Edo 2016: APC battles imposition threat

Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, reports on the current efforts to douse the tension in the Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) following Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s alleged endorsement of Godwin Obaseki for the ticket of All Progressives Congress (APC)

As All Progressives Congress (APC) prepares for its primaries ahead the September, 2016 Edo State Governorship Election, some aspirants for the party’s ticket and their supporters have continued to express fears over Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s alleged endorsement of one of the aspirants, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, threatening that anything short of free and fair primaries will endanger the fortunes of the party at the governorship election.

oshiomhole

Aside Obaseki, who is the head of the economic team of Oshiomhole’s government, other prominent aspirants for the ticket of APC in the governorship election include the Deputy Governor of the state, Dr Pius Odubu, Mr. Kenneth Imasuagbon (fondly called the Rice man), former governor of the state, Prof. Osarhiemen Osunbor, Works Commissioner, Osarodion Ogie, former Minister of State (Works), Dr Chris Ogiemwonyi and Gen. Charles Airhiavbere, amongst others.

The tension over Oshiomhole’s alleged preference for one of the aspirants, which has been building up since late last year, when it was first rumoured but was stoutly denied, gathered steam in January this year, when the governor was reported as openly supporting Obaseki and for making government facilities and aides available to him to promote his ambition at the expense of the other aspirants.

Insiders told The Nation that this allegation, which is the major subject of contention within the party in the South-South state today, is giving the leadership of APC concern as some of the aggrieved aspirants have allegedly reached out to top leaders of the party outside the state, warning that they would resist any form of imposition.

A top campaign official of one of the high-profile aspirants, who revealed the current moves by the concerned aspirants, told The Nation this week that “Oshiomhole’s open support of Obaseki has split the party along ethnic and ideological lines. From what we are seeing, it seems clear that the governor is trying to change the goalpost in the middle of the game. This is not acceptable to us. Everybody knows that the calibre of aspirants in the race for APC ticket today was made possible because the governor initially and openly promised to allow a level playing field, to ensure that only the best and most popular candidate would emerge APC flag bearer. If what we are seeing is real, someone is poised to breach that sustaining trust.”

Calling on President Muhammadu Buhari and the national leadership of APC to wade into the matter urgently to save the party in the state, the source, who is a campaign director of one of the aspirants asked rhetorically, “Will President Buhari, APC chieftains and national leaders of the party allow Governor Adams Oshiomole to go ahead and impose a candidate in Edo APC? Is it not common knowledge that he is sponsoring delegates to favour his candidate? So, why are the leaders folding their hands and watching this dangerous development, knowing the obvious consequence of destroying the party’s chances at the real governorship election?”

The source added, “We all know that the governor came in with a populist ideology as a labour leader, fighting for the welfare of the people and so they embraced him and the party but it seems he has turned out to be a capitalist. In his actions, especially on this issue of how his successor would emerge, he is not walking the talk as he now sees himself as alpha and omega. He should allow people’s will to prevail and shouldn’t be allowed to truncate Buhari’s change mantra.

“When he called Anenih, Ogbemudia and Igbinedion godfathers, Edo people believed him. Is he now the godfather? We are worried, not just because of our personal aspirations but because of the likely effect of this action on the fortunes of APC in the state and on the overall politics of the state. It is not enough to suspend and intimidate party chairmen and APC chieftains in the state. What we and the party national leaders should be concerned of is how this development will impact on the party in the state. If you ask me, it will impact negatively. It will be better for all of us, including the party and the governor, if free and fair primary election is allowed in Edo and if the governor retains his father image for all the aspirants. This way, APC will remain united and strong.”

Already, some recent reports confirm sharp disagreement between some APC chieftains in the state and governor’s close associates and aides on the alleged plot to foist Obaseki.  For example, it was recently reported that while Anselm Ojezua, Edo APC Chairman, denied that the governor would impose a candidate, the state Attorney– General and Commissioner for Justice, Henry Idahagbon, confirmed the governor’s support for the aspirant. Ojezua was quoted in an earlier interview as saying, “the governor would never consider handpicking a candidate when he should be playing the role of an impartial arbiter in a most sensitive issue as a candidate to succeed him. All the over 20 candidates in the race are all Oshiomhole’s favourities,” he said. But in a later report, Idahagbon was quoted as saying that the governor had thrown his weight behind Godwin Obaseki.

What may influence the parties’ choices?

Preliminary investigations into the current sentiment of both the political leaderships in Edo State and amongst the common people show that the issue of who will succeed Oshiomhole would be determined not only by the calibre of the aspirant but also by the unity of either the ruling APC or the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the election. The fact is that the two political parties now have strong roots in Edo State. So, none of the two leading parties would afford serious disunity amongst its leaders during the election. As a result of this reality, which some insiders said may be decisive, the two leading political parties in the state may be forced to weigh all options and likely effects before electing their candidates. This explains why some national leaders of APC are expressing concern over the alleged plans to impose a candidate; a development they feared may negatively affect the unity of the ruling party during the governorship election.

The opposition PDP will not wait to celebrate such disunity in the camp of the ruling APC.  Confirming this, Tony Edosoma, a grassroots PDP leader in Edo Central, said, “We understand there are threats in APC that if some of their governorship aspirants confirm the governor imposed one of them on the party, then the rest will work against the party. For us in PDP, we have always known the celebration and the noise in APC in Edo State will not be forever.  Whether or not they fight amongst themselves, PDP will regain Edo State’s Government House this year. If they fight themselves over imposition, it will only make the task of dislodging them easier for us,” he boasted.

Also, considering the widespread belief that APC-led government of Adams Oshiomhole performed very well, bookmakers are of the opinion today that an APC candidate, if generally accepted, will be on a better footing than other candidates during the September governorship election.

But our findings show that aside performance of the outgoing governor and the current popularity of his party, APC, people’s sentiment on the need for what they described as “fair zoning,” will play a major part. This is a major challenge that all the parties must take into consideration in the election of their candidate if they hope to win the governorship election. In this case, Edo Central Senatorial District is being favoured by many leaders for the sake of equity and fairness. Dr. Eugene Iyare, a political commentator in Benin, told The Nation on Thursday that the quest for Edo Central to produce the next governor of the state in 2016 “is non-negotiable.” He explained that the agitation is “for the purpose of justice, equity and fair play.”

According to him, “Edo Central had only occupied the governor’s office for only 18 months. The people of Edo Central are therefore demanding to be allowed to produce the next governor to take over from Oshiomhole in 2016. Honestly, I think the people of Edo South, which had occupied the position for over nine years when Lucky Igbinedion held sway and Edo North presently completing its eight years in that office in the person of Oshiomhole, should not argue about it. It is the turn of Edo Central.”

Given these contentions, insiders said the parties must take the people’s sentiment into consideration before determining who will fly their gubernatorial flags.

Summarizing the situation in APC, Chief Eric Obaseki, a retired civil servant in Benin, told The Nationthat “although other parties may field candidates, the battle would most likely be between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). So, the major task before these two parties is the task of picking the right candidate from the right zone. From what I have seen so far, apart from ensuring that the candidate has what it takes to step into the big shoes of the Comrade Governor, zoning may be the major consideration here,” he said. He added, “From the calibre of aspirants so far, there is no doubt that we have qualified people vying to succeed the comrade governor. But fair is fair, any of the parties that fails to consider where its candidate comes from may pay dearly for it.”

So as Edo prepares for the governorship primaries amidst intense pressure on who emerges the parties’ flag bearers and how they emerged, our investigation shows that the leading aspirants for Oshiomhole’s job from APC today include:

Godwin Obaseki

As the head of Governor Oshiomhole’s economic team, Godwin Obaseki is considered a very close aide of the out-going governor. He is the aspirant the governor is accused of throwing his weight on at the detriment of the others. This has made him one of the leading aspirants for the ticket today.

But our enquiries reveal that the governor’s efforts to sell his candidacy may have suffered serious opposition from powerful stakeholders.

Besides criticism arising from an attempt to impose him on others and on the state, Obaseki’s critics said he has no background and experience in politics. They said he has no supporters and is not known like the other leading aspirants.

But his defenders insist he fits the bill because Oshiomhole is looking for the best man, especially a technocrat or someone with private sector background, with a firm grasp of the relevant issues today to succeed him.

Kenneth Imasuagbon

A lawyer, philanthropist and former aspirant to the Edo State Government House in the April, 2012 election, Mr. Kenneth Imansuangbon has emerged the major aspirant in the race for APC governorship ticket. This is because apart from his distinguished private sector background, as a foremost educationist in Nigeria, Imasuagbon has made a unique mark as a genuine philanthropist. One of his philanthropic gestures has earned him the name, the Rice Man. This has, according to insiders in Edo State, made him the man of the common people. He is also said to be very popular, amongst the youths in the three senatorial districts of the state, most of who have benefitted from his continuous I-pad gifts and scholarships.

A respondent said even when there is no election at sight the Rice man still gives out during festivities, like Christmas, New Year, Sallah, etc. During these festivities, he distributes thousands of bags of rice to the less privileged in the three senatorial districts in the state; a gesture he explained was to put smiles on the faces of the poor during the festive periods.

Asked to explain why he gives out rice to the people, Imasuagbon said, “This is my own commitment to fighting poverty in my state. I came from a home where there was no rice to eat but now that I can afford rice, my commitment is that to the extent God permits, I will always give food, every time, to the poor in Edo State and if I had enough money, I will send it to other parts of the country to put smile on the faces of the people.”

Another factor that may go for the Rice man is his wide experience and strong political structure in Edo State. He is one of the few aspirants for APC ticket that can combine grassroots popularity with the right political connection and experience. Besides these, his private sector background fits into what insiders said Oshiomhole wants for a successor. He is also from Edo Central; the zone many say should produce the next governor of Edo if fairness and equity are to be given their pride of place.

Besides these two aspirants, other visible aspirants for the ticket include, the deputy governor, Hon. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu, from Urhomehe in Urhonigbe North Ward, Orhionmwon Local Governrnent Area of Edo State, the former governor of the state, Professor Oserheimen Osunbor, from Edo Central, Chris Osa Ogiemwonyi and Major-General Charles Airhiavbere (retired), the PDP candidate at the 2012 Edo State Governorship Election.

Pius Egberanmwen Odubu

Considered by many as one of the frontline aspirants on the platform of the ruling APC is. Odubu, a lawyer who served two terms at the House of Representatives, is currently the Deputy Governor of Edo State.

Oserheimen Osunbor

Another top APC aspirant is Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor. He was elected Senator for the Edo Central constituency at the start of the Nigerian Fourth Republic, on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). In April 2007, he was elected Governor of Edo State also on PDP platform but only spent 18 months on the seat before he lost at the tribunal and the Appeal Court to Oshiomhole.

Chris Osa Ogiemwonyi

An engineer with over 30 years of work experience in the oil and gas industry, who retired as Executive Director (Exploration and Production), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), before his appointment as Minister of State for Works, Chris Osa Ogiemwonyi has consistently harped on his desire to render service to the people. But his critics have said that he cannot boast of the kind of solid political structure that would enable him win the APC governorship primaries.

His response to this is however instructive. He had said, “I hear that and I laugh when I hear it; structure, what is structure, these are human beings. What is going to play out now and tomorrow in Nigeria is not how deep you are in politics, but people are going to respect the character of the person

Charles Airhiavbere

Major-General Charles Airhiavbere (retired) was Commander, Corps of Army Finance and Accounts at the Army Headquarters. An accountant, he was the PDP candidate at the 2012 Edo State Governorship Election. Now in APC, he is seen as one of the aspirants whose supporters are already deeply involved in consultations.

With such array of highly qualified aspirants, and their consistent call for a free playing ground observers say the threat over alleged plot to impose an aspirant over the other APC governorship aspirants should not be overlooked by Oshiomhole and APC national leaders. It remains to be seen how the current tension will be resolved before the primaries.

Edo 2016: APC battles imposition threat

How PDP can win Edo, by Edebiri

What is Solomom Edebiri, the Edo State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant, up to? The technocrat, businessman and Benin chief is on the popularity weighing scale as he warms up for the primary election. Many observers believe that he has a big hurdle before him. But, at the weekend, the aspirant reiterated his resolve to succeed Governor Adams Oshiomhole. “I have goodwill among the people of Edo and this gives me confidence,” he told reporters in Lagos.

Ijaw endorses Solomon Edebiri

“We need to have a government that will cater for the future. How can the state grow without a solid foundation? I am on a rescue mission. That is the motivation for entering the race,” he added.

However, it is a moment of storm and stress for his party. Not only has the party lost power at the federal level, it is also grasping for breath in Edo. Greed, disunity and godfatherism are the bane of the Edo chapter. Yet, Edebiri is of the view that the party has prospect, if it can put its house in order. Noting that the governorship poll offers an opportunity for the chapter to bounce back, he , however warned that the chance can be bungled, if a wrong candidate is picked. “If a wrong candidate is picked, the exodus from the party will be worse,” he stressed.

Edebiri believes that the PDP needs a new name to sell it to the people of Edo. This corresponds to a call for a clean break from the past. Flaunting his credentials, he said his competence, clear understanding of Edo, liberal disposition and cognate experience as an operator in the oil industry for 26 years have marked him out. He urged delegates to swing the pendulum of victory towards his direction during the shadow poll.

Unfolding his vision, he said:”My vision for Edo State as a governor is to build s state on strong foundation that future leaders can build upon, a state where human capacity development , technology transfer and industrial development will be top on the agenda, where the state can become an export hub rather than an import based economy to guarantee self-satisfaction, confidence in the future within a healthy environment and sound educational base.”

The aspirant also said that he has a mission to employ the services of the natural and human resources in the state to actualise his vision without ignoring the experience of more advanced and developed nations. “When Edebiri is mentioned, it is about credibility, integrity, accountability, transparency and push for industrialisation, human capacity development and a new order to create a new society,” he added.Edebiri may not be an aspirant on the fringe. He described himself as a highly educated and well connected person. But, he could be described a politician who is ready to embrace reality. Not only does he knows his onions, he also understands his limitations. The aspirant has set up a campaign structure, the Ise Initiative, to actualise his dream. He knows that he has other formidable aspirants to contend with at the primary. He also understands that politics is a slippery field. Party insiders agree that the shadow poll will not be a walk over for him and indeed, other aspirants. Edebiri, also said the exercise is not a do or die affair.

The first critical step to the electioneering is fortifying the party. Edo PDP, in the aspirant’s opinion, needs to present itself as a better alternative. “We must move away from the greed and disunity of the past and ensure cohesion,” he said. To forge unity and harmony in the party, he promised to use his liberal disposition to bring stakeholders together and chart a new course. Edebiri said the party must know that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is not sleeping on guard. He said a wrong flag bearer will boost the chance of the ruling party at the poll. “APC is interested in the PDP primary. We can’t afford to get it wrong,” he stressed.

If elected as governor, Edebiri said he will restore the lost glory of Edo. “In the past, we had bendel Insurance Company, Edo Line, Bendel Breweries. All these industries have been castrated. There is job loss, no money for trade and nowhere to work. We need to revive the dead industries and create job opportunities for youths,” he said. If these are done, the aspirant said crime, corruption, armed robbery, kidnapping and insecurity will end.

Edebiri acknowledged that Oshiomhole has done well in certain areas. He applauded him for constructing roads. But, he alleged that the governor has ignored other areas, including transportation, industrialisation, healthcare and human capacity development. The PDP chieftain also chided the administration for what he described as the tax burden. He said: “If the intent of the leader is at variance with the intent of the people, things will not work.”

The aspirant promised to harness the resources of the state to fuel its development. Noting that Edo is endowed with a lot of mineral resources, he said these can be converted into financial resources, instead of leaning on the now elusive federal allocation. He said the state will survive if it creates wealth, instead of the penchant for sharing wealth.

Edebiri also said that Edo should embrace agriculture as a viable alternative for revenue generation. “I will initiate one local government, one commercial crop syndrome. We have studied the local governments. Some can engage in rice planting. Others can go for cassava. We have local governments that can go for pineapples,” he added.

 

This interview was first published by The Nation Newspaper

How PDP can win Edo, by Edebiri

Edo 2016 and Oshiomhole’s Friends

By Martins Okojie

From 2007 up to the re-election of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole for a second term in 2012, the diminutive former icon of massive mobilisation and labour activist was a dedicated man of honour who respected the opinions of the leaders of his political party and the Benin “Leaders of Thought”. To some extent, he was a team player. To a very large extent he was not. They made allusions to the fact he handpicked local government council chairmen whimsically across the state in 2013 without recourse to the will of the people. Those who knew him back in Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, said he was merely pretending to survive power which he converted in all its morbid rawness.

Oshiomhole

They say Oshiomhole is an effectual dictator, lover of total power and a thorough-going autocrat, taking no account of other people’s wishes or opinions; absolutely domineering and self-opinionated. Such destructive influence of addictive power exercise by imperious persons who insist on complete obedience from others are recipes for institutional collapse; destabilisation and structural breakdown —- harps on ghetto politics —- the attributes of cave men.

The worst thing about him, they alleged included his genius for thinking himself slighted, belittled anytime he is advised on any issues. They say it is almost impossible to mention anything to him, no matter how reasonable, no matter how gently put. ‘Go, go eat air’, he would shout, and retire into the tent of his wounded pride. If there are doubts whether Governor Oshiomhole lives in his own world, those doubts evaporated a few weeks ago.

Sometime ago, purported conversation between Governor Adams Oshiomhole and the Oracle of Benin Kingdom, Chief David Edebiri, the Esogban of Benin Kingdom went virile on the Instant Media networks. The frenzy and fame it generated, if it is anything to go by, further mirrors Oshiomhole’s inner antics and banal crave for political control, long after vacating office!

Chief Edebiri was said to have reported back to the Governor Oshiomhole on the assignment to search out the mind of the Benins(The Palace) on the Godwin Obaseki Candidacy. The Esogban allegedly said that he told the Governor that the Benins are gravely against the Obaseki project. He told Comrade that he will offer his support for whoever person the Governor wants and said, as a ‘fathe’ to Comrade, he will not forsake him, so people will not read betrayal to his (Esogban) action when it happens but he should have it in mind that they both may sink together should they go on with Obaseki as APC candidate in the coming election.

The governor pointed told the Esogban that he is eternally sold to the Mr. Godwin Obaseki project and that nothing can change his position. He has since started splashing million of naira on the supposed delegates who will elect his successor across the three senatorial districts. He blandly equate him to other godfathers in the country who are in the business of subordinating the Majesty of democracy by imposing surrogates at their.

Such denunciation or outright imposition, should we call it sweeping autocracy from a Governor who owns his office to purported ‘One Man One Vote’ perfunctory and judicial democracy, open democratic process and the virtues of universal adult suffrage calls for equal deconstruction. If I may ask, how many times shall we repeat it that democracy, or democratic government, is a system of government in which all the people of a state or polity … are involved in making decisions about its affairs, typically by voting to elect representatives? If the simple definition finds no meaning or seen as a mere rabble by those who should know then are in for backwards movement.

Oshiomhole’s Friends and Foes

Governor Adams Oshiomhole, no doubts, has earned the qualification as the best performing Governor in recent times, after Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia and Prof Ambrose Alli, who were both governors of the old Bendel State, respectively. But he has derailed tremendously with his penchant crave for turning his back at his earliest allies, foot-soldiers and apostles. Now, he is patently sold to treating them more like conquered species; subdued folks and dispensable spent forces at the twilight of his vanishing government. He has since replaced them with the very reactionary forces that opposed, deposed and denied him his mandate at every stage of his political life, from the very beginning.

With Oshiomhole’s new friends, he doesn’t need enemies. From the Secretary to the State Government; the Chief of Staff, Commissioners, House of Assembly members, Local Government chairmen to the least political appointees in his government are the ninety-nine percent agents darkness who maimed and killed the progressives in the State while the struggles for the restoration of his mandate lasted. As a doomed chess-player who come to feel that politics as in chess there are certain combinations that inevitably arise to defeat his opponents! It’s a somewhat sense of impounding catastrophe which has to do with recurring patterns but with the inescapability of the unforeseeable. Now, the chicken has come home to roast.

From Chief Edebiri, who now vowed to sink with the governor on his unpopular decision on the candidacy of Mr. Godwin Obaseki to avoid a traitor’s appellation to the Benin Leaders of Thoughts who were former ardent followers of the Governor, now stridently disavowing themselves from the Governor for allegedly assuming the role of the godfather and the all-powerful family of the Benin Monarch who were the buffers and bulwarks through which Oshiomhole anchored and prosecuted his governorship successfully in the last seven years plus are badly disappointed.

In a rare show of public appearance; support and solidarity, the revered Benin monarch, Oba Erediauwa, on November 14th, 2012, paid a royal visit to Governor Adams Oshiomhole, at Government House, Benin City. The Oba, who is rarely seen in public, arrived Government House in the company of some senior palace chiefs and Enogies and urged the governor to keep up with his good work.

“I came to congratulate you on your swearing-in. I watched it on television and it was very impressive. You have done well. Keep the flag flying”. Aligning himself with prayers offered, His Royal Majesty noted: “My chief broke kola and said, may God continue to enrich the treasury with the wherewithal to do what you are doing. Please finish the projects. Thank you very much. My brother traditional rulers are waiting for you to continue work in their domains”, the Royal Father said.

On that occasion Governor Oshiomhole expressed deep gratitude to the Oba for his support and prayers. “I am deeply indebted to your Majesty. Your Majesty has been a father to me and to all of us in Edo State. “My own biological father would not have done better for me than what you have done.” Outlining his vision for the second term, the governor noted: “I am determined to do more than what I did in the first term. We have overcome our learning curve”, he said.

Oshiomhole listed the next phase of work to include aggressively reclaiming the moat and sustaining the work on the Benin Masterplan. He added that over the next two years, it would be completed: “Let me assure Your Majesty that the great Bini kingdom will receive accelerated development. I will devote huge resources to continue to address our urban renewal programme to restore the glory of this great kingdom, reclaim the moat, which I know is dear to your heart as one of the legacies, and, indeed, one of the unique features that distinguish Benin City from the rest of the cities in Nigeria; we will complete our agenda at Ovonramnwen Square as well as the Ramat Park. The Benins take me as their son and a brother. By their votes they spoke very loud and clear that without them I wouldn’t have been governor of Edo State”, Oshiomhole said.

Till date, Ramat Park and other historical sites which housed some of the falling heroes of Oshiomhole’s electoral victory who were allegedly killed by those in his government now to prevent him from becoming the governor of the state remained dark spots that amplified his mind as a revisionist.

Oshiomhole’s legacy

In spite of his pragmatic delivery in some aspects, Governor Oshiomhole willingness to enter the polluted waters of red mud and swim in the direction of current where some awful disaster lurk around the corner is a high way to go. Oshiomhole by now should accept the price of his administration in solitude; that of abandoning the Benin Palace; the Benin Leaders of Thoughts, Chief Esogban wise counsel and his earliest minders who bore him across the threshold and hoisted him to power.

As an addict of vision, he is also a casualty of power. In the last seven years, he has been trying to surpass the Angels. When the Angels didn’t have the vanity to speak of themselves as the only wise, Oshiomhole did. His politics is diabolic as well as transcendent, or, rather its diabolism and its transcendence were one, so that even the feeling of ecstasy or despair are the same.

It is peculiar, was it not, for Oshiomhole, a veteran of the traitor politics, who went after the poor widow trader, “Go And Die” woman. How about his neo-fascistic love of mercenaries like Tony Kabaka, No Moless, etc; brute power, dehumanization glorified? The “Go And Die” Mrs. Joy Ifijeh now advises the Governor on environmental affairs. Despair/ecstasy- Legacy!

It’s not easy to lose power when you have earned or false horizon. It isn’t easy to go back into your box, into a narrow island, an entity of anticlimax, when you have tested undiluted power, such as Oshiomhole’s. A feeble successor is needed to keep the booties intact. The succession power politics is here, and it’s Oshiomhole’s own to lose.

Martins Okojie writes from Ikeja, Lagos.

Email address: lucyianoo@gmail.com

Tell: 0818 223 9697

Edo 2016 and Oshiomhole’s Friends

Edo 2016: APC, Oshiomhole and the endorsement crisis

As the political parties and aspirants prepare for this year’s governorship election in Edo State, Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan, reports that alleged endorsement of one of the APC aspirants by Governor Adams Oshiomhole may have raised the stake in the politics of South-South state

Governor Oshiomhole

Ahead of the 2016 governorship election in Edo State, a cold war is brewing within the ruling All Progressives Congress, (APC), over a rumoured endorsement of one of the leading aspirants, Godwin Obaseki, by Governor Adams Oshiomhole as his preferred governorship candidate of the party.

Obaseki, who is currently the chairman of the economic team of Edo State Government, is seeking the ticket of the APC alongside other prominent chieftains of the ruling party like Oshiomhole’s deputy, Dr. Pius Odubu, ex-Governor Osarhiemen Osunbor, incumbent Commissioner for Works and political ally of the governor, Osarodion Ogie, former Minister of State, Works, Dr. Chris Ogiemwonyi, Kenneth and Gen. Charles Airhiavbere.

Although there has been no official announcement by the governor on the matter, proponents of the endorsement theory are citing Oshiomhole’s body languages as well as some public statements as reasons for adducing that he has Obaseki in mind as the next governor of the state.

“The governor has never hidden his desire to have a technocrat succeed him. He has said that much at many fora. He has even given reasons for his preference. Obaseki is a technocrat and not a politician. He is one of the trusted allies of the governor and he is in the race.

“Recently, while speaking at a programme he attended with Obaseki, the governor told the gathering that the man who will succeed him is at the event listening to him and learning more. It was after this that the other aspirants went to town with the endorsement allegations,” a source told The Nation.

“Oshiomhole was never a politician before he ran for the governorship of this state. But today, Edo State is one of the most vibrant states in the country despite its meagre resources.

“When Oshiomhole came, he constituted a team and this same Obaseki for instance, from day one, put a team together to support the governor. He supported the process to raise a strong team of professionals to help the administration of the governor.

“Obaseki remained in the policy cockpit of the Oshiomhole administration. What is needed in Edo State now as a recipe for development, not restricting the choice of candidate to those who see themselves as just politicians,” he said.

The Nation also learnt that some local party leaders informed their disciples about the alleged endorsement of Obaseki by the governor during the festive period while urging them to be prepared to work for his victory at the party’s primary election.

Consequently, other aspirants are alleging a plot to impose Obaseki on the party by the outgoing governor, vowing to resist such attempt. Observers of the politics of the state say if not well managed, the development is capable of affecting the chances of the ruling party at the governorship election.

Party position

But the chairman of the APC in the state, Mr. Anslem Ojezua, denied any plot to impose any aspirant as candidate while warning party members against misconstruing Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s rumoured preference for Obaseki as imposition.

The APC boss explained that it was the governor’s right to state who he prefers as his successor, explaining that will not stop the party from conducting primaries and providing a level playing field for everybody. He cautioned those threatening and abusing the governor over his preference for Obaseki.

He said: “It will be naive and unthinkable not to expect a sitting governor to have interest in who succeeds him in the governorship election. It is not true that the governor decided not to conduct primaries or whatever processes that may lead to the emergence of a candidate.

“I took it upon myself and I told the governor that we cannot leave this process open without managing it and that it is the job of the state executive to ensure stability. Now, we have almost 20 people parading themselves as aspirants in this party. If you don’t manage such a situation well you will be creating crisis.

“I am not aware that any statement has been made in terms of endorsement. But I can tell you now that if an endorsement is made, it will be legitimate. Endorsement is not imposition, it is a statement of expressing preference without prejudice to the processes of our party,” he stated.

The man Oshiomhole wants

Amidst the frenzy, Oshiomhole has insisted that his successor will have to come from the All Progressives Congress, APC, and must be someone who believes in the state and has the capacity to manage it well.

Addressing Benin Palace chiefs, led by Chief John Oviasogie, the Eribo of Benin, at the Government House recently, the governor said he is concerned about who will emerge as the party’s standard bearer just like any other member of the party, adding that there will be a level-playing field for all.

“May God give us a governor that will put Edo people first, that will respect the traditional institution and that will work for the unity of our people across the 192 wards, across the state.

“As I have said repeatedly, I think all of us must work together to ensure that we have a governor who, first and foremost, believes in Benin, and who believes in the state, because if someone does not believe in the state, and he has power, he will help himself.

“Running a government is different from running a private enterprise. When you are working for a government, the interest is the people of the state. The second is to have the capacity to manage finances prudently because you may wish to do your best, but you cannot give what you don’t have.

“If you don’t have the brain, if you don’t have the knowledge and you don’t have the capacity, you will not be able to do it. So, we need people who can apply resources creatively.

“From my inner insight of what this job entails, I believe we should look for people who believe in the state and have the capacity to run it. We have the right to educate the people about the person whom we think will be safe.

“Be rest assured that I am as concerned as yourselves because we have seen the damage which the wrong driver can do to our collective vehicle. Everything is the same, the only difference is the person who heads the government,” the governor said.

PDP watching keenly

Meanwhile, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may be watching the developments within the APC with keen interest, hoping to benefit from the crisis should it escalate.

Sources within the party said the PDP is determined to return to the Edo Government House this year and is doing everything possible to ensure victory at the governorship election.

Those who may have indicated interest to run for the 2016 governorship race under the PDP include immediate past Minister of Works, Chief Mike Onolememen; former member of the state House of Assembly, Matthew Iduoriyekemwen; Vice Chairman (South-South) of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri.

Edo 2016: APC, Oshiomhole and the endorsement crisis

Edo 2016: I will not stand aloof over the choice of my successor – Oshiomhole

Tension is heightening in Edo  ahead of  the 2016 governorship election in the state, as  leaders  of  the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) engage in war of words over the  alleged endorsement of the Chairman of the Economic Team of the state government, Mr Godwin Obaseki, as the likely candidate of the APC, by Governor Adams Oshiomhole.

The situation has pitted  leaders against their political sons and Oshiomhole against some  leaders in the state just as other governorship aspirants intensify their campaigns in the battle for the  over 3,500 expected delegates for the primary..

Governor Oshiomhole

The governor had informed some of the party  leaders that he preferred  Obaseki due to his expertise in the financial sector  to ensure  the state continues to enjoy development  amid  the current economic hardship even after he must have left office. Other aspirants in the race include the incumbent deputy governor, Dr Pius Odubu; a  former governor of the state, Prof.Osarhiemien Osunbor; a  former Minister of State, Works, Engr.Chris Ogiemwonyi,; Barr.Osarodion Ogie; Gen.Charles Airhiavbere and Kenneth Imansuagbon. Tension grew last weekend when  a  former Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mr Samson Osagie, warned against the alleged attempt to impose Obaseki on the APC  by the governor, asserting that the party stood  a risk of losing the gubernatorial  election if other aspirants were not given a level-playing field.

“This fear is what is palpable amongst APC members and some of the party’s apologists across the state. And I have no reason to deny that same exists  especially as one of   the latest victims of a mismanaged electoral process in the 2015 general elections by the ruling APC. The 2016 gubernatorial election is going to be the true test of Governor Oshiomhole’s capacity to sustain his party’s hold on power in Edo  or lack of it. It’s almost forgotten by those who have constituted a cabal around the governor and himself that there is going to be an election after the primary and one wonders whether the bad blood that is being fueled by sycophants around the governor just now will deliver the votes when the real election comes sometimes in July.   A good attribute of a leader is to also listen to the yearnings of followers and take into account the peculiarity of the circumstances”, Osagie said..

But another former House of Representatives member from Edo, Mr Rasaq Bello-Osagie, disagreed with Osagie, insisting that the governor has the right to pick his successor, particularly “when the person is Obaseki who is seen by many as eminently qualified”. According to Bello-Osagie, “The first thing is that Oshiomhole came into governance in 2008, after a rigorous court process. Edo  citizens were highly expectant based on his antecedents as a labour leader.

At the time he came, he was not a politician. He just led labour and Nigerians were happy with him and that is why people gave him  overwhelming support in Edo. Oshiomhole constituted  a team and this same Obaseki, for instance, from day one, put together  a  team  to support the Comrade Governor.  It was  a strong team of professionals to help the administration.

He remained in the policy cockpit of the Oshiomhole administration. Obaseki is totally committed to  intervention initiatives in the area of employment to take  our youths off the streets and  create  entrepreneurial initiatives. What is needed in Edo  now, as a recipe for development, is not restricting the choice of candidate to those who see themselves as  politicians. We are looking for managers who can creatively manage our meagre resources for the benefit of Edo. His antecedents as a management expert eminently qualify him to aspire to the position of governor of  the state”.

Amid the  brouhaha, the Vice Chairman of the APC in Edo South, Barr.Gentleman Amegor, was suspended  for alleged anti-party activities. Amegor, viewed as one of those opposed to the Obaseki project in the zone, however, described his suspension as illegal. The state Publicity Secretary of the APC, Comrade Godwin Erhahon, who also came in his defense, distanced  the governor from the suspension, agreeing  that the purported suspension did not follow due process. While Amegor is seen as the arrow head of  the campaign of the deputy governor, Oshiomhole’s  political  adviser, Charles Idahosa,  is leading the campaign for Obaseki.

The two groups are at daggers drawn.  Consequently,  Oshiomhole summoned a meeting of leaders of the party across the three senatorial districts of the state last Thursday. The venue  was filled to capacity as  the governor stood up to speak. He  took time to remind the leaders of the party where they started from and how they battled the god fathers in Edo. The governor  described as regrettable how he had  been called names by APC  members over his preference for Obaseki. Oshiomhole narrated his  political victories in the state. That tactically disorganized some of the leaders who came there with the purpose to make trouble.

He  said: “Today, in the  media, our party has been in positive publicity while the PDP has been in the negative because of how they (PDP) stole money. I am happy that  everybody now agrees that the army that I led crushed the god fathers.   Then you hear that ‘the governor has anointed a candidate, he has turned himself to a god father’. Even people who are not members of the party are talking. That is why I said today I want to clear some issues.  I want to say  that the governorship candidate of this party will be produced through primary. What I believe I owe my party is to explain the qualities of the governor we require.

I believe we need someone who believes in our state, who believes that Edo  deserves to continue to prosper. I believe we need a governor who will see the three senatorial districts as his constituency regardless of the senatorial district he comes from. I believe we need a governor who has the  capacity  to see beyond going to Abuja for allocation because there is not much available in Abuja now. In this hall,  not less than 70 per cent of you, either individually or in small  groups, have come to ask me,  where do we go?  But I told them it is too early. But let me ask: If any one of us has a right to have a say, should I, as  governor, have no such right to have  a say on the choice of my successor?

There will be party primary according to our constitution.  But, as governor of this state, who has  gone through a lot in the course of governance, let me say clearly that I cannot be neutral in matters affecting my environment. Even people who are not from Edo  will always tell me to guide them so that the state will not go back to the past. I will never be afraid to take a position and to explain my position on the basis of my conviction.

In a democracy, whether mature or growing, endorsement is legitimate. What I owe Edo people is very clear to me. I have heard several things about my person; some said ‘he has anointed one of the candidates’, some now call me god father. There is no question that the governorship candidate of this party will be produced through party primary. The last House of Assembly, National Assembly and presidential elections, we held primaries;  no body was imposed. So when people make those statements, I just laugh. So this governor has no power to impose any body on our party and,,certainly, anybody on our state.

“I am proud to say that we have more than 60 political parties. Why is it that everybody wants to run on the  APC platform? Why not Labour Party or the  PDP? It is on the strength of the performance of the government that I am privileged to head. It is the collective achievement of all of us as reflected in what we have delivered to the people of Edo  as a government that makes our party attractive today. But I like us to reflect on this. Even some of those who have  written that Oshiomhole wants to impose a candidate,  I look at them and reflect on  how they left their parties for  our party and became candidates, and we appealed  to our leaders to support them. I wonder how they describe that process that produced them. The world is a circle.

“I am proud that it is only in my government that you can have different commissioners canvassing for different candidates and, yet, they  remain  in my cabinet.  It points to my liberal heart because, all my life, I have never had the opportunity until I came here to choose who works for me. So I am the only one whose commissioners can hold a meeting and say, ‘I will not agree with the man Oga said he will support’. And they return to Exco and hold meetings.

“Let me summarise, there will be party primary. Those who seek my view I will share with them about the kind of person I think we need, and who I think we should entrust with this task and why I think we should do so.  But if you decide to go your way and enter a pothole, will you blame me?  I will rather be known to have made my honest opinion that was probably ignored.  I see how people were crucified in Lagos: The deputy governor revolted, 15 commissioners abandoned the Exco, a senator went to war, but Tinubu insisted that Fashola was the guy.   And they said  Fashola was  not a politician. Is Fashola today not considered as one of those who  ran a  successful  government in Lagos?

Has that not deepened  APC in Lagos? And, today, he is to help  fix some of the critical ministries in Nigeria. I will never want to be remembered as a coward. I must be on my feet, God will give me the strength. I will guide you, with  clean conscience, if you allow me to do so. The next governor must be on his own, nobody is controlling me and so I am not ready to control any one. And only a fool will think you can have a governor that you will control. If your son becomes a governor, you will be shocked what he will tell you. He will tell you he is in charge of  government; therefore, he may not listen to you until he gets home”.

Edo 2016: I will not stand aloof over the choice of my successor – Oshiomhole

Edo 2016: Clowns In Search Of Crown

By Erasmus Ikhide

Seven plus years ago, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole became the governor of Edo State as a result of the degenerate and decadent state of affairs. His dynamic personality, the clarity of his mind, the catholicity of his ideas and his remarkable talents as an organiser and former union leader infused a new life and determination into the polity and the people’s hope to dream anew.

oshiomhole

It’s left to Edo people to now tell whether Governor Oshiomhole has lost his illustrious name; become a shell of his admirable former self, dispirited by raw power or has become an intrepid tribune of social reengineering, change agent or out-and-out democrat! Whatever perceptions or views one holds of the comrade governor depends largely on the political divide one finds him/herself.

Today, Oshiomhole is one significant politician who has the same and equal popularity across the divides. Those who admire him and those who despise him do so with equal passion. The succession political battle by the two main political parties, the ruling APC and the opposition PDP will be prosecuted on Governor Oshiomhole’s failures or successes in that last seven and half years in office.

However, Governor Oshiomhole, undeniably, has enviable development records going for him. Since he assumed office in 2008, he has tackled the dearth of functional infrastructural facilities and basic amenities that had turned the state into a living hell. He has repositioned completely a scruffy political system where graft had become a pastime, and a dejected populace in dire need of purposeful leadership. He has restored sanity to a decapitated public service staffed by a disgruntled workforce; and the stone-aged educational system that was turning out ill-equipped individuals without the required productive capacities to contribute to the development of the state.

The Comrade Governor has resuscitated the lethargic health sector that left the sick at the mercy of charlatans, the health vendors who profit from the ignorance of help seekers. He has managed to contribute his quotas by buying hundreds of Hilux vehicles and communication gadgets for the Nigeria police to stem the tide of the mind-bending state of insecurity spurred by widespread cultism across the state. More than anything else, since 2008, Oshiomhole has striven to correct all the systemic woes that had bedeviled the state from its creation, performing feats that have confounded even his harshest critics.

But there is a snag on Governor Oshiomhole’s political empire. “One man, one vote” (or “one person, one vote”) is a name that has been used in many parts of the world where campaigns have arisen for universal suffrage. During the 20th-century period of decolonisation and the struggles for national sovereignty, from the late 1940s onwards this phrase became widely used in less developed countries where majority populations were seeking to gain political power in proportion to their numbers.

The phrase was used in this form in an important legal ruling in the United States related to voting rights; applying the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution, the Supreme Court majority opinion in Reynolds v. Sims (1964) ruled that state legislatures needed to redistrict in order to have congressional districts with roughly equal represented populations.

In 2012, Governor Adams Oshiomhole exhaustively dramatised the phrase in his reelection bid to draw a link between democracy and freedom of choice. He made the point then that democracy is a set of ideas and principles about freedom of choice, which consists of a set of practices and procedures that have been molded through a long, often tortuous history. The point he was trying to make was that democracy is the institutionalization of freedom, which includes human rights; the right for the civil populace to freely elect their leaders in government and equality before the rules. He also meant to say that candidates in an election has his/her own Everest to climb without undue favouritism and manipulation.

Now, a great deal of the electorate are in an irritable mood on the governor’s moves to truncate the “One man one vote” mantras with his rumoured endorsement of Mr. Godwin Obaseki. The believe is that the less well-known Obaseki did not entertain governorship notion until Governor Oshiomhole drafted him into the race, thereby trusting his candidacy down of the APC party leadership and Edo people. There is the for the governor to clear his own name.

At the last count, nearly 30 aspirants have indicated interest to succeed the Comrade Governor from both the APC and PDP, a handful of them mere notional contenders, while many are pretenders who are there to make up the number. From the camp of the APC are the former Minister of Works, Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi; Governor Oshiomhole’s deputy, Dr Pius Odubu, ex-Governor Osarhemhen Osunbor, PDP governorship candidate in 2012, Maj. General Charles Arhiavbere (rtd), Comrade Peter Esele, the former PENGASSAN and TUC president, Mr. Odia Ofeimu, the former Principal Private Secretary to the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chairman of the Edo State Economic Team, Godwin Obaseki, Commissioner for Works, Osarodion Ogie; Architect Austin Emuan, Lagos Based Business man, Mr. Kenneth Imasuagbon and movie producer Don Pedro Obaseki, and a host of others.

On the side of the PDP are the immediate past Edo South Senator Ehigie Uzamere; former member of the state House of Assembly, Matthew Iduoriyekemwen; Vice Chairman (South-South) of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri. No doubt, governing Edo State is attractive given the number of aspirants, but the fact remains that majority of them are mere pretenders, who are likely to drop out of the race before their respective parties’ primaries.

The Benin Leaders of Thought, BLT, a few days ago warned against the re-introduction of political godfatherism in Edo state, which they said Governor Adams himself fought hard against in the past. What a turn of the tide!

‎The warning came on the heels of the alleged imposition of a governorship aspirant by Governor Oshiomhole, for the 2016 gubernatorial election in the state. ‎Some aspirants have kicked and expressed their displeasure over rumours that the governor has ordered his aides to ‘go and market’ the Chairman of the State Economic Team, Dr. Godwin‎ Obaseki, popularly referred to as Dangote man, to the people of the state.

Chairman of the group and Enogie of Obazuwa, Prince Edun Akenzua, while addressing journalists in Benin, said though the group disbelieved the rumour of Oshiomhole’s alleged imposition of an aspirant, the issue has excited the imagination of observers of Edo politics in recent times. Quoting Governor Oshiomhole in the Vanguard of Thursday, November 12, 2009, as saying that “what makes governance difficult is that some leaders are imposed on the people. That situation creates an absence of support. And people will become cynical about you,” the Benin Leaders of Thought said‎ it was against that background that they were taken aback by the rumour that the Governor has anointed his successor in this year’s gubernatorial race.

“The people of Edo State should be given free hands to determine their ‎next governor. Popular participation bestows responsibility for governing one’s own conduct, develops ones character, self-reliance, intelligence and moral judgement. In a democracy, there is no substitute for popular participation. Even if a benevolent despot could govern in the public interest, he would be rejected by the classic democrat. Man can only know the truth by discovering it himself”, the Benin Leaders of Thought added.

Mr. Godwin Obaseki’s misadventure into the Benin historical facts was a miscarriage as much as political mishap. He granted two separates interviews in two national newspapers where he chided the Benin dynasty for not taking his grandfather’s advice. In the other interview, he revealed his limited understanding of development politics.

Mr. Obaseki said that when the British entered Benin Kingdom and attempted to do ‘business’ with Benin, his grandfather advised the then Oba of Benin, Oba Ovonramwen Nogbaisi, to sign a treaty with the foreigners. But all available evidence suggest that the British did not intend to do business with any of their eventual colonies, rather they were on a colonial mission as they did also with Jaja, Nana, Attahiru and Kosoko, among others. In another interview Mr. Obaseki was quoted to have said, “my area of specialisation is (Capitalism). I was born into Capitalist system and it is also the system of governance of Edo State people right from time immemorial and I don’t know when socialism entered the system”.

Now, there are throw back questions to Mr. Obaseki by the Benin elite in this order: “Is Capitalism a specialist area of study in any department or in any academic institution? When and where was the Capitalist system Mr. Godwin Obaseki was born into? Is Mr. Godwin Obaseki Capitalist system an attribute of an individual, a group of persons or the society in which he was born? If Capitalism has always been a system of governance in Edo, as Head of the Economic Team of Edo State Government under the governorship of a former worker and union leader, how do you reconcile the Capitalist system of administration in Edo State with Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s masses oriented policies of administration in Edo State? These are pertinent questions begging for answer.

Granted that it will be almost impossible to find an ideal governor for Edo State in 2016, someone who will combine the best attributes of Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi, Pastor Ize-Iyamu, Mr. Odia Ofeimu, Comrade Peter Esele and Dr. Pius Odubu’s passion for the job. The ideal leader, just like the ideal man or woman, is perfectly academic. In the end we will have to settle for a leader, who, like the rest of us, is not perfect, but who hopefully possesses some abilities to make a difference.

Engr. Chris Ogiemwonyi may not possess all the qualities needed in Osadebe Avenue at this historical moment, but he certainly possesses some critical and crucial ones. The most important question agitating the minds of the electorate is whether his personal qualities will facilitate his own definition of the primary task at hand, which is sustaining the development strides of the comrade governor.

Erasmus writes in from Lagos, Nigeria

Edo 2016: Clowns In Search Of Crown

Edo 2016: Provide level playing field for all aspirant - Osaro Obaze tells APC

The Chairman of Oredo Local Government Council in Edo state, Mr Osaro Obaze, has asked the state chapter of the APC to provide a level playing field for all gubernatorial aspirants vying for the ticket and avoid mistakes of the immediate past.

Hon. Osaro Obazee Oredo Local Government Chairman

He said that the Edo of 2016 could not be the Edo of 2008.

He also urged the party to shun endorsement and imposition of favoured aspirants by a godfather because of grave political consequences.

Addressing a press conference in Benin City, Obaze said: “A proper primary election must be conducted to ensure that the candidate that will emerge will enjoy 70% to 80% general acceptance by the party followers in particular and appeal to the electorate in general.

“For the avoidance of doubt, let me remind our leaders of the danger of one person playing the role of godfatherism and trying to impose a candidate against the wishes of the member of the party.

“This is against the recent events in last year’s Presidential and National Assembly elections in which the party suffered huge loses as a result of wrongful imposition of candidates in Ovia Federal Constituency, that is, Osahon versus Charity Amayamvbo.

“Let me also remind our esteemed delegates that unlike previous election, the comrade governor is not going to be on the ballot paper. It is therefore imperative that we shun the antics of godfather and embrace the rule of democratic process, as the candidate that will emerge from the contesting political parties will be voted for on the basis of their antecedents.”

On reports that he will vote against his party, he said: “Let me also say that at no time did I say that I will vote for Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu. Such insinuation was the handiwork of my political detractors, who want to pull me down politically.

Edo 2016: Provide level playing field for all aspirant - Osaro Obaze tells APC

I"m shocked that Godwin Obaseki is running after i told him of my intention - Don Pedro Obaseki

An aspirant, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Don Petro Obaseki has expressed discomfort in the news of his elder cousin, Godwin Obaseki to run as governor in the next governorship election in Edo State.

Don Pedro Obaseki

He described the development as shocking and “betrayal of trust” by Godwin who rumour said has been chosen to run by the APC.

Don Obaseki who agreed that it’s the game of politics revealed that he informed his elder cousin of his ambition to run for governorship election but didn’t know he would go for the same position himself.

He assured that the action of Godwin Obaseki, who is the Edo State Chairman, Economic Team will not divide the Obaseki’s family, adding that he (Don Pedro Obaseki) is much accepted within the entire Obaseki’s family worldwide.

His words: “I am shocked that another Obaseki is running but be that is it may,this is politics. It really sounds funny and uncomfortable to many people outside.

He said “Me as child of tradition before I decided to run,I consulted massively with my friends and family. When am talking about my family I don’t mean my immediate family, I mean the enlarged Obaseki and to the extent that I have done two serious event to cement that announcement of my ambition.

“Everybody in my family is fully aware of my ambition,they are equally aware that I am seeking for the APC ticket.

Before the end of next week I will release the documentary of my adoption by the family and the blessing of my family and I have equally presented my intent to the upper room elders council of the Obaseki for me to go ahead with my ambition. So my quest is not based on share shenanigan or a few person sitting behind the sanctuary of open doors to anoint anybody.”

‘For me I have the corporate endorsement of the Obaseki’s clan,not just the Obaseki’s clan in Nigeria but the Obaseki’s clan world wide. Mine is not a forested ambition of one person but a collective decision of the Obaseki family.”

“My elder cousin, Godwin. He is eleven years older than I am, so I give him respect in the fact that I was shocked because I have actually gone to him to beg him to lead me to the Governor so when I was told some months later

that one of those I thought will be on my side was now also selling self, so let’s live the sea for the better mariner.”

I"m shocked that Godwin Obaseki is running after i told him of my intention - Don Pedro Obaseki

Edo 2016: Scramble for Oshiomhole’s seat

Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, reports that as we enter the governorship election year in Edo State, the scramble for Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s seat is gathering more steam. He presents the issues that will determine who would fly the parties’ flags, plus a brief profile of some of the leading aspirants so far

Governor Oshiomhole

Although Comrade Adams Oshiomhole still has eleven months to the expiration of his tenure as the governor of Edo State, the race for his plum seat is already hot with about 10 visible aspirants already showing interest for the ticket of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) alone. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which governed the state for 10 years before Oshiomhole’s emergence and has sworn to take back the state from him and his party, is also not left out in the scramble for Oshiomhole’s seat.

As a result, the political atmosphere is as if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has already flagged off the electioneering campaign. The Nation’s checks confirmed that the political structures of some of the powerful aspirants have been fully oiled and are therefore actively involved in the behind-the-scene sensitization of the common party men and women and more importantly in the consultation of major stakeholders.

In the PDP, the outgoing governor Oshiomhole, who has been described by his supporters as “a grassroots politician and an unbelievable mobilizer,” is seen by many as the central determinant factor that must be convinced by the aspirants. As would be expected, the comrade governor is yet to name his choice successor.

This fact has however not discouraged aspirants in the party from making their interests known. In fact, as at this week, the names of aspirants believed to have commenced serious preparations include the current Deputy Governor of the state, Pius Odubu, a former governor, Prof. Osarhemhen Osunbor, retired Major-General Charles Airhiavbere, Kenneth Imasuagbon, Godwin Obaseki, a former minister of state for works, Chris Ogiemwonyi and Osarodion Ogie.

From the opposition PDP, we have aspirants like Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Chief Solomon Edebiri, a former candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Matthew Iduoriyekemwen, a former member of the state house of assembly and former state commissioner on NDDC board and Senator Ehigie Uzamere, among many others.

What may influence the parties’ choices?

Preliminary investigations into the current sentiment of both the political leaderships in Edo State and amongst the common people show that the issue of who would succeed Oshiomhole may be determined not only by the calibre of the aspirant but also by ethnic and or zonal considerations. We gathered that the two leading political parties in the state are conscious of the sentiment of the people and may be forced to weigh all options and likely effects before zeroing in on their candidates.

Also, considering the widespread belief that APC-led government of Adams Oshiomhole performed far above average, some bookmakers are of the opinion today that an APC candidate will be on a better footing than other candidates during the governorship election likely to take place sometime around June or July of 2016. The advantage accruing from the governor’s performance is further strengthened by the many defections of top political leaders in the state from PDP to APC.

But our findings show that performance of the outgoing governor and the current popularity of his party, APC, will not be the only considerations that would come into play when the chips are down. There is also the people’s sentiment on the need for what they described as fair zoning. This is a major challenge, especially for APC. Edo South Senatorial Zone for example, which has more than 50 percent voting population, has been most outspoken on the need to produce Oshiomhole’s successor. Edo Central Senatorial District is also not keeping quiet. For example, Dr. Francis Inegbeniki, the APC senatorial candidate for Edo Central in the March 28 general election, is of the opinion that the agitation by the people of Edo Central to produce the next governor of the state in 2016 “is non-negotiable,” arguing that the agitation is “for the purpose of justice, equity and fair play.”

He also said, “Edo Central had only occupied the governor’s office for just 18 months, adding that “The people of Edo Central are demanding to produce the next governor to take over from Oshiomhole in 2016. Honestly, I think the people of Edo South, which had occupied the position for over nine years and Edo North presently completing its eight years in that office in the person of Oshiomhole should not argue about it.”

Given this contention, insiders said the parties must take the people’s sentiment into consideration before determining who will fly their gubernatorial flags. A source hinted that as a result, each of the leading parties may not be in a hurry to pick its candidate as they may strategically wait for each other to declare their candidate first.

Chief Eric Obaseki, a retired civil servant in Benin, explains the situation and the sentiment when he told The Nation that “although other parties may field candidates, the battle would most likely be between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). So, the major task before these two parties is the task of picking the right candidate from the right zone. From what I have seen so far, zoning may be the major consideration here,” he said, adding, “From the calibre of aspirants so far, there is no doubt that we have qualified people vying to succeed the comrade governor. But fair is fair, any of the parties that fails to consider where its candidate comes from may pay dearly for it.”

As at today, three days into the election year, some of the visible aspirants for the Oshiomhole’s job from his party, the APC, include:

Pius Egberanmwen Odubu

Considered by many as one of the frontline aspirants on the platform of the ruling APC is Hon. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu, from Urhomehe in Urhonigbe North Ward, Orhionmwon Local Governrnent Area of Edo State. Odubu, who served two terms at the House of Representatives, is currently the Deputy Governor of Edo State. A lawyer, he studied at Southern University School of Law, Baton Rouge Louisiana and Georgetown University Law Centre, Washington D.C. before he was called to bar in Nigeria in 1986. Odubu’s strongest advantage over others is that he is seen as a loyal deputy who may easily get the support of the governor.

Oserheimen Osunbor

Another APC aspirant whose supporters may have commenced serious consultations is the former governor of the state, Professor Oserheimen Osunbor. He was elected Senator for the Edo Central Constituency of Edo State, Nigeria at the start of the Nigerian Fourth Republic, on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). He served at the red chamber between 29 May 1999 and 2003 and was re-elected into the plum office. In April 2007 he was elected Governor of Edo State also on the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) platform but only spent 18 months on the seat before he lost at the tribunal and the Appeal Court to Oshiomhole.

Now in the same party with Oshiomhole, who once described him as ‘a good man in a wrong party,’ and coming from Edo Central, who are demanding for fairness, Osunbor’s supporters are hopeful.

Chris Osa Ogiemwonyi

Even before his defection from PDP to APC, early December 2014, his interest to govern Edo State was well known. So since he formalised his cross-over at the Urhokpota Ground, Oba O Vonramwen Square, Benin City that day, assuring Governor Oshiomhole that “On Behalf of over 2,000 people declaring for APC today, I declare to work with you to take our party to greater heights,” speculation that he would be one of the frontline aspirants for the governor’s seat had been popular.

An engineer with over 30 years of work experience in the oil and gas industry, who retired as Executive Director (Exploration and Production), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), before his appointment as Minister of State for Works, Ogiemwonyi has consistently harped on his desire to render service to the people. But his critics have said that he cannot boast of the kind of solid political structure that would enable him win the APC governorship primaries.

His response to this is however instructive. He had said, “I hear that and I laugh when I hear it; structure, what is structure, these are human beings. What is going to play out now and tomorrow in Nigeria is not how deep you are in politics, but people are going to respect the character of the person

Charles Airhiavbere

Major-General Charles Airhiavbere (retired) was Commander, Corps of Army Finance and Accounts at the Army Headquarters. An accountant, he was the PDP candidate at the 2012 Edo State Governorship Election. Now in APC, he is seen as one of the aspirants whose supporters are already deeply involved in consultations. There are many other visible aspirants in APC like Kenneth Imasuagbon, Godwin Obaseki, a former minister of state for works, Chris Ogiemwonyi and Osarodion Ogie. among others.

From the PDP, some of the frontline aspirants so far include:

Mike Onolememen

Mike Oziegbe Onolememen, a Chartered Architect is the immediate Minister, Federal Ministry of Works. He served previously as Minister of State, in the Ministry of Defense, and as Head of the Directorate of Project Management of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF).

Osagie Ize-Iyamu

Another visible PDP aspirant today in Edo State is Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, a lawyer. He was Chief of Staff in Edo State Government from 1999 to 2003 and Secretary to the State Government from 2003 to 2007.

Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri

There is also Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri. Haven contested as ANPP governorship candidate in 2012, Edebiri is not a new comer to Edo State politics. He has Edo South background.

Matthew Iduoriyekemwen

Also, Mathew Iduoriyekemwen, who was Edo State Representative on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) is also considered a frontline aspirant on the platform of PDP. Called ‘Major,’ by his admirers, Iduoriyekemwen, who represented Kpoba-Okha Local Government Area in the Edo State House of Assembly between May 1999 and May 2007, is touted as a grassroots politician.

In all the parties, the list is growing by the day, a sign that Edo governorship primaries will be very intriguing.

Edo 2016: Scramble for Oshiomhole’s seat

2016 Budget: FG to spend N4.1bn on cars

*Finance Ministry takes lion share of N1.5trn

By Emeka Anaeto, Economy Editor

Lagos— Further details emerging from the recently presented 2016 budget have shown that the executive arm of the government would spend the lion share of N5.87 trillion, or about 96.5 per cent of the total N6.1 trillion about N205 billion or 3.5 per cent to the other arms of government, with the Legislature and the Judiciary, spending N115 billion and N90 billion respectively.

Buhari

The breakdown of the budget also indicates that the government intends to spend N39 billion in running the Office of the President with major allocations going to car purchase at N3.9 billion and another N189 million to change tyres for some specified vehicles in the Presidency.

Some details provided indicate that the vehicles that will gulp the budgeted sum for tyres include Mercedes Benz bullet proof and plain, Toyota cars, trucks Land Cruiser SUV, Prado SUV, Hilux, Peugeot 607 and 406, BMW trucks, ambulances as well as utility and operational vehicles.

Also, the Presidency will spend about N1.4 billion on travels during the fiscal year, according to the budgetary provisions.

The budget breakdown shows that some super ministries could be identified by the relative amounts allocated to them with Ministry of Finance taking the lion share of N1.5 trillion followed by Budget and National Planning with N1.15 trillion.

Buhari to spend more than Jonathan on Presidential Villa

In 2014, Jonathan spent N12.2 billion on the State House, while in 2015, the government spent N6.6 billion for the presidential office, amid dwindling revenue occasioned by sliding oil prices.

The costs cover the State House headquarters, the president’s office and the office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. They also cover the budgets of the State House medical centre and the Lagos Liaison office.

One of the most outstanding State House spendings in 2016 will be the purchase of BMW saloon cars at N3.63 billion. It is not clear yet what purpose the cars would serve.

The State House budget also contains a repeat of projects the Jonathan administration repeatedly allocated funds for. An example is the purchase of computers, which has featured in budgets of previous government each year.

In 2016, the State House will spend N27. 5 million on computers, while N268.9 will finance computer software acquisition.

Aso Rock will spend N764.7 million on recreational activities.

The installation of electrical lighting and fittings, which received substantial allocations in 2014 and 2015, will gulp N618.6 million next year.

The budgets are subject to the approval of the National Assembly.

Presidential food.

Other big spenders are Ministry of Interior with N498.5 billion, Education ministry is to spend N483.7 billion while the amalgamated Ministry of Works, Power and Housing is to spend N467.6 billion.

2016 Budget: FG to spend N4.1bn on cars

2016: Oshiomhole gives criteria for next governor

Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has said that someone who believes in the State and has the capacity to manage it will emerge as candidate of the All Progressives Party (APC) and win the votes of the people as the Governor in the 2016 gubernatorial election in the State.

oshiomhole

The Governor disclosed this while addressing Benin Palace chiefs, led by Chief John Oviasogie, the Eribo of Benin, who paid him a courtesy visit in the Government House.  He said he is concerened about who will emerge as the party’s flagbearer just like any other member of the party, assuring that there will be a level-playing field for all.

Receiving the chiefs, Governor Oshiomhole said, “from my inner insight of what this job entails, I believe we should look for people who believe in the State and have the capacity to run it. We have the right to educate the people about the person whom we think will be safe. Be rest assured that I am as concerned as yourselves because we have seen the damage which the wrong driver can do to our collective vehicle. Everything is the same, the only difference is the person who heads the government. May God give us a governor that will put Edo people first, that will respect the traditional institution and that will work for the unity of our people across the 192 wards.

“As I have said repeatedly, I think all of us must work together to ensure that we have a governor who, first and foremost, believes in  Benin, and who believes in the State, because if someone does not believe in the State, and he has power, he will help himself. Running a government is different from running a private enterprise. When you are working for a government, the interest is the people of the State. The second is to have the capacity to manage finances prudently because you may wish to do your best, but you cannot give what you don’t have. If you don’t have the brain, if you don’t have the knowledge and you don’t have the capacity, you will not be able to do it. So, we need people who can apply resources creatively.

“We haven’t solved all the problems, but we have made a lot of progress, and I am sure if the next governor will continue from where we will stop, for eight years of uninterrupted progress, I am sure that  Benin Kingdom will be wearing a complete new look.”

He expressed appreciation to the senior Palace chiefs for their visit, “I want to thank you for your kind words, and I also want to use this opportunity to repeat what I have said several times over. I have been extremely fortunate not only to have been accepted by His Royal Majesty, the great Oba of Benin, but also to enjoy the wise counsel, advice, prayers and all. We have had such a wonderful warm relationship between the government and the palace.

“I was at Abudu a few days ago, just to see what we are doing, and the people were so happy. We have a similar work at Igbanke; and here and there within the Kingdom, we are ensuring that we spread development.

“Across Nigeria today, I believe that Edo State might be one of the two or three states that are able to pay salaries of December to workers before Christmas. The labour leadership came see me yesterday to thank me for ensuring the civil servants in Edo State got their salaries. So in a country where most states cannot pay, and we are not as rich as any of our neighbours. Our people have got their salaries, but our neighbours can’t, so, it shows that it is that capacity to manage.

Speaking earlier, the head of Iwebo from Benin Palace Chief John Oviasogie, the Eribo of Benin expressed gratitude to the Governor for his developmental strides in the State: “What you have done in our State is something we are very proud about. You have virtually touched every place. We pray that God will continue to guide and protect you. Everyone of us as human being will aspire to the highest level of developing Nigeria. We thank you for the audience.”

Among the Benin Palace chiefs on the visit are Chief John Oviasogie, the Eribo of Benin, Chief Stanley Obamwonyi, Esere of Benin, Chief E.U. Uzamere, the Ine of Benin and Chief Morgan Obamwonyi, the Eguezigbon of Benin.

2016: Oshiomhole gives criteria for next governor

2016: Budget process is a joke - Pat Utomi

A Nigerian economist has stated his opinions about the 2016 national budget presented to the National Assembly on Tuesday.

Pat Utomi

“Putting it in a very awkward position, I consider the budget process a joke,” he said.

Professor Pat Utomi was on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday morning, few hours before the presentation of the budget by President Muhammadu Buhari before a joint session of the National Assembly.

He further said that “January 20 years ago, I was one of those who began to analyse the budget, and by December, there were issues with implementation.

“We somehow do not have the discipline of the budget process, we go through budget as public relations exercises because they are supposed to be done and decision makers go ahead to do whatever they want to do,” he said.

Low Energy In Leadership

Proffering solutions to the problem of budget implementation, Professor Utomi said that “the goal is to achieve an execution premium, but if those who are responsible for it (the budget) really had no plan whatsoever to follow the budget, then, you are wasting your time.

“When those who are responsible for it, do not see long term goals in which the budget is just a piece in an unfolding set of activities that would reach a certain goal, there is no point of it.

“I think what has happened to us is that we got to a point of disconnect between the leadership elite, the political class, the bureaucratic elite and development aspirations of the Nigeria people,” he said.

Professor Utomi further said that the major reason why the budget isn’t working in Nigeria is ‘leadership’.

“There is low energy in leadership. we are not leading the country in the right direction.

“What the country is dealing with is a huge financing gap; we used to earn so much and now, we are earning this much, if we pretend that nothing has changed, then we would go into an economic spiral”, he added.

While stating that the 2016 budget would focus on addressing youth unemployment and cater for the vulnerable, President Buhari said that Nigeria remains committed to diversification to build and reflate the economy.

2016: Budget process is a joke - Pat Utomi

Edo 2016: Oshiomhole not planning to impose candidate - PESOC

BENIN—AN interest group, Peter Esele Solidarity Committee, PESOC, has allayed the fears of governorship aspirants on the platform of All Progressives Congress, APC, that Governor Adams Oshiomhole will impose a candidate on the party, saying that based on the political consciousness in the country, the governor would not condescend to that level.

Reacting to the fears expressed by some chieftains of the party over the governor’s alleged support for one of the aspirants in the governorship race, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, in a statement by Mr. Sylvester Ikuvbogie, Director of Operations (PESOC 2016), said that delegates to the party’s primaries would be the ones to decide the outcome of the matter.

He said: “We like to allay the fears of Crosby Eribo, the member representing Egor state constituency and others that the governor in our imagination, and based on current trends of political consciousness in Nigeria, will not condescend to the level of imposing an aspirant over and above other contenders for the APC flag bearer. The party’s delegates must decide the fate of the matter unbiased, unmolested and without undue influence.

“It is sad that in modern times, when nations are placing integrity and capacity as the pillars for choosing party flag bearers, here, pockets of godfathers are threatening to cajole delegates. Surely, Edo people would resist such moves.”

Edo 2016: Oshiomhole not planning to impose candidate - PESOC

Nigeria Economy: 2016 will be tough, says Oshiomhole

BENIN—GOVERNOR Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has said that Year 2016 will be tough, going by the crisis in the economy triggered by a sharp decline in the national revenue by more than 55 percent.

Oshiomhole

He is, however, optimistic that his government will finish strong despite the economic indicators.

Speaking during a meeting with traditional rulers from Edo Central senatorial district, yesterday, the governor said: “It is clear from all indicators that the coming year is likely to be very tough with the continued decline in revenue and rising expectation on the part of our people and with many state governments, local governments, and perhaps, even some federal agencies defaulting in the payment of salaries and allowances to workers.

“The level of strike activities in the economy is going to be very high and of course, the level of unemployment is already unacceptably high and it could get even higher if we are not careful.

“So, we have a lot of challenges ahead, but I am very confident that the President is determined and has the political will to do the needful and ensure that the country remains stable and safe. The rest of us as state governments have responsibilities, working with the local governments and your good selves, the traditional rulers, to ensure that there is peace.”

Nigeria Economy: 2016 will be tough, says Oshiomhole