Obaseki: Why Edo government didn’t approve Ogbemudia stadium for Labour Party’s rally

The Executive Governor of Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has explained the reason behind the state government’s refusal to approve the use of Samuel Ogbemudia stadium for Labour Party’s presidential rally.

The Labour Party held its presidential rally recently in Benin, Edo State capital.

While explaining during a recent interview on Channels TV, Obaseki, said the party submitted its request very late and added that the tracks in the stadium are under warranty.

Also, the governor also dismissed the Labour Party’s chances in the 2023 election.

Obaseki said: “I heard that they applied on Wednesday night to hold a rally at Samuel Ogbemudia stadium on Friday, giving us one-day notice. The tracks in that stadium are still under warranty. The pitch has to be maintained in a certain mode. So it’s not just a facility you can just walk into and use without adequate preparation.

“When they knew that they had a campaign on Friday, why couldn’t they give us the notice earlier so that we could give them the conditions under which they could use the pitch? The only reason we allowed PDP to use the venue for its rally was that it provided us with an opportunity to commission it. Otherwise, most rallies are held in other bigger places in the city.

“I expected much from the Labour Party and thought they’re more serious. You can’t give us 24 hours to approve a venue for you.

“Labour Party showed us they are virtually not on ground. We (PDP) are the ones on ground. We’ll see in February 23rd. But the issue at stake is I expected them to be more serious. I spoke with Peter Obi when he told me he was coming to Edo. And we offered him all the security needed and some logistics.