Oshiomhole says he twice prevented his son from contesting election

Adams Oshiomhole, a senator from Edo State, has recounted how he twice prevented his son, Cyril, from contesting election for the House of Representatives.

The 49-year-old Cyril is a medical doctor.

Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State appointed him as the state commissioner for health in November.

“He didn’t work under me; maybe Governor Monday (Okpebholo) is grooming him,” Mr Oshiomhole said during a Channels TV interview on Wednesday, shrugging off the suggestions that he may have influenced his son’s appointment.

The senator was a guest on a Channels TV programme, Politics Today.

The programme anchor, Seun Okinbaloye, asked Mr Oshiomhole if his son was appointed a health commissioner without his influence.

“When I was in Edo, I stopped him when he wanted to go for House of Reps. I said no. I supported another guy. The second time he wanted to try again, I said no.

“This time, the governor decided to pick him. He is qualified,” Mr Oshiomhole, a former governor of Edo, responded.

Mr Okinbaloye pressed on. He asked Mr Oshiomhole if the governor did not seek his permission before the appointment.

Mr Oshiomhole giggled.

“Don’t talk about permission. My son is not under 30 (years),” the senator said.

“He didn’t need my permission, but I expressed concern when I called him. I expressed those concerns to the governor that people might say this, people might say that. Those were the reasons I stopped him from contesting elections when I was in office.

“But then I have to accept that in the world that we are living you can only do so much to control your son but not when he is already of the adult age.

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“The point must be made. I invested in my children’s education; I didn’t want them to go through what I went through. So Dr Cyril is not only a medical doctor from Ahmadu Bello University, but he went to do post-graduate studies at two universities in the U.S., including Harvard.

“So I won’t say he has it (the appointment as a commissioner) because he is Oshiomhole; I would say he has it despite being Oshiomhole,” he concluded.