BY GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE

BENIN CITY – PIONEER speaker of Edo State House of Assembly, Mr. Thomas Okosun, denied yesterday in Benin statements credited to former Governor Oserhiemen Osunbor that his election as speaker in 1999 marked the beginning of the crisis in the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Prof. Osunbor had in an interview with Sunday Vanguard said  the crisis in the party started with the election of Okosun as  speaker of the state legislature, instead of Mr. Matthew Egbadon.

Speaking with Vanguard in an interview, Okosun, who is now the state chairman of  Action Congress of Nigeria (A C N), said his election was influenced by the 24 elected members of the House, adding that Prof. Osunbor was not abreast of the politics of the PDP at the time, having been brought in  from Lagos to contest a senatorial seat.

He said:  “In 1999, where was Prof. Osunbor?  He was a lecturer at Lagos State University and we brought him to come and contest election. He did not know how the PDP was formed and how could he say that my election as speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly created the PDP crisis?

“The first question I would like to ask him is, was he there when the decision was taken as to who would become the speaker? Was it the decision of the 24 members of the House elected at that time or a decision of a single individual in his bedroom?”