In an interview with Punch, the Impeached Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has recalled that the governor didn't reveal his plan of making him his deputy, instead they were the ones who reached out to him. Shaibu said when the governor heard that he consulted with different groups that he hadn't made his declaration of contesting, the governor withdrawn some of his official assignments which he was handling.

He narrated that he called a mutual friend (Ken Mozia) to tell Governor Obaseki that he was been discriminated and they organized a meeting. He said in the meeting it was attended by the governor and the mutual friend, and he told them that his adherents and friends were mounting pressure on him to contest. He highlighted that the governor advised him to suspend all consultation because it was too early for him to contest. He said that the governor started behaving strange when he started taking some of his his duties and stopped from attending state events.

His words, "Obaseki did not call anyone, not even me, to say this was our plan. Instead, we were the ones who reached out to him to say we were consulting with different groups, and when he saw that, he started withdrawing some official assignments that I was handling. I called a mutual friend to tell him that I was being victimised and a meeting was organised. The meeting had Obaseki, the mutual friend, Ken Mozia, and Osarodion Ogie, and I told them that I was consulting but hadn’t made up my mind to contest.