APC Cap Order: Outrage Trails Esan West Chairman’s Threat To Commercial Drivers

The Chairman of Esan West Local Government Area of Edo State, Hon. Blessing Albert Ebhodaghe, has come under intense criticism following a controversial directive allegedly compelling commercial drivers operating in motor parks across the council to wear caps and other materials bearing the insignia of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The directive, captured in a video circulating on social media, has triggered questions over the alleged use of local government authority to enforce partisan political allegiance among commercial operators whose livelihoods depend on access to the motor parks.

Ebhodaghe, who reportedly visited the Onitsha Motor Park in Ekpoma, described his instruction as a “standing warning” to drivers, warning that he would personally intervene against anyone found wearing political materials not associated with the APC.

The chairman linked the directive to Governor Monday Okpebholo’s reported pledge to deliver 2.5 million votes to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.

In the video, Ebhodaghe said the governor’s commitment to the president could only be reciprocated by ensuring that the promised votes were delivered.

He told the drivers that they should support the APC administration, citing improved roads and the ability of commercial operators to travel and conduct their businesses as reasons for backing the governor and the president.

“On no account should I see any driver put on a face cap or any material that does not belong to the party,” he said.

Ebhodaghe further warned that any driver found wearing materials associated with another political party could be removed from the motor park.

“If I see anybody put on another cap, Ehijiele, the chairman of this park, is my very good friend. But there will be no friendship in this business. If I see anybody, I will come here and remove him,” he said.

Reports indicate that the council chairman subsequently directed the park’s deputy leadership to distribute APC-branded caps to drivers, insisting that no operator should claim ignorance of the directive.

The development has generated criticism from groups and observers who questioned the propriety of compelling commercial operators to publicly identify with a political party as a condition for operating from a motor park.

A civic group, MonITNG, has demanded an explanation from Ebhodaghe over the directive, particularly the reported threat against drivers who refuse to wear APC-branded materials.

The controversy has also been widened by another alleged statement attributed to the council chairman in which he reportedly warned hotel owners against allowing opposition political parties to hold meetings at their premises.

In the recording cited by critics, Ebhodaghe allegedly warned that hotels hosting opposition meetings could be sealed, arguing that the land on which such establishments were built belonged to the government.

“Now you want to try the government. The land you build your hotel belong to the Government. This is a threat from me and from the government. Government will come and prove to you that they own the land,” he was quoted as saying.

The reported remarks have heightened concerns over the extent to which local government authority could be deployed in partisan political activities ahead of the 2027 elections.

Ebhodaghe, however, reportedly defended his interaction with the motor park leadership, describing the park chairmen as his friends and maintaining that his comments were made in the course of his engagement with them.

The controversy comes at a time when the APC in Edo State is intensifying grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2027 general election, with Governor Okpebholo publicly setting a target of 2.5 million votes for President Tinubu.

While political parties are entitled to mobilise supporters, the dispute has raised questions about whether commercial drivers operating in public motor parks can be compelled to display partisan symbols or face consequences in the course of carrying out their businesses.