The Chairman of Naija Times Journalism Foundation, Ehi Braimah, has said that the upcoming guber election in Edo State which is slated for the 21st of September 2024, has been overshadowed and dominated by the power struggle between the current governor Godwin Obaseki and former governor Adams Oshiomole, referring to it as a “clash of eagles” in a fight for political dominance.
Braimah said this in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Tuesday, where he also said that he understood the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) reasons for not signing the Peace Accord, as the party had reasons to believe that they might be sabotaged with some of the officials who have been put in place.
Giving his personal view of the Edo State political struggles in view of the upcoming elections, Braimah said, “The elections will be too- very very close, from my reading of what is going on in Edo State. But it boils down to two political gladiators basically- Oshiomole on the one hand in APC (All Progressives Congress) and Obaseki on the other hand. I think it’s like a clash of eagles, and they’re not on the ballot interestingly, but they’re dominating the issues. And I must say too that most of the rhetorics have been very very dangerous and concoctionable, if you know what I mean. Edo people deserve better.
“Originally, the plan was, when Oshiomole was APC governor, the plan was to move on to Obaseki as governor, and then from there to move on to Asue Ighodalo as governor, before what happened happened, of course, they fell out, that’s Obaseki and Oshiomole. And how Obaseki made that dramatic comeback to become governor at the very last minute from APC to PDP, that created his own problems within PDP, and that problem is still there till today, which is why you will still notice that most of the politicians that were in PDP, the legacy members, most of them have now moved over to APC.”
Braimah also added that federal might may play a huge role in the election as he explained, “My own reading of the situation is APC wants Edo State at all costs, and now, it becomes an ego thing for Senator Adams Oshiomole because of what happened in the past, because he lost basically to Obaseki four years ago. And if that were to happen a second time, it will reduce significantly his political influence in Edo State, because right now, he’s the new Mr Fix It of politics in Edo State as it were under the platform of the APC.
“So, I am very uncomfortable with the fact that a cousin of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike will be the Resident Electoral Commissioner, this is why PDP refused to sign the Peace Accord. The other allegation on the table is that the newly appointed Commissioner of Police is from Okrika in Rivers State and a former classmate of Wike, well, we need to fact-check this. And then thirdly, some political associates, those that they believe are very influential in Edo State, like the chairman of my local council, Esan West Local Government Area, Collins Aigbogun, he’s not been found for a very long time, I hear he’s in Abuja somewhere cooling his feet.
“So, there’s no way you cannot speculate or even suggest that the federal might will play an important role in this election with all of these facts on the table.”
He then addressed the fact that the PDP did not sign the Peace Accord, saying, “If you look at why PDP didn’t sign the peace accord, I think they have some valid points there if you ask me. I just checked before I came today, INEC is still saying that they will not remove the REC, you know, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, who is now known to be a cousin of Wike and we know the very fussy relation between Wike and Obaseki.”
Braimah then went on to speak to Olumide Akpata’s candidacy with the Labour Party as he said, “As far as I’m concerned, he has done a very creative campaign. I said so in a recent piece I wrote, he has done very well, he has brought a breath of fresh air into what I call political communication in Edo State. And indeed, he is also a force, especially in Edo South where we have 7 local government- Edo State has 18 local governments with 192 wards, and in all of those 7 local governments, I see him very strong in three of them. But he has done very well going to other local government areas in Edo State.
“But historically, you will agree with me that the dominant parties are still PDP and APC, but that is not to say- and then don’t forget, all the parties have problems, including the Labour Party. How that will also play out, we wait to see.”
“Edo people are also watching. What they want out of this is a governor that will meet their needs and serve their purpose,” he added.
Ozioma Samuel-Ugwuezi
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