Edo governorship election: Oshiomhole breaks silence on arrest of PDP members, details emerge

• Edo North Senator Adams Oshiomhole defended the police's arrest of opposition party members
• Governor Godwin Obaseki criticized the police for bias, claiming the arrests contributed to the PDP's decision not to sign a peace accord
• Addressing reports of vote-buying, Oshiomhole rejected the idea that economic hardship justifies the practice

Benin, Edo state - Edo North Senator Adams Oshiomhole has addressed the reasons behind the police arrests of members of opposition parties in the Edo State ongoing governorship election.

The arrests have sparked controversy, particularly from Governor Godwin Obaseki, who accused the police of bias and claimed that these actions were a major factor in the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) decision to opt out of signing a peace accord for the election.

Oshiomhole: Police arrested those undermining democratic process

As reported by Premium Times, Oshiomhole, a prominent member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), explained that the arrests were necessary to filter out those who might undermine the democratic process.

He emphasized that the police actions were intended to ensure that the will of the majority prevails in the election.

His words:

“The essence is that you know that some people said the election will not take place and that it will be do or die."

He added that the police were right to take preemptive measures against individuals planning to disrupt the election.

Oshiomhole further elaborated that the arrests were a precautionary measure to prevent anyone from hijacking the electoral process, The Punch reported.

He stressed the importance of protecting the democratic system from those who might use violence or other means to influence the outcome of the election.

He said:

“We won’t let one person veto what hundreds of thousands of people are doing.“The people want democracy, not dictatorship, including civilian dictatorship. Anyone who tries to prevent people from voting with a view to falsifying outcomes must be stopped.”

Hunger Not a justification for vote buying, says Oshiomhole

Amid reports of vote-buying during the election, Oshiomhole dismissed hunger as a justification for such practices.

He acknowledged that some voters were expressing their frustration with hunger, but he insisted that this does not excuse the buying and selling of votes.

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Source: Legit.ng