Zoning agitations get louder ahead of Edo primaries

With less than five weeks for political parties in Edo State to conduct primaries to elect their governorship candidates, intrigues over zoning have polarised stakeholders as some opposition parties are more concerned about fielding candidates who can win the election than fidelity to the gentleman agreement to rotate power among the three senatorial districts. 

Before now, agitation to zone the governorship to Edo Central Senatorial district was loud among the major political parties in the state, but that has changed. Only Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is still favouring the zone to produce its governorship candidate while All Progressives Congress (APC) and Labour Party (LP) have thrown their tickets open to all the senatorial districts.

The state governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, who is leader of the PDP in the state, believes that for fairness, equity and justice, Edo Central should be allowed to produce his successor in office. And his position has encouraged many politicians from the senatorial district to throw their hats in the ring for the ticket of not only the PDP but other parties.

To the advocates of Edo Central, also known as Esanland, to produce the next governor, Edo South has had the governorship seat through Obaseki for eight years while Edo North had it for eight years via Senator Adams Oshiomhole. They argued that it would only be fair for Edo Central to take the slot after Obaseki. 

But those opposed to the zoning formula said politics is a game of numbers, disclosing that voter’s demography in the state does not favour Edo Central. According to them, Edo South has more registered voters than Edo North and Central combined. While Edo Central has 20 per cent of the voters’ population, Edo North, 28 per cent; and Edo South, 52 per cent. They said it would be suicidal for a party to zone its ticket to an area with 20 per cent of votes, when there are candidates from other zones with higher percentage.

However, supporters of Governor Obaseki in “the equity, justice and fairness” game are of the opinion that if winning election depends only on the voting population of the senatorial district of the candidate, Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor would not have come closer to winning election, in the first instance before the court gave Oshiomhole the victory. They also hinged their optimism on the achievements of the governor in the last seven years.

With the internal crisis in Edo PDP, Obaseki may not have his permutation scale through easily because of other cleavages being led by the National Vice Chairman of the PDP, South-South Chief Dan Osi Orbih, and the Deputy Governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu, who has been in a battle with the governor for conceding to the zoning arrangement.

Orbih is believed to be in firm control of the traditional PDP members in the state. The group appears looking beyond Edo Central to field aspirants for the primary. Though Orbih’s camp has yet to announce its aspirant for the February 22primaries, the group has been moving around the state to give Obaseki a run for his money.

Shaibu, who is from Edo North will surely contest the PDP primary against anybody presented by the governor from the Edo Central. He has accused the governor of betraying him for supporting the boardroom guru, Asue Ighodalo from Edo Central.

Shaibu said Obaseki would be resisted by the people during the upcoming gubernatorial election for betraying him. He said, “I’m contesting this election not because of the fluke, but my people are interested in it. Anywhere I go, you can see the organic support; my support is not procedure like the governor that is using taxpayers’ money to procure support for his candidate. I feel betrayed by the governor. When we go to church, some biblical verses are beginning to make meaning to me since this incident started. The heart of man is desperately wicked. I added political value, finances and political structure for Obaseki’s second term.”

Shaibu accused Obaseki of attempting to play the role of a political godfather in Edo, which they both fought against after agreeing that such a situation should never again be experienced in the state.

Despite Shaibu’s confrontation with the governor, there are many PDP aspirants from Edo Central that have picked the N35m expression of interest and nomination forms to vie for the governorship ticket. They are Ighodalo, former chairman of APC in the state, who has defected to the PDP, Anselm Ojezua, Ambassador Martin Uhomoibhi and Felix Akhabue.

Other PDP top aspirants not from Edo Central include, Shaibu, Omosede Igbinedion, and Mr Ogbeide Ihama. Though Obaseki has not publicly endorsed any of the aspirants, many political observers and PDP members believe that the governor is giving tacit support to the former chairman of Sterling Bank, Asue Ighodalo, who is seen as the topmost contender for the PDP ticket in the state.

The gale of endorsements and the manner many aspirants stepped down for Ighodalo gave credence to the speculations that powers that be in the state PDP might have adopted him as their governorship candidate.

Apart from the PDP caucuses in the three senatorial districts that have endorsed Ighodalo, he is seen as an aspirant with potentials to resolve lingering crises among major tendencies in the party. People say he’s the man to beat in the Edo State PDP governorship primary election.

But that does not stop a former Commissioner under the Chief Lucky Igbinedion-led PDP government, Anslem Ojezua from contesting for the party ticket. He has so far rebuffed all entreaties by Edo Central Senatorial District caucus of PDP to step down for Ighodalo but party leaders are watching to see the strings he can pull.

Also, one time chairman of Esan West Local Government Council and immediate past Commissioner for Wealth Creation in the Obaseki’s government, Felix Akhabue is also determined to contest the ticket. Akhabue, a former national president of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) refused to succumb to pleadings by PDP leaders in Edo Central to step down for Ighodalo.

While declaring that APC will not zone its ticket, the state secretary of the party, Lawrence Okah said the party will look out for the best aspirant with the capacity to win election for the party.  He cautioned all aspirants to avoid vile campaigns and personal attacks since the primary election that would produce the candidate of the party is an internal contest among members of the same family.

According to Okah “We have asked all the aspirants to play the game according to the rule and they should avoid any utterances against any of the aspirants like them because at the end of the day, the party is going to pick only one and the rest will work with the one that has been picked.

“What we are looking for is capacity and the ability to deliver and that is why we said there is no zoning. That is the message.”  There are several aspirants from Edo Central Senatorial District jostling for the APC ticket, however, the state screening committee of the party has given a nod to incumbent Senator, Monday Okpebholo and Col. David Imuse to slog it out with Clement Agba and Dr. Ernest Afolabi Umakhihe, Lucky Imasuen and Hon. Dennis Idahosa from Edo North and Edo South respectively.

Senator Okpebholo, who was an aide to late Chief Tony Anenih may have successfully cornered the political capital of the late PDP leader to himself. He came into the political scene and swept Edo Central Senatorial District like a hurricane and won the senatorial election. He has large followers of all the segments of Edo Central Senatorial District.    

Imuse is a medical doctor and retired Colonel in the Nigerian Army. A highly cerebral person, Imuse is the immediate past state chairman of the party in the state. He resigned recently to pursue his gubernatorial ambition.

Before his resignation, he visited all the 192 wards of the state to interface with party members on why they should give him the nod to fly the party flag in the Edo State 2024 governorship election.

For Major Gen. Charles Ehigie Airhiavbere (retd), another APC aspirant jostling for the ticket, the state needs a capable lead representative, irrespective of zoning saying, “We hear people saying there should be zoning; you can only zone what you have; if you don’t have a daughter, you cannot give out a daughter in marriage. That is why the APC must present the best.”

A public affairs commentator, Lucky Isibor said, “We cannot wish away zoning in the Edo State 2024 governorship election. Every Edo man, across the three senatorial districts is aware that it is the turn of Edo Central Senatorial District to produce the governor.

“On the issue of the dichotomy between the old Agbazilo and Okpebho federal constituencies and which of them should produce the governor, I will tell you authoritatively that the Edo Central people do not care where a governor should come from within the senatorial district.

“Their concern is how to vote for a governor from the zone who would replicate what the late Prof. Ambrose Alli did as governor of the defunct Bendel State and even surpass it in Edo State. They also want an Edo Central governor that will develop the state evenly and eliminate the divide and rule syndrome that some state actors have introduced.

“The issue of the dichotomy is being whipped up by the political vultures and hyenas from other zones who want to deploy sentiments to divide the people to snatch the governorship position from Edo Central now that it’s their turn.

“Edo people want to take a cue from their sister state, Delta, where the rotation of the governorship position has been entrenched. The governorship position has gone round the three Senatorial Districts in Delta and gone back to Delta Central where it started in 1999. This principle has brought peace in Delta and eliminated political acrimony and ethnic rivalry,” he said.