New Telegraph

Edo: What next for Oshiomhole?

The outcome of the Edo State governorship election has exposed the weakness of some political bigwigs of the All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly a former governor of the state and immediate past National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, hitherto seen as a kingmaker, writes FELIX NWANERI

 

The victory of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Edo State governorship election is likely to mark the retirement of some political godfathers in the “Heartbeat State” by a new power bloc led by Governor Godwin Obaseki.

 

The godfathers, mostly of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) and led by Obaseki’s predecessor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (the immediate past national chairman of the country’s ruling party), not only called the shots before now, but presented themselves as men who could turn the table against the ruling PDP in the state.

 

Oshiomhole had during the campaigns boasted that he will cut Obaseki to size but in a twist of fate, the governor, like the Biblical David, trounced his estranged political godfather.

 

By the feat, the investment banker turned politician confirmed his pre-election position that political godfathers have outlived their relevance in Edo State politics. There is no doubt that Oshiomhole helped Obaseki, who served as head of his administration’s Economic Team to power in 2016, but the duo fell apart over control of APC’s structure in the state.

 

Though they played down on the crisis at inception, those in the know warned on the consequences if not handled with care. While none of the warring parties came out to reveal what was in contention at that time, the genesis of the crisis was traced to Oshiomhole’s loyalists, who alleged unfair treatment by Obaseki.

 

The Edo Assembly impasse further fuelled the crisis, when the inauguration of the principal officers of the state legislature became an issue between the godfather and his godson.

 

Obaseki was said to have wanted Frank Okiye representing Esan North East 1 State Constituency as speaker, while Oshiomhole was disposed to Victor Edoro, representing Esan Central State Constituency. Incidentally, the APC-led Assembly produced 12 members for Oshiomhole and 12 for Obaseki.

 

The 12 members-elect loyal to Oshiomhole, who claimed that they were shortchanged by their colleagues, took the fight to the National Assembly, leading to both chambers of the federal legislature directing the governor to issue a fresh proclamation for the inauguration else the Assembly would be taken over by National Assembly. The Senate’s intervention, however, failed to yield the desired result as both camps failed to yield grounds.

 

A court injunction that restricted the National Assembly from “taking over” the Edo Assembly was secured by the state government. What later seemed a truce emerged, when Obaseki paid a surprise visit to the Iyamho residence of Oshiomhole, who said the rift between them was the creation of people with personal interest and interestingly described Obaseki as his brother. Obaseki, on his part, advised people who think there was a rift between him and his predecessor should stop thinking so.

 

While some members of both camps shouted “it is over” then, some political analysts cautioned that the meeting was only a facade as the real battle was yet to commence. As predicted, it did not take time before the warring parties returned to the trenches.

 

What played out was factionalization of the Edo State chapter of the APC along Oshiomhole and Obaseki’s camps; suspension and counter-suspension of key party officials, including Oshiomhole as well as unrelenting media warfare.

 

Again, effort by the national leadership of the APC to get the reconciliation committee headed by the party’s former Interim National Chairman, Chief Bisi Akande, to reconcile the factions did not materialize as none was ready to yield ground.

 

The last straw that broke camel’s back was the mode of primary to be adopted by the party for the election of its candidate for Saturday’s poll.

 

While the APC NWC, then headed by Oshiomhole opted for a direct primary that allows all members of the party to elect their candidate, the Obaseki-backed Anselm Ojezua state exco of the party insisted on an indirect primary that will involve delegates.

 

The belief then in the governor’s camp was that a direct primary would give an edge to Obaseki’s main challenger, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, who is backed by Oshiomhole. The dust over the primaries prompted about nine governors of the APC extraction to meet with the National Leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

 

The governors – Atiku   Bagudu (Kebbi), Sani Bello (Niger), Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (Ondo), Gboyega Oyetola (Osun), Mai Bunu (Yobe), Simon Lalong (Plateau) – led Obaseki to seek for Tinubu’s intervention in the feud between him and Oshiomhole.

 

The APC governors, who sensed that the crisis might cost the Edo State governor a second term ticket, implored the party’s national leader to save Obaseki from the kind of humiliation, which the immediate past governor of Lagos State, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, suffered during the primaries ahead of the 2019 elections.

 

But Tinubu’s response to the plea by the governors was that every member of the party should be given equal opportunity to vie for the governorship ticket and that direct primary as approved by the NWC is a test of democracy and popularity of aspirants.

 

After the Lagos meeting with Tinubu, six of the governors moved to Abuja, where they held another meeting with Oshiomhole, who did not give them his words to back down from the battle between him and his predecessor.

 

As expected, Obaseki who was billed to contest the party’s governorship primary election against Ize-Iyamu, Osaro Obaz, Pius Odubu, Matthew Iduoriyekemwe and Chris Ogiemwonyi, failed to scale APC’s screening hurdle. The seven-man screening committee cleared Obazee, Ize-Iyamu and Odubu for the primary election, while disqualifying the trio of Obaseki, Iduoriyekemwen and Ogiemwonyi.

 

The panel faulted Obaseki and Iduoriyekemwen for dragging the APC and its national chairman to court in defiance to the provision of the party’s constitution. It also picked holes with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate and the testimonial of the Institute of Continuing Education Benin City, submitted by the governor.

 

Though the governor’s camp put up a spirited fight while the fight lasted, those in the know, however, opined that there was no way Oshiomhole would not have his way at that level given the position he occupied in the APC then.

 

It was therefore not surprising, when rather than appeal against his disqualification from participating in the APC primary election, Obaseki wished Oshiomhole “luck in his maladministration of APC” and pitched his tent with the PDP, which offered him its ticket to realize his second term ambition and ultimately have the last laugh over his godfather.

 

Already, questions over Oshiomhole’s next political move have cropped up. While the man in question is the only one, who will determine his next line of action, there is no doubt that the former labour leader has been demystified.

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