Gbagi’s Claim That He Visited Oborevwori In Prison Is A Lie —Jaro Egbo

By Daniel Dafe

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Delta State, Olorogun Jaro Egbo Ksc, has debunked the claim by the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, Chief Kenneth Gbagi, that many years ago, he (Gbagi) visited the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, while he was in prison.

Gbagi, in a video that has gone viral, said Oborevwori was convicted and imprisoned for manslaughter.

Reacting to the claims, Egbo, said Gbagi lied.

In an exclusive chat with Oasis Magazine, Olorogun Egbo, who is one of the staunch supporters of Oboorevwori to take over from Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, come 2023, said: “I came to know Gbagi in 1999 when he was Managing Director of Geekos Security. Then, Gbagi wasn’t a lawyer, so he could not have been chairman of legal aide.”

He continued: “In 1999, he was a just a criminologist. He has a Masters degree in Criminology from the Philippines.

“We were very close. Then, I spent time in his house in Lagos and Effurun. In 1999, I was in the office of Osawota, the former Secretary of DESOPADEC. He is alive you can verify from him.

Speaking further, he said that Gbagi was just two years in the bar then when he was appointed chairman of legal aide.

“There was never a time Gbagi visited Sheriff in prison as chairman of legal aide. If he feels there is a case of manslaughter, as a lawyer, he should give us the name of the victim who died; the charge number and what court it was charged to.

“He lied! I am senior to him in the bar, though he is older than me in age. He is misleading Deltans. As those in the temple of justice, it behooves on us as lawyers to always say the truth,” he said.

In his words: “When Sheriff was a councilor in 1999, my law office then was in Sheriff’s plaza which he built 20 years ago and at that time, Gbagi was nowhere near Nigeria. The time Gbagi was referring to that he was appointed as a political aide, Sheriff was in government as Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Security Matters. So, it couldn’t have been when he was a councilor.”

“So, in 1996 when he was a councilor, Gbagi was never a lawyer. He was a graduate of criminology and was in the Philippines and not even in Nigeria then,” he added.

Adding: “We have been lawyers to Sheriff since 1999. There was no time he was detained or imprisoned.”

According to him, Oborevwori remains the best candidate to take over from Okowa.