A Former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shuaibu has revealed that he was duped by his former friend and boss, Governor Godwin Obaseki.
Shuaibu, in a recent interview, disclosed that Obaseki swindled him of $300,000 shortly before their defection to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
He revealed that Obaseki told him that he needed the money for ‘lobbying’ some party leaders. He told Sun;
“When the issue of moving to PDP came and when there was this question about what will the PDP get, if we are given governor, why they should take deputy, for me at that time, I told him if deputy will be the issue, let it go. Let them bring deputy and you go. In so far as they give you the ticket, go ahead. I sacrificed it.”
He added; “I contributed money. I contributed $300,000. He collected $300,000 from me to say he was going to add to $700,000 to go and lobby them in Port Harcourt. But we later found out from the zonal PDP Chairman that he never gave them any money.”
“So, he even duped me (general laughter). And it took me like seven months to be able to pay back that money where I collected it from. I was paying instalmentally to be able to pay that money. That was why I had to raise alarm because I was paying for money that they said was not used. And this money was not returned back. Till today, he didn’t return the money back. You can ask Chief Dan Orbih and Ogbeide-Ihama. I am calling names now.”
It’s common knowledge that Obaseki and Shuaibu battled each other towards the end of their second term in office. The rift was so deep that it led to the Impeachment of Shuaibu as Deputy Governor.