Odigie-Oyegun Receives 9th Benin National Merit Award

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun has recounted how he survived several attempts to remove him from office as National Chairman of the governing Party.

According to Odigie-Oyegun who was the first executive governor of Edo state, his several political trials stemmed from his unflinching loyalty to constituted authority at all times, a posture that severally frustrated contending interests within the Party.

Odigie-Oyegun spoke when he received the 9th Benin National Award from the Bini National Congress (BNC) in the Edo State Capital, Benin-City on Thursday evening.

“The timing of the investiture was significant given that I had just survived another attempted coup which died with a whimper. For a Bini group, my own people to say ‘oga we want to honour you’, I thought finally yes I deserved this honour. I thank you for doing this to me. This is one of my proudest moments.“The APC National Chairman stated at the well-attended award reception.

“I grew up in an environment of strong family ties, where bringing disgrace, dishonour to the family is the worst thing you can possibly do, because your own family will be the first to disown you. So all my life, this is the circumstance that has conditioned me. One, I do nothing that will not make me sleep soundly at night. I do nothing that I will be afraid to see as a headline in any of the national dailies. Yes, I have been through several trials, and I have overcome them all.