 The Deputy Governor of a Dough State, Comrade Philip Shible, has approached the court to seek protection from his boss, Governor Gardiner Basiki, to avoid an imminent impitiment and removal from office. In a motion of notice brought before the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja and made available to the media on Thursday, the appellants seek an order of interlocutory injunctions stopping the respondents or their agents from harassing, intimidating, embarrassing, or preventing the applicants from carrying out the U.S. functions of his office as Deputy Governor of a Dough State, including attending State Executive Council meetings and other functions pending the determination of the substantive suit. When Mr Basiki due to relinquish power in November of 2024, there are speculations that Mr Shible intends to succeed his principle. Invitiments of Deputy Governors by State Parliaments in Nigeria is often induced by Governors while joining us to discuss this is Hon. Shedrak Udubai. He is a convener at Dough PDP Unity Forum and he used to be a member of the Chairman of IPAC in Dough State. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you very much. Good evening. I'm happy to be with you. Great. Let's go back in time to the beginning of the crisis between the Governor and his deputy. Sometime last year, when we started hearing a lot more about this, many in the PDP had raised eyebrows, some have even blamed the Deputy Governor of hub-nubbing with members of the opposition. But is it not safe to say that the Deputy Governor and, of course, indeed the Governor were members of the APC before they became members of the PDP? First, shed some light to what is happening right now in your state. What we have is a clear cause of the pursuit of personal ambition to a very large extent. It's an issue of an ambition not properly carried out. The Deputy Governor had been very close to the Governor. They had come a long way in their political journey. Both of them moved from the all-progressive Congress, moved into the People's Democratic Party in the year 2020 and got re-elected both as Governor and Deputy Governor without a change. In recent times, we have observed very clearly that the Deputy Governor has lost an ambition he wanted to take over from the current government of a two-state. For that singular reason, he wanted to express his interest, demanding that the Governor should endorse him in support of his governorship aspiration. But the Governor is still not within the timeframe, the calendars are not out, and I cannot really blow the time to vote for elections. Governors are still ongoing, but we are also surprised just to see the Deputy Governor rush to Abuja to get a restraining order, restraining the Governor and his cronies, or perhaps anybody acting under his instructions from a pitching the Deputy Governor. One would have noticed clearly is that the Deputy Governor had wanted to engage explicitly within the People's Democratic Party, but appears not to have the requisite political clout to muzzle his way through. And mind you also, there's an issue of zoning, because if many of us who are Democrats to the core will believe very clearly that in as much as zoning or rotation as a principle of power sharing is not enshrined in a joint position, that for there to be easy equal access to power and empowerment, for there to be even development that power must rotate. And as such, there's a particular senatorial district in a two-state known as a two-centre. They have never produced the Deputy Governor since the return of democracy in 1999, and the only opportunity they had in presenting a Governor, the Governor lasted for about 16 months, not even up to a year. And that's the challenge we've had. And perhaps I've said, since the past, the many past Governor was Adam Salih Oshongle, was from a Donut, from the ethnic group of a Donut, and Governor Gordon O'Berserk is from a Donut south, it is only natural. They haven't done eight years each that power returns to a Donut central to give that people a sense of belonging. But the Deputy Governor, who is from a Donut, is insisting that power should return back to a Donut. And what makes it even funny is that him and the former Governor of those states are pulled from the same local government and the same world. And he's irritating, he's nauseating that the man has not been able to carry, to guide his ambition carefully. But this action of his by rushing to the court is ill-fated. It has not sadden however many of us in the party who have been working assiduously out to build unity within the party. Because his followers have been making some divisive statements. Even before now, we have made some moves, filabusting with the all-progressive Congress, that have been perceived to be at a tetric heart of the growth and development of the People's Democratic Party. It hasn't got down with the people. Many of us have been left, perhaps he's making moves to reunite with his former benefactor Adam Salih Oshongle. And that is why he's trying to obtain a restraining order. So that even when he engages with the all-progressive Congress, he will not be kicked out of office. But for me, all of these things are poorly timed. And for you being the second strongest IISO, the political officer in the state as an interpreter of the governor, if you're selling one of the governor, you can go about it the right way. You can declare your aspirations, you can go around posing ban on mobilising others. It's very much that the governor must endorse you to be governor. And that's the challenge we apparently have with Cymru, Philip Shaiibogu, currently in those streets. Again, before I come to you, the allegation of him trying to force the handle of a governor, is it true that at the time when they moved to the PDP and became PDP members, flag bearers, and of course, settled into the party, that members of the PDP, especially those at the helm of affairs, did not welcome those who were supporters and cronies of the deputy governor. Could this have been one of the other reasons why there's been an unsettling within the camp of the deputy governor? That's one. Secondly, what is wrong with a deputy governor wanting to throw his hat into the ring? Being that, of course, the PDP had done that even at the national level, even when it was not the time for former vice-president Chycwab Wbacart to run for that office. The party threw it open for all to run, and then made the best man win. Why can't that be the same case in those states? For the first question he asked, when they both entered into the party as at 2020, it was the last time of the week that the governor insisted, he said every other condition that was required to be met, to ensure that both him and the deputy governor flies in the same tickets must be done. He vehemently resisted the political leaders and masters, all of those persons that considered themselves as political, as principalities within the People's Democratic Party, and ensured that they swam into the race with the deputy governor. To allow just that the man was received, the election went as smoothly, even those persons who had resisted his entry virtually became part of the campaign council that campaigned vigorously to elect the governor and his deputy. But to allow that to show the level of commentary. Beyond that, we could see a particular time when the deputy governor made some statements attacking the national anthem of a face of the People's Democratic Party, and it was openly chastised by the governor of River State near some weekend, where he openly questioned the right of the deputy governor to challenge the governor's council or the leaders of the party calling him a mere deputy governor. Even going as far as asking who is your father. We saw what the governor of the state did. He took a two-page arbatorial in the national dailies, he chastised the governor of River State and defended vehemently the personality of his deputy governor. It was a level of closeness, a level of work. And you could also agree with me that the name Phyllisheble resonates across the political formats of Nigeria as one of the most powerful deputy governor recorded in the history because the party had given the governor the latitude to operate freely across all facets and sectors of the state. It has given him the latitude to operate freely to pretend over special affairs in the state and that to a larger state as it apparently appeared to be overdoged. So did it have been a very close working relationship? The man has gained superior political relevance as I speak to you and from a do not, principally from all his local government. In that particular I don't know, the governor particularly caught that a state within a state for the deputy governor to pretend as a political leader of all the party structures in a do not. So for the deputy governor to say that the only good tells that totally is not at all place. In the last last assembly election, the deputy governor was in charge of ensuring that candidates were selected across the eighth to the sixth local government of a do not to represent us at the House of Assembly. So the deputy governor had the laxity, had the capacity to freely express himself, had the support of the governor all throughout his stay in the vote of the democratic party party where governor took place. My question again, honourable, what is wrong with the deputy governor declaring his intent to run for governor? I mean, I know that, I know that. He needs to seek the consent of his principal for that to happen and we already know that there's a precedent of sorts. If a governor is not anointing his deputy then he cannot go for that office but then what is wrong constitutionally or in your party's constitution is there anything that states that a deputy governor cannot, no matter where he's from, declare his intention to run for office? He has his candidacy and his intention, his ambition, their own legitimate and constitutionally their legal. He has the capacity, he has the resources, he has the political exposure to run for governor. To a large aesthetic also both he has the political exposure and experience there is nothing wrong. What is wrong is trying to entwine the governor insisting that the governor must endorse him for governor, that is what is wrong. That the governor, who currently stands as the custodian of the party must singularly pick him and support him to become governor. That is exactly what is wrong. If he has an ambition to be governor, if the governor appears to have given him the language that I'm supporting you then he can go out in the open and declare. Mind you, he has not officially declared that he's running for governor. He's posting for governor and not anywhere around the streets in the country, around anywhere in the state. What was that, the reason for that is some funny anti-party moves. That's what I can clearly tell you. All we'll observe is that the governor, the deputy governor, even when they had the House of Assembly election, wanted to pick within the members' elect who would be their speaker. The deputy governor made some funny moves at the APC because the APC had eight lawmakers as of then, as of now currently and he wanted them to bring his speaker from a docentra which would not give credence to having a governor from a docentra. And the governor had said that since power was to be routed to a docentra and the docentra had produced the last speaker. Now, sorry, a docentra has produced the last speaker. Now a docentra is not the talk for a docentra to produce a speaker for the docentras of assembly. This move was very, very resisted by the followers of Philip Sheybu who saw it as a threat to the candidacy of their master and they went as far as filabusting with the APC lawmakers trying to twad the correct decision of the party having to zone speakership to a docentra. So all of those moves, the actions and main actions of the deputy governor, if summed up, can be instant amount of impeachment. But the governor has not even told that line. The governor is even interested in impeachment. Oh fuck, as far as work is concerned in those days, governor was mainly taking place. All the deputy governor needed to do was to declare his interest that yes, I want to be the governor and that those people will massively vote for you. There are persons within the party. The governor in himself cannot appoint a candidate or anoint a candidate and the candidate will eventually become governor if the people do not choose who their governor is. The prerogative is within the people of those days to elect their governor. So the deputy governor has not carried out his ambition in a clear and open manner. He appears to have an hidden agenda. And some have said there are lost ground when the people's democratic party is trying to the party is not strong enough and he wants to reunite with the boss in the APC. And that's why he's trying to engage in this polar role to destabilise and trunque the party's interest and ensure that when he goes back to the APC he will fully welcome and supported for his divisive role within the party. I like the last line that you're saying that allegedly he wants to, he might want to be moving back to the APC but why the drama if the deputy governor wants to move back to the APC he would just resign as the deputy governor and move to the APC. I'm guessing that it's not that easy but then again could it be that based on these allegations that you are making that is why allegedly the governor wants to impeach him to get rid of him earlier than he did? Well we have spoken I have friends, I am a chief team in the party in the ones where I belong I have friends who are members of the state of assembly I had reached out to the majority leader and he had said there are no plans of such all of them can be lying there is no paper proof whether I have written or spoken all of us were shocked we were taken aback when we saw the restraining order based secured by the deputy governor he had just merely calculated that for the level, the series of engagement that he will be having he may come across as unholy among what considered from the view of party loyalty and for that reason he might his position as deputy governor might be tretyn and for him of course and you and I know that the new electorate does not permit a deputy governor to decamp into a party and retain its seat so all of those challenges may go to your electorate and certainly to he may want to also get the restraining order or to whip out the sentiment he is being marginalized, he is being frustrated he is being intimidated within the party which is not so but if you ask me why would the deputy governor want to move into the up-progressive congress and I will give you a few reasons first of all, the deputy governor has gone into five different elections since he had been a member of the people's democratic party he first of all went into the polls when he was when he was contesting for being a deputy governor together in a 20 year with the governor in 2020 in that election he lost the greatest loss on the people who suffered the highest loss in philiw Shiaibu's local government Elsa Conwes local government we lost the imagine of our 3,000 votes he was not able to mobilize, constatize and governize his supporters for the people's democratic party because Adam Salih O'shamle who is the leader of the up-progressive congress hails from that particular local government in the last generation we had the presidential election he lost the local government the house of representatives he lost the local government the house of assembly he lost the local government woefully to all to up-progressive congress and I can explain to you very clearly he has not gone to the polls for once and secured any victory under the up-people's democratic party so many of his followers have been advising very clearly that you are picking on to have a political destiny or a future within the people's democratic party why not go back to your boss and secret dress all of these things are in the arena of speculation but it retains us most of us within the people's democratic party it is why we do not want to engage in the form of decisive role to not want to destroy the unity of the party that will fought hard to gain before you now move into the up-progressive congress moving to the progressive congress is fine but you do not have to play the spoilers you do not have to play the weekend role because he has been alleged that is not the followers saying he is not giving a ticket in the people's democratic party they will either seek or swim with the ship and we argue to say why we sought an arrangement because they had to enthrone you into office so the challenge has been enormous and I can tell you very clearly it does not want to have the political support as many people have claimed because the supporters are making them look as though once he has handed over the ticket it will be costed to victory but that is not true because the man has lost series of elections all of the candidates from three local governments under him they lost hopefully in the House of Assembly the ones whom he had opposed in the O1 East also lost hopefully I can tell that the PDB in Edo stage is really pained by the moves by the deputy governor I can even tell from the pain in your voice but finally because I want us to wrap up we have just a minute I hear that amidst the persisting cold war between the deputy governor and the governor the chief Mike Ogiadwme and a former chief judge have interfered by summoning the duo to broker peace and I want to add what is the relationship currently between the governor and the deputy in closing and do you see peace on the radar anytime soon? Yes I see peace on the radar in the deputy governor we are willing and ready to go about his ambition in the right way it is clear that it is legal and it is a courage of every man to aspire but the truth is that the way and manner you go about it goes a long way to tell about your competence and your character and we in the PDB party have suffered loss of division right from this Mweke Danubi fashion in the state that had broken the party and made us suffer humongous loss we are just struggling to come back from that loss and we have seen another senior leader in the party try to introduce some divisive components we are pained, we are disturbed because we believe that we are unable to put us in order to engage in the next gubernatorial elections who may not stand a chance and that is why this development is causing shock to me just to go there to win the party and I strongly hope that the governor will reach out to the deputy governor calling to order create provisions because the man appeared there having been a deputy governor there are only few positions he can aspire but we will see how he can find a middle ground ok atome was the former deputy governor in the state and I hope the world will find a middle ground because this division is allowed to go on rampage really to the destruction of the party well I want to say thank you Shedrach Udube is the convener adult PDP unity forum and he was also the I-PAC in a dosi thank you so much for speaking with us we are hoping that something peaceful will resurface sometime in the future but thank you so much for being here thank you very much, I am happy to be with you, good night alright, well that is on the show tonight I am Mary Anna Conde, don't forget you can play catch up with all our previous episodes on plus politics, just go to our YouTube page that's plus TV Africa and of course you can watch all of our previous episodes we'll see you tomorrow as we bring you more talks on development, good night