Jonathan, PDP votes brought Oshiomhole to power – Amori

By Joseph Erunke
Abuja — SENATOR Ighoyota Amori, representing Delta South Senatorial Zone, has taken a swipe at Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State over what he referred to as the latter’s “unnecessary attacks on former President Goodluck Jonathan.”

Amori, who said the former president silently worked to ensure the victory of the governor during his first and second election contests, and accused Oshiomhole of being ungrateful to the former president.

Speaking to Vanguard in Abuja, the lawmaker said the claim by the governor that he borrowed the sum of $75 million because the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, led government looted all the money from the country was baseless.

Jonathan and Oshiomhole

He said: “We have heard the governor of Edo State saying that ‘oh, I am borrowing the sum of $75 million because PDP looted the treasury. This is somebody who has been governor of Edo State for almost seven years now.

“In his last days in office and because he is an APC governor, he is borrowing $75 million to do what he could not do ever since and he is putting the blame on the PDP!

“First of all, how did he come to power? He came to power through PDP. Both in his first and second tenures, he came to power through PDP; it was the PDP votes that brought him to power. But today, he is biting the finger that fed him! And he is putting his blame on the PDP.”

Even as the PDP did not only present candidates in the Edo governorship elections but also contested the polls keenly, Amori insisted that the votes that made Oshiomhole the governor were from PDP members.

But he refused to explain why his party did so: “You must know that in politics, a lot of things happen. So, let us not go into that.

But I can tell you that Oshiomhole was friendlier to the people then. You remember that in Imo State in the last election, PDP members worked against their own candidate to install Ohakim. When Ifeanyi Ararume was the candidate of the PDP, the party asked Ararume to leave and when he refused, the members worked against him and Ikedi Ohakim emerged as the governor.

“So, in politics, a lot of things happen. Oshiomhole knows very well that he was a PDP-installed governor, both in his first election and in his rerun and he has not hidden it but tries to counter the argument by saying ‘well, I equally supported Jonathan in his presidential election.”

“We, as a PDP, supported Oshiomhole in all ramifications, we provided everything for Oshiomhole to become governor and the first target of Oshiomhole was of course, Aneni and Igbinedion. Because he believed that power was already in his hands and he could attack and abuse them anyhow,” the senator fumed.