Reinstated Edo State deputy governor Philip Shaibu stated on Sunday that the nation is fighting to preserve the deputy governors’ position, which has been mocked since democracy was restored in 1999.
Following a Thanksgiving ceremony at the state capital of Benin’s St. Paul’s Catholic Church, Shaibu declared that democracy is the reason for his triumph.
Despite campaigning on the same ticket, he said it was depressing that some governors still treated their deputy with contempt. Shaibu pointed out that the National Assembly ought to make an attempt to pass legislation criticising the deputy governor’s position.
He called his reinstatement by the court an act of God and urged the government to probe the assassination of the police inspector on Thursday as he exited Benin Airport with All Progressives Congress governorship candidate Senator Monday Okpebholo.
What they’re saying
He said,
“My struggle for reinstatement is for all of the people in office around the country. Since the return of democracy in 1999, the office has been criticised.
“I will continue to try to restore sanity and dignity in that office.All I am doing is not to earn anything, but to ensure that the sanity of the deputy governor’s office is restored in accordance with the Federal Republic’s constitution.
“What other deputy governors cannot fight against, I will fight on their behalf so that governors will start respecting that office.” On his court triumph, he stated, “I challenged God, and I told Him that I want him to prove His power in my life, that people who are anti-God and anti-democracy are at it again, and they want to use me as a scapegoat, and I told God to show the world that I am truly his son.
“They claimed they would impeach me, and I would go to court, and that by the time judgement arrived, my tenure would have ended. I now challenged God to prove to them that they had touched His anointed and that the judgement would arrive sooner, more quickly than predicted. I stated that the judgement would need to be delivered before the election. “By the grace of God, democracy has come to stay, and we that fought for democracy will protect it; anti-democratic forces must be flushed out, and we will succeed.” Shaibu also asked the state’s youths not to be used and to vote in the election to eliminate “anti-democratic people”.
He continued,
“This election is the chance to change anti-democratic forces, and you must do so through the ballot. Don’t use violence, and I’ve been preaching it for the past year, since the intimidation and harassment against me began.”
Bottom Line
The invocation of divine intervention in his reinstatement might resonate deeply in a country where faith plays a significant role in public and private life.
However, it also highlights the perception of political struggles as moral and spiritual battles, which can be both a unifying and polarizing narrative.
Shaibu’s call for youths to engage in the democratic process without resorting to violence is crucial.
It promotes a culture of peaceful political engagement and the importance of voting as a tool for change. This message is particularly pertinent given the historical context of electoral violence in Nigeria.
