole’s will. Below is an excerpt:
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“The choice of Obaseki’s running mate was a serious battle unknown to many members of my party. I came to learn of the intrigues early as a close inner watcher of the unfolding drama when Oshiomhole drew me closer to him in an attempt to persuade me to abandon my preferred candidate and work for Obaseki…….
It came to pass as my instinct warned me, that Comrade Oshiomhole had already plotted and settled for Gani Audu as a running mate to Obaseki and Henry Idahagbon as Secretary to State Government. But Philip would have none of that! He bluntly and openly stood against such a move. Philip was terribly rude to his benefactor, then a serving Governor for that matter. Philip threatened Oshiomhole, a serving governor in his own house in Iyamho, in his crude disrespectful and vitriolic vituperations, he uttered the following words: ‘Oga, you dare not try it. In fact, you can’t. if you dare make the mistake of announcing Gani Audu as Obaseki’s running mate, I will not only kill Gani Audu, I will do it right here in your presence so that You can hand me over to the police……
It was then that Oga Oshiomhole caved in and asked, ‘Philip, who then do you want as Deputy Governor? And Philip shouted back: ‘Oga I can do it and you must compensate Ogie with SSG for dashing his hopes else I will still kill Gani”
With the above statement still available online, as narrated by Philip’s media team, when and how did Adams planned to impeach Obaseki through Philip?
Secondly, Philip had been crying foul, accusing Adams and the candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu of trying to assassinate him. From his media report, Lukman has simply narrated to us what Philip is capable of doing. He is prone to violence and he savours it.
Thirdly, to think that Hon. Shaibu ascribes violence dispositions to Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, a man that has been in the eyes and scrutiny of Nigerians for almost two decades and has shone impeccably is astounding. Comrade Adams is known to possess the gift of oratory and persuasive acumen that he deploys with finesse. He, therefore, certainly has no need or use of violence. Of course, because of his labour activism, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has been the victim of violent attacks and threats of violence. He has neither been an instigator nor merchant of violence and will not start now. One of my senior cousins who knows him and has worked with attests to the fact that comrade Adams Oshiomhole is a man that has conquered fear and so intimidation and scaremongering cannot be effective with him. This much Nigerians know with his many struggles against the Obasanjo regime, he came out in flying colours. So who is this Lilliputian Shaibu who has been made to look tall by the conscious magnanimity of Comrade Adams Shaibu now spouting balderdash against a gracious benefactor? The fate of the man who has been fed satisfactorily by Chic and turning around to challenge the same Chic to a wrestling contest is predictable.
Fourthly, it is also instructive, especially for the law enforcement agents and agencies to take note of the allegations of violence and assassinations threats being mouthed by the Edo State Governor and His Deputy. Security agents must consider them useful informants. They should be asked to produce evidence of these threats and aid the security outfits to quickly nip any threat in the bud. Otherwise, we ask the general public to be aware and wary of people who cry wolf when there is none. It is even worse that such alarmists may be the ones planning to perpetrate violence but go public with wild and bogus claims of violence and assassination threats against them to assume the status of potential victims when they unleash their planned violence against political opponents. The case of the violent outbreak at the Oba’s Palace is a pointer. To date, there has not been any violent outbreak in the rallies of the APC. Supporters of POI have been told to eschew violence but to be extremely vigilant and alert to possible threats.
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Fifthly, as stated in the opening paragraph of this article, Philip needs to be reminded briefly of his life history as he seems to have become power-drunk and had so forgotten himself. In his self-delusion, he keeps portraying himself as Adams’ benefactor, twisting obvious and undeniable facts. He boasted with so much pomp of how he stood with Adams and never betrayed him while he was NANS President. It is like a child telling his father that he was instrumental in helping him woo his mother. Philip, whose paternal identity is still under controversy, had been the godson of Adams Oshiomhole, for no other reason than the fact that his mother was from Edo state. As at the time Adams was the President of Nigeria Labour Congress in 1999, Philip was on the verge of being rusticated from the University of Jos for his involvement in various illegal activities in the school. It was Adams, who helped him and with his influence, he later emerged as a controversial factional President of NANS. The reason why that position is not added in his CV even on his official website. So how can someone who was not legally elected claim to have mobilised students in support of the various struggles Adams embarked on while he was a labour leader?
Sixthly and ironically, while Hon. Philip Shaibu tries woefully to denigrate the person of Com. Adams Oshiomhole, he admires and emulates the charisma and charm of the enigma. He thinks childishly that by dressing like him, and recently by dancing like him in campaign rallies can give him the graces and goodwill the former governor enjoys. He has failed to acknowledge the fact that a photocopy can never take the place of an original. Yes, Hon. Philip Shaibu is a bad and outrightly dismissive copy of the people’s governor loved and christened by the people as “OshioBaba”. To want to attempt a comparison is to push stupidity to an act.
It was during an interaction from a very senior comrade that drew my attention to comparing the verbose vituperations of Philip Shaibu to the biblical Absalom, the handsome but crazed and ambitious son of King David Jesse. Philip, just like Absalom is inordinately over-ambitious. All along, his godfather, Comrade. Adams Oshiomhole had been the one guiding him from being rudderless, but as it stands, the child thinks himself a man. And like the biblical Absalom who felt he had learned enough from King David, his father, and so wanted to usurp power at all cost, but ended up killing himself, same fate seems to await Hon. Philip Shaibu. Kamal is seldom forgetful and kind to betrayals and ingrates.
Whether he lies and insults from now until Election Day, the fate of ingrates and betrayals are the same everywhere, it is never and shall not be well with them.
The doomsday for Philip Shaibu is almost here and we know that this will offer good lessons to our youth about the values for respect to elders and our parents.
IDEDE Oseyande, Organising Sec. for Edo Central Conservative Forum, writes from Benin
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