On September 21, 2024, Edo was sent back by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), with the conniver and conspiracy of the security agents to thwart the will of the Edo people, pushed back the state to the election era of 2007 when PDP rigged elections against the then Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole of the ACN. It took remarkable resilience from the then-candidate of ACN – Adams Oshiomhole, to reclaim his mandate back from the PDP through an 18-month-long legal battle.
While initially peaceful, vote-buying and results manipulation marred the September 21 Governorship Edo elections. The winners announced by INEC were said to have lost the Edo South and Edo Central Senatorial district, winning only the Edo North Senatorial area. This shift in power dynamics and magic that followed made it clear that Edo North had emerged as the crucial voting block, significantly influencing the outcome of the Edo elections.
Before the Election, it was clear that the Election was going to be a political battle between the supreme godfather and his former godson, who emerged as a new godfather after falling out with his supreme godfather and his emergency godfather from Rivers State. Another clear thing is that the former godson who now upgraded himself to a godfather and birthed a godson, the candidate of the PDP and the left-over PDP members are going to face a formidable opposition teamed up by several disgruntled political enemies who have joined forces with the former godfather and supreme leader with his political party the APC to wrestle power from the hands of his former godson and the PDP by all means possible.
The political battle of their life led to the former godson declaring, “If you do we die.”They set the machinery of the prominent election instrument against the PDP and its candidate, including the INEC, where the emperor brought his cousin to lead the INEC into the Election. The Federal government brought in the security forces, including the police and the Army, and all the Federal big wings of the APC to guide the miraculous work of the Edo APC against the will and desire of the Edo people.
In 2016, the supreme godfather invested his political capital in the political life of Governor Godwin Obaseki against all odds in Edo, and he won. The godfather withdrew his support when they fell out mid-road during his first tenure. He chased him out of their party, the APC, which cost him his sack from the APC as the chairman of the APC-controlled Federal Government party in power. The godson went with his deputy to their opponent, PDP, to seek refuge, where he was accommodated and given succour along with his convenience and ambitious deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu.
In the 2020 Election, the battle became a direct confrontation between the former godson and the supreme leader’s power, who was now backing his former political opponents of 2016. The Governor emerged victorious with the help of the determination and resilience of the Edo people and their unwavering support, despite the unpartisan Federal government’s disapproval of how the supreme godfather disqualified him from contesting under the APC name and dismissed him from the party. This victory drew a new red line, and the supreme godfather was left politically humiliated, forcing him to return home and re-energize and rebuild his political structure from his home base for a future political battle. He contested for a political seat as a Senator in the Federal Republic of Nigeria in his senatorial zone in Edo North and won.
In the just concluded Election, the battle was not a direct fight between the two major contestants of the APC and the PDP; it was a contest of power over who controls Osadebey Avenue of supreme godfather and upgraded former godson. The supreme godfather candidate of the APC, Senator Monday Okpebholo, won with the help of the federal government security agents and the support of the corrupt INEC officials who were positioned far before the Election to do the bidding of the APC.
Reports from credible international and local observers revealed that the Election was largely peaceful but marred with vote-buying from both parties in the eyes of security agents and INEC officials and alleged results mutilated and manipulated during the collation process in favour of the APC candidate with the help of security agents and INEC officials, which sees the Edo North senatorial district became the new voting bloc of Edo votes for whoever wants to win Edo election as the results revealed the Edo North was the winning point were the miraculous power of the supreme godfather manifest itself to assert himself as the leader of Edo politics.
It’s a shame that those who claimed to have been champions of democracy have now come to power and ruled the country with the destruction of democratic principles. After twenty-five years of Nigeria’s democracy and civil rule, we are still saying that the best elections ever held were in the military era, conducted by the then Military head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida, in 1993 and won by Chief MKO Abiola. Since then, no polls have come near to transparency other than the March 2015 election that brought the champions of democracy into power – APC. Under the leadership of the APC-led Federal Government, Nigerian democracy is fast eroding as many Nigerians have lost faith in the electoral process of electing their political leaders.
The Governor has no moral justification to say that the Election was rigged against his party, and neither does the PDP governors or their party and godson because he has no democratic credentials after running a government for eight years with no functional House of Assembly. What about the shambolic local government elections conducted in recent times, supervised by the Governor, his failure to swear in judges in the state cleared by the NJC, the illegal impeachment of his deputy and the imposition and manipulation of his childhood friend, business associate and political godson on the party, skimming other contestants without following proper democratic principles to produce their candidate for the governorship election, unfulfilled promises to the Edo people and many more are some of his undoings that led to the gang up against him and the left-over PDP members that went with him for the Election and were rigged out.
His political journey has been marred by betrayal. He has failed to manage his political fortunes and turned his back on those who helped him rise to power, leaving a bitter taste of disappointment. As the end of Governor Obaseki’s tenure comes to bear, he finds himself isolated. He is left to return to his base in Lagos alone, much like he arrived 16 years ago. The friendships he built over the years were purely for political gaming and gains. With the game over, everyone is returning home, including his deputy, who deserted his godfather to accompany him during their struggle for a second term bid in their political wilderness. He has since returned to his political ancestral home and reconciled with his supreme godfather, leaving Governor Godwin Obaseki isolated and potentially ending his political career.
Now that the lions and tigers are preparing to come back, the supreme leader of the APC in Edo state has expressed his unwavering faith, stating that “What God cannot do does not exist,” This implies that even if their candidate were unable to engage in meaningful and public conversation with the electorates or the Edo public, he could still be Governor. It will take the PDP candidate Asue Ighodalo more than “What God can do.”; in addition to all the God of Pastor Kumuyi of Deeper Life, Dr. D. K. Olukoya of Mountian of Fire, Bishop Oyedepo of Winners, Pastor Adeboye of Redeemed, Pastor Oyakhilomen of Christ Embassy, Pastor Oshoffa of Celestial Church of Christ and many more to retrieve his mandate from the shackle of APC-led controlled Federal Government headed by the Emilokun of my turn, considering the facts that he has locked all the facets of the judiciary as I am complete in my doubt if our aunty, the new Chief Judge of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun will dance against my turn.
It’s time for the candidate to show strength and resilience in the face of this momentous challenge that the APC has imposed on him, his party, the PDP and the people of Edo. The PDP candidate of the just concluded Election should understand that the journey of his desire to Osadebey Avenue has just begun because the supreme godfather has shown him that the walk to Osadebey Avenue is beyond being a childhood friend of the Governor, business partner or associate, or chairman of several cooperate boards and organization; that he – the supreme godfather walked to the court for 18 months to be able to claim his mandate from the PDP in 2007 governorship election in Edo state when his mandate was stolen by the same PDP that is crying foul today.
Asue, the strength of your resilience and the genuineness of your claim to serve the people of Edo have been put on trial with the magical results and events that have just happened in the September 21 Governorship election. Many view you as a stranger and opportunist who wants to take advantage of the Edo people. Notably, the people of Edo voted for you and your party, the PDP and the world knows that you and your party won the Election. The results on the IReV portal of INEC revealed that he was clearly on the lead up to 90% of results uploaded until INEC and security agents collaborated with the APC to stop the collation process abruptly without any glitches or reasons and mutilate, manipulate, alter and magic the results through the APC-miracle-network-control federal government to enable them to produce their desire winner. If your desire for power is personal, you will walk away quickly.
Still, if not, then you will be prepared to take a long walk to Osadebey Avenue, as your name has been entrenched in the heart of the Edo electorates despite all the odds against your candidacy as it’s time for you to build your political brand and rebuild the Edo PDP and make things happened for yourself and the party you represent, not through your political mentor and ally, or business partner and childhood friend of Governor Godwin Obaseki who brought you to bear with his baggage of adversaries.
As Nigeria nation marks 64 years since the end of colonial rule, many Nigerians are on the street protesting against hunger, hardship, suffering, sorry, grieve, tears and blood; the citizens continue to seek freedom and true independence, while past and present corrupt political elites celebrate the independence of exploit and plundering our commonwealth without the interference of colonial master’s; we only hope and pray that your journey to court will be safe and victorious as you walk through a corrupt judiciary system and the mockery water of Nigeria’s political landscape.
Ahusemere Ogbeide is a Social Activist.
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