Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, says his deputy, Philip Shaibu, manipulated the election of the state chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) to install an Executive Council (EXCO) to advance his ambition of becoming the governor of the state.

Obaseki said this during the celebration of International Youth Day, with youths in Edo State, at the Youth House, in Benin, the state capital over the weekend.

It would be recalled that the emergence of the immediate past EXCO of Edo NYCN sparked controversy among youth groups in the state as various interest groups protested the imposition of persons on the organisation and its organs.

It took the intervention of Obaseki, who immediately moved to disband the EXCO and call for fresh elections, to restore order and sanity to the council.

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Speaking on the crisis that rocked the council, Governor Obaseki said Shaibu worked behind his back in an attempt to fester his ambition through the youth council.

He said: “I want to apologise over the unfortunate incident that happened with the youth council election. It was done without my authorisation and knowledge.

“As you can see now, the reason why my deputy governor manipulated your election is because he has political ambition and thought he could control and use the council to achieve his political goals.

“Please, I apologise. Going forward you will have an independent, well organised, and well-covered transparent election.”

Commending the youths, Edo State First Lady, Betsy Obaseki, said: “You are the ones we are looking up to. That is the reason why we are getting involved in your affairs and life and are here to support you. We are expecting great things from you and are confident that you will not disappoint us.”

The Star