Ahead of the primary election to choose the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) flag-bearer for the September 19 governorship poll in Edo State, the state chapter of the party has been given a marching order by the national leadership, to reserve its governorship ticket for the state governor, Godwin Obaseki.
This is following the decision of a top caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) not to return Obaseki to office through the APC channel, a situation that had placed the governor and his predecessor, Adams Oshiomhole, at loggerheads.
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Though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is weighing all options concerning a shift in date of the polls in Edo and Ondo states, the commission on Thursday, said it was considering a meeting with all stakeholders to determine its next line of action. INEC’s decision will however not deter the major parties in the election from going ahead with preparations for their primaries as the PDP and the APC are both in the moment of decisions that will produce their flag-bearers.
Division brews
Sources within the party however informed our correspondents that the decision of the PDP national echelon has caused a division among some top PDP faithful in Edo State, as some of the old aspirants have vowed neither to jettison their ambition nor step down for the governor during the primary poll.
Some of the aspirants have hinged their arguments on the fact that Obaseki is not yet a registered member of the PDP in Edo State, and that by the time he would be joining the party, he wouldn’t have met a major criteria, which is party’s constitutional requirement for aspirants. A top member of the PDP in Edo State who is also close to the national leadership of the party, spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity, saying that it is a done deal for Obaseki to get the PDP ticket, and that the party is only waiting for the APC to put a final nail on the coffin before they brought out the joker.
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The source said: “Look, I won’t deceive you; the issue of Obaseki coming to contest under PDP has been on the front burner for the past one year. Any sincere PDP man will tell you that we are under pressure from Abuja to give Obaseki the governorship ticket.
“The truth is that, as we speak now, there is nobody in Edo PDP that is ready to bring out money to fund the governorship election in the state. And as an opposition party, for us to give a good fight to the APC, we need somebody with a deep pocket and big name to wage the ‘war’.
“I am telling you categorically that plans are on the way to give Obaseki the PDP ticket. Yes, in political settings, especially in critical times like this, some people would not be comfortable with the arrangement, but I tell you that we have set the machinery in motion to see how we can pacify those who are against an automatic PDP ticket for Obaseki.
‘APC rejects Obaseki’
According to a top member of the APC in Edo State, who corroborated the PDP sources, some recent meetings of the APC caucus, aimed at choosing the APC candidate for the September 19 polls, had left the governor out of the options.
He said: “It is now certain that the only option left for the Wake and See Governor is to pitch his tent with the opposition party. Oga is ready to dump the APC for the PDP anytime soon. That is the last option for him, and if he doesn’t play his game well, those people there will mess him up.
“It is now very glaring that he will not be given a return ticket because of the rift between him and many top APC members in the state, particularly his former boss. And you know that, as the National Chairman of the APC, it is Oshiomhole that will send names of candidates to INEC”, the APC stalwart said. Saturday Telegraph also gathered that there had been series of meetings within top PDP members since the National Working Committee of the PDP gave the executive order to the PDP executives to reserve the PDP governorship ticket for Obaseki and also give him a soft landing. A PDP member who was part of such meetings said: “Just recently, Edo PDP rose from a meeting where final decision was to be taken on Obaseki. But the meeting did not end well because some of the party leaders were against given automatic ticket to Obaseki”.
‘Our ticket not for sale’
Nonetheless, the state Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chris Nehikhare, denied knowledge of the meetings. Speaking in a telephone chat with our correspondent, he called it a mere rumour and refused to give details of the alleged executive order.
He said: “PDP is working very hard to produce a competent candidate for the forthcoming Edo 2020 governorship election, we are preparing for our primaries. And as I speak with you now, I can tell you that we have no anointed candidate. “Whether there was an executive order from Abuja or not to give Obaseki the PDP ticket, it is not to my knowledge. PDP is not as disorganised as the APC, we are much organised, and we have seasoned politicians to the core. “We are prepared to take over the power in Edo State, we don’t want to start throwing money around when the need has not arisen, more so, PDP ticket is not for sale. Nobody can hijack our party structure, the reason why you are not hearing so much noise from PDP aspirants is that we respect party supremacy, so when the time comes, Edo people will know who our candidate is,” Nehikhare said. Also reinforcing the order from above is a former member of the PDP executive council who gave more insight into the issue, saying that the bone of contention is the issue of Obaseki’s deputy, Philip Shaibu, as there is no assurance of a soft landing for him. “I can assure you that though Obaseki will get the ticket, his deputy, Shaibu, may not be given the same treatment because that card is not on the table. Anybody in PDP telling you that he is against Obaseki coming to the party is deceiving himself. “If he meets the conditions given to him, he will fly the PDP ticket during the 2020 governorship election. But what I cannot guarantee is whether his deputy would be accepted. Obaseki wants to carry Shaibu along but we also have our own people that can deputise him. “No doubt that Obaseki has done very well, so we want continuity, he has a good vision, but greedy politicians are not happy with him because he has refused to allow them loot the state treasury. We need to change the system; Edo people are at home with him, we will be very happy to have him as PDP governor for Edo State,” he said.
‘We say no to imposition’
But some of the PDP governorship aspirants are not comfortable with the arrangement. One of the aspirants, Mr. Gideon Ikhine, said: “I am an aspirant of the PDP for Edo 2020, our Party is not the property of anyone, we all have a stake in the party it is not the decision of few individuals to decide the fate of the party. “Those who want to trade away the party’s ticket to whoever, are doing that at their own risk. I have made up my mind to contest the post of the governorship under the umbrella of PDP, I have my structure, I have paid my dues in the party. “In fact when I came in, PDP was almost at the verge of total collapse, it is my time and money that brought PDP together again. Obaseki is my friend, he has done his best, but I think I have a better idea on what Edo people want. Nobody can stop me from actualising the vision God has given to me about Edo people.”
‘We want Obaseki’
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One of the PDP Women Leaders in Edo North, Alhaja Rufiat Aishatu, said: “The crisis that is happening in Edo APC is an opportunity and a gateway for PDP to take over the mantle of power in Edo. As it stands now, we need a candidate who has both the financial, human and material resources to fight APC. “Any PDP man who is against Obaseki coming to the party in fact is an enemy of progress. They would not want to open up to people, there had been pressure on Edo PDP to give Obaseki a chance in our party, because with what the man has done in Edo, he will not only win the election, his victory will be overwhelming. “Top PDP chieftains have waded into to matter, most PDP decision makers are aware of this development and those who want him to come and fly PDP’s ticket are in majority. “Have you bothered to know why Senators Mathew Urhoghide, Ogbeide Ihama, Isi -Idenhen Cliford Odia and Sergius Ogun are not making noise? “They know that if Obaseki is given PDP ticket, they will all be beneficiaries. The agreement is that he will hand over power to somebody from Edo Central. So I want to tell you that PDP door is wide open for Obaseki. However, efforts to get Obaseki’s Special Adviser on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, proved abortive as text and WhatsApp messages sent to his mobile phone were not answered.
News Telegraph