By SIMON EBEGBULEM

BENIN CITY— Edo Liberation Movement, said, yesterday, that former governor of old Bendel State, Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia, does not need the permission of  the leadership of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to persuade Governor Adams Oshiomhole to join PDP and urged the party to apologise to him (Ogbemudia) for what it described as the unacceptable attacks on the political leader of the Binis.

President of the Movement, Mr. Nosa Omorodion, in a statement,  recalled that the Publicity Secretary of PDP in Edo State, Mr. Matthew Urhoghide, who signed the statement and the party’s state chairman, Chief Dan Orbih, were members of All Nigerian Peoples Party, ANPP, when  Ogbemudia and others formed PDP, and  wondered why they argued in their statement  that the leadership of the party was  not involved when Ogbemudia led other leaders of the party to appeal to Oshiomhole to join PDP.

The movement said: “It is unfortunate that Urhoghide and his sponsors would want to take advantage of the report to dent the image of Dr. Ogbemudia before the PDP national executive, an exercise which they began a long time ago. It is indeed sad that PDP for want of excuse could insinuate that Ogbemudia’s action was mercenary and misleading.”

“At any rate, it is common knowledge that the hope of majority members of PDP, including Urhoghide benefactors, for a change in the miserable fortune of the party in Edo State, prior to the 2012 governorship was the defection of Governor Oshiomhole to PDP, which was greatly rumoured. It is true that he was approached but he rejected the officer.”