The scheming among candidates and their sponsors in the Edo State gubernatorial elections has taken a criminal and devious bent, as popular Benin billionaire, Captain Hosa Okunbo has been fingered as being behind the Oba Market inferno in a clandestine move to tilt the opinion on his preferred candidate in the poll.
It was gathered that Okunbo, who has variously denied having an interest in the gubernatorial election, has continued to hatch different plots aimed at undoing Governor Godwin Obaseki, whose rating among the people continues to soar by the day.
Sources familiar with the recent action of the billionaire said that he has resolved to fight dirty and deploy whatever available arsenal to detract from the government’s goodwill, regardless of the cost on the ordinary man on the street.
A source, who pleaded anonymity, said the market fire was the machination of Okunbo and his cohorts, which include the suspended Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, who is the preferred candidate of Captain Okunbo in the polls.
He said, “A lot is happening that is just too inhuman. You can imagine that Captain Hosa Okunbo would go to any length to paint the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led government in bad light. He is behind the fire. He set it up because he has seen that any other decent way to get people to back down from supporting Obaseki would back fire.
“The plan which has been in the works for a while now is for such a fire to be arranged and then Captain Okunbo starts dolling monies and support to affected market women and get their pledge to support his preferred candidate, Pastor Ize-Iyamu.”
Another source, who asked not to be named, said the desperation of Captain Okunbo is getting out of hand, noting that he may resort to murders and other violent options in the coming days.
Recall that Captain Okunbo is said to have imprisoned a young man, who had exposed his dealings as a drug lord and accused him of using proceeds from the illicit trade to fight against the state government.
