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THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Saturday denied reports that embattled governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, has not joined its fold.
The party’s declaration came on the heels of Friday’s disqualification of Obaseki ahead of the June 22 governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to produce its candidate for the September election and speculations that he had moved to the opposition party.
The APC’s seven-man screening committee led by Professor Jonathan Ayuba disqualified Obaseki from the process on the grounds of its inability to verify the authenticity of the governor’s National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate and what it called the governor’s defective Higher School Certificate (HSC).
But reacting to speculations that Obaseki has joined the PDP to contest the forthcoming election, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said claims that Obaseki has joined the party were not true.
“The PDP has principles, processes and procedure. Joining our party is a procedural issue. He [Obaseki] has to join the party at the ward level. As we speak, there is no information at the national secretariat that he has joined the party at the ward level. He has not,” Ologbondiyan said.
However, unconfirmed reports stated that Obaseki had been under pressure to join the PDP in the wake of the cold war between him and his estranged godfather, Adams Oshiomhole.