Edo 2024: PDP declines signing of Peace Accord, accuses Police of partiality

…lists conditions for participation in signing of peace pact

By Titus Akhigbe

The Edo State’s chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has declined the signing of the Peace Accord organized by National Peace Committee (NPC) to ensure peaceful elections, accusing the police who are the agency responsible for enforcing the accord of partiality.

The party, through its chairman, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi, said it would result to mere jamboree entering a peace accord with an umpire who, from the onset, has shown bias, acting in the interest of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and waging war against the PDP.

The PDP decried that since the commencement of the electioneering process in the state, the steps taken by the Police have shown that they are one-sided.

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He said “In the course of preparations for this election however, strange and disturbing new elements have been introduced in particular by a Party that has apparently reached the conclusion that it cannot prevail in a free, fair and peaceful election.”

The PDP therefore listed the conditions for signing of the peace accord to include, “The immediate and unconditional release/production of all persons currently in unlawful custody or all these persons if alleged to have committed any crime should be immediately brought before a court of competent jurisdiction in compliance with all civilized constitutional processes.

“The immediate redeployment of the current Edo State Commissioner of Police and the current Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and their replacement with persons who can exhibit fairness and balance in the performance of their functions and who do not have any links to the contending parties or vested interests in the process.

“The immediate recall of any external Police Team/Squad from Abuja or any other location in Nigeria currently marauding in Edo State, illegally arresting perceived political opponents and creating undue tension in the State.

“An undertaking and commitment by the Nigeria Police and INEC to operate a level playing field without allowing themselves to become a private army at the behest of one of the contending parties.”

However, the All Progressives Congress eventually signed the Accord hours after it announced that it would not sign the Peace Accord initiated by the National Peace Accord Committee (NPAC), under the leadership of the former military Head of State , General Abdusalami Abubakar (Rtd).
The APC, it would be recalled, had at an early press conference addressed by its State Chairman, Emperor Jaret Tenebe, on Thursday, said that it was not disposed to signing the Peace Accord because of the failure of the police to arrest the suspects named in the killing of Inspector Akor Anuh, one of the security details attached to the APC governorship candidate, senator Monday Okpebholo, on July 18, 2024, along Airport Road, Benin City.

But at the venue of the signing ceremony held at the Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub, the APC, represented by Tenebe and governorship candidate, Senator Okpebholo, eventually signed the Peace Accord agreement.

The Daily Times recalled that Governor Godwin Obaseki, had while receiving General Abubakar (Rtd) on Wednesday, stated that the PDP would not sign the accord because of the bias of the Police against the party.

The governor, who detailed the war of attrition the Police had waged against the PDP, especially the arrest of its members across the state, said that the party would not sign the peace accord because the Police which was expected to implement the agreement was already biased on the side of the APC..

Speaking to journalists at the venue of the peace accord parley, chaired by the former military head of state, Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar (Rtd), the Edo State PDP Chairman Aziegbemi, said that despite the avalanches of incidence available in the public, the police had decided to be arresting his party members while those identified in the APC, were roaming the streets of Edo freely.

In his remarks at the ceremony, General Abubakar noted that Governor Obaseki, had on Wednesday raised the issues of police bais and set out some conditions to be met by the police before PDP could sign the Peace Accord

He said that he expected that Aziegbemi should have stated that before the committee and political parties rather than his outright refusal to sign the accord

The former Head of State, however, said that the PDP still had the opportunity of signing the peace accord by coming to Abuja to do so

Meanwhile, a group under the aegis of Edo women for Peaceful and Credible Elections in the state, accused the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, of being partisan especially with the arrest of some chieftains and members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

Recall that the Police boss had on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ meeting, organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for political parties and other stakeholders for the next week governorship election in Edo confirmed the arrest of Esan West Local Government Council Chairman, Collins Aigbogun and others over alleged criminal charges.

The development which generated reactions from members and supporters of the PDP later led to different agitations in Edo, demanding for naturality of the peace in the election

Flowing from the development, women in the state in their large numbers staged a protest at the venue of the Peace Accord to register their displeasure over their perceived police partisanship in the build up to the election.

The women who chanted various solidarity songs and brandished placards with different inscriptions such as, “police are not contesting in the election,” credible election begins with us”demanded for the immediate redeployment of the commissioner of Police in the state, CP Nemi Edwin-Iwo.

The also called for the unconditional release of PDP members arrested and whisked away according to them in a gestapo-like-manner to Abuja by the police.

“Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, please leave our husbands alone, election is not a war”, they posited.
END