Ahead of the September 2024 governorship election in Edo state, the state’s All Progressives Congress (APC) has petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to prevent the State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, from using the State Police Command to arrest Jarrett Tenebe on fabricated charges.
In a petition dated June 13 and titled “A Case of Executive Intimidation, Political Harassment, and Baseless Accusation by the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki,” Jarrett Tenebe, the party’s state chairman, stated that the plan is to arrest him on Friday, during the party’s State Governorship Campaign Council inauguration.
The petition was copied to both the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Police Affairs and the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC). Part of the petition reads: “I am the chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Edo state chapter, and I have the honour and privilege to bring to your attention the high degree of intimidation and harassment perpetrated by the Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki.
“While it is safe under the Freedom of Information Act for anyone who is dissatisfied with any policy implementation by the government at any level to raise inquiries about it, the Edo state governor does not consider the effectiveness of any opposition to his government’s policies. To carry out his threat of strangulating any dissent, he uses all sorts of security machinery within the state, both conventional and self-created.
“He has pledged to deal severely with anyone who dares to challenge him, especially during this election season in our state. “Against the backdrop of the foregoing, he has used the office of the Commissioner of Police to arrest me solely for political motives. I was notified at my party secretariat that, while I was away, the police brought me an invitation to an interview with the commissioner of police regarding a petition submitted against me by the governor.
“According to the information I have, the governor has ordered the police to lay siege to my party secretariat, where we are scheduled to have the inauguration of our campaign council tomorrow, in order to arrest me for political reasons.
“I hereby request your prompt action by transferring the aforementioned case, if applicable, to your office for a discreet inquiry.
“I count on your esteemed office to do justice to this unwarranted harassment” . The petition was copied to both the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Police Affairs and the Chairman of the Public Safety Commission.
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