The governor explains: “During the nomination of the commissioners, about five of us were supposed to look at the list of nominees from the local governments of the state. That morning, I called him (Shaibu) for the meeting, but he didn’t attend. That’s why Itsako does not have a commissioner. I still gave him the respect to provide his nominee when he’s ready.
“I kept quiet and said I thought we were together. But what struck me, and I have never said this to anybody, is that after I proclaimed the House of Assembly and we were now going to elect officers, Shaibu was in Abuja. He came back that day – I am the chief security officer of this state. I get any information I need. But I have the responsibility to keep quiet and use the information properly.
“My deputy came back and called the leader in APC, telling the leader that during the elections on the next day, particularly election of the speaker of the house of assembly, he has five members who are loyal to him and that he would like the seven members of APC to work with his five members of PDP to produce the next speaker. This information will still be corroborated by somebody else.”
The governor said he then called the PDP members of the House to his house for consultation and Shaibu tried to barge into the meeting and he prevented him from entering.
“As far as I am concerned, that was not working in our common interest. Why would the deputy governor seek to have another speakership candidate outside of what the governor wants? Are we working together?
“That was when I knew we had a problem. That the deputy governor has become so desperate to take over that he would do anything, including carrying out a coup against his governor. How can you say you are loyal and you will do such a thing?
“The rest, you observed. He was going round, going to places as if we are not in the same government again. When you ask him about something, he will agree and the next day he will be doing something else.
“His Excellency, Mike Ogadiomhe called for a meeting, he called Senator Aliamekhena to that meeting in his house. I went to that meeting. The deputy said ‘oh sorry, I was just consulting, nothing will happen again.’ He will just keep quiet until it is time. I said the timetable for the election is not even out, why not wait, because there is a lot of work for us to do. Let us not be distracted. But for him, no, he continued.
“I didn’t say a word and I haven’t said a word to him. The next thing I knew, he went to court. He said he was going on holiday and I approved, as usual, for him to go for his annual holiday, and he travelled, he didn’t even tell me he was travelling, and the next thing I knew was that they were serving us summons that he had gone to court; that there is a plan to impeach him. Impeach you? What have you done? If you want to run for the office of the governor, there is nothing wrong, it is your constitutional right to run for the office if you want to.
