Former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Marvellous Omobayo, has rejected the one-week ultimatum issued by Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration directing him to return government property, insisting that the legality of his tenure remains under judicial consideration.
In a letter dated October 28, 2025, and addressed to the Edo State Commissioner of Police, the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), and the National Security Adviser, Omobayo maintained that the matter should be left for the Court of Appeal to decide.
He emphasized that until the appellate court rules on the dispute, he remains entitled to all the rights, privileges, and benefits due to a former deputy governor.
“The issue of the legitimacy or otherwise of my tenure as Deputy Governor of Edo State from April to November 2024 is currently the subject of Appeal No: CA/ABJ/CV/856/2024 before the Court of Appeal, Abuja,” Omobayo stated.
Omobayo’s appeal challenges the Federal High Court judgment delivered on July 17, 2024, by Justice James Omotosho, which nullified his appointment and ordered the reinstatement of Philip Shaibu as deputy governor.
The court had ruled that Shaibu’s impeachment by the Edo State House of Assembly, as well as Omobayo’s subsequent appointment by former Governor Godwin Obaseki, violated Section 188 (1–9) of the 1999 Constitution, rendering both actions unconstitutional and void.
Omobayo disclosed that a motion for stay of execution of the judgment is still pending before the appellate court and cautioned against any enforcement of the government’s ultimatum while the case is yet to be determined.
“It will be unlawful for any party to a pending appeal to resort to self-help by deploying thugs or instigating the police to act in a manner capable of interfering with judicial proceedings. Such conduct amounts to contempt of court and attracts serious consequences,” he warned.
The former deputy governor also attached documents — including his Notice of Appeal, record of appeal, appellant’s brief, and pending applications — to support his argument that the matter remains sub judice.
“It is only the Court of Appeal that can validly determine the legitimacy of my tenure as Deputy Governor of Edo State. The police must not allow themselves to be used to perpetrate illegality,” he added.
Omobayo insisted that no court has stripped him of his entitlements, reiterating that he remains a former deputy governor in law until the appeal is concluded.
The controversy follows a statement issued on Tuesday by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Okpebholo, Fred Itua, giving Omobayo a seven-day deadline to return all government assets in his possession. The Edo government had described Omobayo’s tenure under Obaseki as “illegal”, citing the Federal High Court’s judgment.
Omobayo, a former Labour Party chieftain, was sworn in on April 8, 2024, by Chief Judge Daniel Okungbowa after Obaseki’s fallout with then–Deputy Governor Philip Shaibu. Despite the court ruling in Shaibu’s favour, the verdict was not enforced, and Omobayo served out the administration’s term alongside Obaseki.
The standoff between Omobayo and the Okpebholo administration now adds a fresh legal twist to Edo’s post-Obaseki political landscape, as both camps await the appellate court’s verdict.
