Less than two weeks to the Edo State governorship election scheduled to hold on September 10, 2016, political parties and their candidates jostling to succeed Governor Adams Oshiomhole have intensified their campaigns across the 192 wards in the state and appear hell bent on leaving no stone unturned.
Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] said 18 political parties have been cleared to participate in the governorship election and had since released the names of the parties’ governorship candidates and their running mates.
According to INEC, the state has a total number of 1.9925,105 registered voters, 1, 326 voters invalidated owing to multiple registration, over 400,000 permanent voter cards [PVC] are yet to be collected by eligible voters while 18,511 officials of the commission are expected to be deployed to the 18 local government areas of the state.
Also, the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris has equally ordered the immediate deployment of 23,0000 police personnel for the election for the purpose of security of lives and property and ensuring violence-free election.
Although, there are other political parties in the contest for the September 10, governorship election, the battle for the soul of Edo State revolves around two major political parties - All Progressives Congress [APC] and Peoples Democratic Party [PDP]. Godwin Obaseki is the APC governorship candidate while Pastor Ize-Iyamu Osagie flies the PDP flag.
While the leadership of the state chapter of PDP led by Chief Dan Orbih has resolved to reclaim the state back to comity of PDP-controlled South-South states and discontinue what he termed the ‘third term’ bid of Governor Adams Oshiomhole, the APC under the leadership of the state Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has described the PDP as a common enemy of the Nigerian people, particularly Edo people; that must not be allowed to stage a comeback.
Until the coming of Governor Oshiomhole’s government in 2009 via a Court of Appeal verdict, the PDP held sway in the state, had overwhelming members in the House of Assembly, controlled the three senatorial seats and determined who got the House of Representative slots, but the all that changed completely when Comrade Oshiomhole took it upon himself to redefine Edo politics.
The PDP, however, gained ascendency over the political terrain it once controlled when during the last presidential election, the party won the state for the former President Goodluck Jonathan with over 60% votes, secured five out of the nine House of Representatives seats and won two out of the three senatorial slots as against the harvest of losses the party recorded during the 2012 governorship election throughout the 18 local government areas.
For the first time in the history of political campaigns in the state, candidates of both the two contending political parties appeared to have caved in to issue-based campaign which they have successfully domiciled at the door-step of eligible voters.
Pastor Ize-Iyamu Osagie
Until he defected to the PDP, Pastor Ize-Osagie Iyamu was a Secretary to the State Government during the Lucky Igbinedion administration and later became the South-South leader of the then Action Congress[AC] which later to APC. He was a close ally of Governor Oshiomhole and was appointed director-general, Oshiomhole Campaign Organisation in 2012.
Taxation: One of the contending issues the PDP may have succeeded in selling to the voting public is what they described as excruciating pains and hardship the ordinary Edo man and woman have been subjected to under the multiple tax regime of the present administration. The tax regime of the state government is not limited to the traders and market women, it is also extended to petty traders who display their wares along walkways, including taxi drivers, hotel and restaurant operators who are currently in court over consumer tax and those who built their houses on lands measuring 100x100 above in designated areas.
Ize-Iyamu said he was not against taxation, but that the government owed it a duty to create friendly economic environment that will attract investors to the state, who will in turn pay taxes to the state government.
Speaking during the interactive session with the governorship candidates organized by members of the state civil society groups, the PDP governorship candidate said the state internally generated revenue had been stagnated over the failure of the state government to think outside the box.
But the Acting Executive Director, Edo State Inland Revenue Service [EIRS], Barr. Emmanuel Usoh, who accused Ize-Iyamu of evading tax over refusal to declared his sources of income, said the PDP governorship candidate was completely a novice in revenue collection, adding that the state government now records an average of N1.7billion monthly as against the N250million monthly that was never accounted for by the Lucky Igbinedion government.
Alleged lopsided development and appointments: The state chapter of the PDP has also accused the Governor Oshiomhole-led administration of not only concentrating development in his ancestral home, Uzairue clan, in Etsako West Local Government Area at the detriment of the other communities and the other five local government areas that make up Edo North senatorial district and outright condemned the decision of the governor to settle for Hon.
Philips Shuaibu, a serving member of the House of Representatives also from the same clan as running mate while the people from the two Owans and Etasko Central and East local government areas watched helplessly. Speaking on the issue, Ize-Iyamu, while campaigning in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, said the action of Oshiomhole and the APC showed insensitivity to the other local governments in Edo North.
“It was even made worse by the fact that even the Edo North senatorial position is not in Owan, neither is it in Akoko-Edo. One would have thought that the governor, who continues to talk about fairness would be fair in his distribution of political offices. Edo North today has become a divided house because of the way some local government areas are marginalised by the governor.”
The party which zoned the deputy governorship seat to Edo Central senatorial district equally decried what it termed the marginalization of the district made up of the Esan people, the senatorial home of Chief Tony Anenih, former chairman, PDP Board of Trustees in terms of development and appointments under the present administration.
Running mate to the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate, Mr John Yakubu, who hails from the senatorial district described Oshiomhole and the APC candidate as common enemies that must be defeated for development to come to the constituency. “Oshiomhole wrote a letter to the Secretary to Government of the Federation not to give attention to the gully erosion in Ibore and Ewu.
I have a copy of the letter written by Adams Oshiomhole dated 24th November, 2014 and I will circulate it throughout Edo State,” Economic recession in the Buhari government: This factor has often been referred to as the Buhari factor. There is the impression that the APC brought negative changes upon Nigerians; that the Buhari government has spent enough time in power to effect positive changes is quite popular in Edo. Many believe that this is the biggest problem confronting the APC and will certainly rob off on the election outcome.
The PDP has not only convinced the ordinary voters, who are equally being confronted by the hardship of economic reality, but decided that this change they earlier voted for must be changed under the popular slogan of ‘change the change’ Local government workers/pensioners/ government face-off: The party has also taken advantage of the lingering crisis between the local government workers, pensioners and the state government over unpaid salaries, pensions and gratuities spanning over 3-9, and 42months respectively.
The workers who are neck deep in disagreement with the state government have expressed their disappointment at the earlier trust and confidence they reposed in the state government headed by a former labour leader, whom they thought would be worker friendly and make workers welfare his priority.
Accountability and transparency: PDP claims Governor Oshiomhole haS so far spent about unbudgeted 18billion on Iyahmo University, refused to disclose amount being spent on kilometer of roads constructed, alleged that the N30billion Benin Water Storm Project has only attained 25% work done while about 23billon has been advanced.
Godwin Obaseki
Before his nomination, Obaseki, was the head of the state’s Economic and Strategy Team of the Governor Oshiomhole-led administration in the last seven and half years.
His campaign centers upon evolving economic sustainability and policies that will create enabling environment for investors in the face of the present reality of global economic meltdown where majority of state governments are unable to pay workers’ salaries.
The APC governorship candidate has also promised to create 200,000 jobs for the unemployed youth population of the state and grant certificates of occupancy to 12 farmers for 150,000 hectares of land, “If each farmer employs five workers on their farms to work on only 50, 000 hectares of the land, is that not 250, 000 jobs already. We need to run government properly. We will make sure we continue to run an open, efficient and responsible government. The people must come first. We must make them create wealth and election, the party won the state from the former President Goodluck Jonathan with over 60% votes, secured five out of the nine House of Representatives seats and won two out of the three senatorial slots as against the harvest of losses the party recorded during the 2012 governorship election throughout the 18 local government areas.
For the first time in the history of political campaigns in the state, candidates of both the two contending politicaln parties appeared to have caved in to issue-based campaign which they have successfully domiciled at the door-step of eligible voters.
APC governorship candidate has also promised to create 200,000 jobs for the unemployed youth population of the state and grant certificates of occupancy to 12 farmers for 150,000 hectares of land, “If each farmer employs five workers on their farms to work on only 50, 000 hectares of the land, is that not 250, 000 jobs already. We need to run government properly. We will make sure we continue to run an open, efficient and responsible government. The people must come first. We must make them create wealth and create jobs.”
He assured Edo people of better days ahead and took a swipe at the PDP for alleging that his plan to create 200, 000 jobs is not feasible , saying the jobs would be generated from agriculture and urged the people not to be deceived by PDP’s
antics. Accused PDP of destroying state civil service: Obaseki vowed never to forgive the PDP successive administrations in the state for allegedly destroying the state civil service.
Obaseki who disclosed at the interactive session for gubernatorial candidates put together by organized Civil Society in the state posited “For me, I will forgive the past government for all the money they stole. I will forgive them for destroying all the infrastructure of government, but one thing I will never, forgive them for is what they did by destroying the civil service.” “When we came on board, the institutions of government in Edo State had been destroyed.
We can forgive the past government for the infrastructure they destroyed; we can forgive them for the money they stole, but I can’t forgive them for the civil service they destroyed. We need to retrain and restructure the civil service to drive our economy. They key ingredients of growth are here in Edo State.”
Obaseki also promised to use his network of influence in and around the globe to bring in investors to industrialize the state, pay maximum attention to issues of security to boost their confidence in the state, construct more roads to link rural communities and enhance power generation, even though the federal government has it as exclusive right Traditional rulers factor Although they are not partisan, yet their body language and nod seem to be in favour of the APC governorship candidate. The entire Edo North traditional rulers headed by Otaru of Auchi, did not only endorse the candidature of Godwin Obaseki whom they said had the backing of their illustrious son, Governor Adams Oshiomhole, but openly donated funds as part of their contribution to the campaign. The trend of endorsement was equally replicated in Edo South when a sociocultural group comprising prominent Benin palace chiefs, professionals and traders under the auspices of [Etuedoseghe] led by Esogban of Benin Kingdom, Chief David Edebiri, unanimously threw their weight we are not oblivious of the good work of some political parties and the bad work of some other political parties.
Consequently, we have the right to choose if those wanting a particular thing aremore than one. The Oshiomhole factor: Governor Oshiomhole and the APC have been doing a lot by insisting that the parlous state of the country now was brought about by the past PDP governments.
Speaking at a rally in Afuze, Owan East Local Government Area, Oshiomhole posited: “When a man comes to your house, burgled your store where you kept your food and in the morning, you find the store burgled, can you immediately feed your children? “What President Buhari is doing now, when he found that PDP broke into the treasury and emptied it, is to rebuild the door of the treasury to secure it and recover the ones they have taken. The way PDP put fire on our economy, to rebuild it cannot be overnight.
Today, my confidence about the future of our country is that Buhari is blocking all the leakages in our economy.”The Governor Oshiomhole administration in that state in the last seven a half years has not only rekindled the people’s hopes and confidence in government, but has also shown that the state was still viable, owing to the network of roads constructed, massive renovation of schools across the three senatorial districts, particularly the construction of the popular Teacher House road, Isiluko road and Uselu-lagos road abandoned by successive governments.
Oshiomhole has consistently reminded Edo people of alleged role the PDP candidate played during the Lucky Igbinedion administration as Chief of Staff and Secretary to the State Government respectively, adding that a vote for Ize-Iyamu is a vote for Lucky Igbinedion and his father, the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, both of whom he claimed diverted the funds earmarked for the construction of the abandoned Okada two-lane road contract and Siluko road, sacked permanent secretaries and over 5000 civil servants in the state, including building the Okada University with alleged government funds.
Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] said 18 political parties have been cleared to participate in the governorship election and had since released the names of the parties’ governorship candidates and their running mates.
According to INEC, the state has a total number of 1.9925,105 registered voters, 1, 326 voters invalidated owing to multiple registration, over 400,000 permanent voter cards [PVC] are yet to be collected by eligible voters while 18,511 officials of the commission are expected to be deployed to the 18 local government areas of the state.
Also, the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris has equally ordered the immediate deployment of 23,0000 police personnel for the election for the purpose of security of lives and property and ensuring violence-free election.
Although, there are other political parties in the contest for the September 10, governorship election, the battle for the soul of Edo State revolves around two major political parties - All Progressives Congress [APC] and Peoples Democratic Party [PDP]. Godwin Obaseki is the APC governorship candidate while Pastor Ize-Iyamu Osagie flies the PDP flag.
While the leadership of the state chapter of PDP led by Chief Dan Orbih has resolved to reclaim the state back to comity of PDP-controlled South-South states and discontinue what he termed the ‘third term’ bid of Governor Adams Oshiomhole, the APC under the leadership of the state Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has described the PDP as a common enemy of the Nigerian people, particularly Edo people; that must not be allowed to stage a comeback.
Until the coming of Governor Oshiomhole’s government in 2009 via a Court of Appeal verdict, the PDP held sway in the state, had overwhelming members in the House of Assembly, controlled the three senatorial seats and determined who got the House of Representative slots, but the all that changed completely when Comrade Oshiomhole took it upon himself to redefine Edo politics.
The PDP, however, gained ascendency over the political terrain it once controlled when during the last presidential election, the party won the state for the former President Goodluck Jonathan with over 60% votes, secured five out of the nine House of Representatives seats and won two out of the three senatorial slots as against the harvest of losses the party recorded during the 2012 governorship election throughout the 18 local government areas.
For the first time in the history of political campaigns in the state, candidates of both the two contending political parties appeared to have caved in to issue-based campaign which they have successfully domiciled at the door-step of eligible voters.
Pastor Ize-Iyamu Osagie
Until he defected to the PDP, Pastor Ize-Osagie Iyamu was a Secretary to the State Government during the Lucky Igbinedion administration and later became the South-South leader of the then Action Congress[AC] which later to APC. He was a close ally of Governor Oshiomhole and was appointed director-general, Oshiomhole Campaign Organisation in 2012.
Taxation: One of the contending issues the PDP may have succeeded in selling to the voting public is what they described as excruciating pains and hardship the ordinary Edo man and woman have been subjected to under the multiple tax regime of the present administration. The tax regime of the state government is not limited to the traders and market women, it is also extended to petty traders who display their wares along walkways, including taxi drivers, hotel and restaurant operators who are currently in court over consumer tax and those who built their houses on lands measuring 100x100 above in designated areas.
Ize-Iyamu said he was not against taxation, but that the government owed it a duty to create friendly economic environment that will attract investors to the state, who will in turn pay taxes to the state government.
Speaking during the interactive session with the governorship candidates organized by members of the state civil society groups, the PDP governorship candidate said the state internally generated revenue had been stagnated over the failure of the state government to think outside the box.
But the Acting Executive Director, Edo State Inland Revenue Service [EIRS], Barr. Emmanuel Usoh, who accused Ize-Iyamu of evading tax over refusal to declared his sources of income, said the PDP governorship candidate was completely a novice in revenue collection, adding that the state government now records an average of N1.7billion monthly as against the N250million monthly that was never accounted for by the Lucky Igbinedion government.
Alleged lopsided development and appointments: The state chapter of the PDP has also accused the Governor Oshiomhole-led administration of not only concentrating development in his ancestral home, Uzairue clan, in Etsako West Local Government Area at the detriment of the other communities and the other five local government areas that make up Edo North senatorial district and outright condemned the decision of the governor to settle for Hon.
Philips Shuaibu, a serving member of the House of Representatives also from the same clan as running mate while the people from the two Owans and Etasko Central and East local government areas watched helplessly. Speaking on the issue, Ize-Iyamu, while campaigning in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area, said the action of Oshiomhole and the APC showed insensitivity to the other local governments in Edo North.
“It was even made worse by the fact that even the Edo North senatorial position is not in Owan, neither is it in Akoko-Edo. One would have thought that the governor, who continues to talk about fairness would be fair in his distribution of political offices. Edo North today has become a divided house because of the way some local government areas are marginalised by the governor.”
The party which zoned the deputy governorship seat to Edo Central senatorial district equally decried what it termed the marginalization of the district made up of the Esan people, the senatorial home of Chief Tony Anenih, former chairman, PDP Board of Trustees in terms of development and appointments under the present administration.
Running mate to the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate, Mr John Yakubu, who hails from the senatorial district described Oshiomhole and the APC candidate as common enemies that must be defeated for development to come to the constituency. “Oshiomhole wrote a letter to the Secretary to Government of the Federation not to give attention to the gully erosion in Ibore and Ewu.
I have a copy of the letter written by Adams Oshiomhole dated 24th November, 2014 and I will circulate it throughout Edo State,” Economic recession in the Buhari government: This factor has often been referred to as the Buhari factor. There is the impression that the APC brought negative changes upon Nigerians; that the Buhari government has spent enough time in power to effect positive changes is quite popular in Edo. Many believe that this is the biggest problem confronting the APC and will certainly rob off on the election outcome.
The PDP has not only convinced the ordinary voters, who are equally being confronted by the hardship of economic reality, but decided that this change they earlier voted for must be changed under the popular slogan of ‘change the change’ Local government workers/pensioners/ government face-off: The party has also taken advantage of the lingering crisis between the local government workers, pensioners and the state government over unpaid salaries, pensions and gratuities spanning over 3-9, and 42months respectively.
The workers who are neck deep in disagreement with the state government have expressed their disappointment at the earlier trust and confidence they reposed in the state government headed by a former labour leader, whom they thought would be worker friendly and make workers welfare his priority.
Accountability and transparency: PDP claims Governor Oshiomhole haS so far spent about unbudgeted 18billion on Iyahmo University, refused to disclose amount being spent on kilometer of roads constructed, alleged that the N30billion Benin Water Storm Project has only attained 25% work done while about 23billon has been advanced.
Godwin Obaseki
Before his nomination, Obaseki, was the head of the state’s Economic and Strategy Team of the Governor Oshiomhole-led administration in the last seven and half years.
His campaign centers upon evolving economic sustainability and policies that will create enabling environment for investors in the face of the present reality of global economic meltdown where majority of state governments are unable to pay workers’ salaries.
The APC governorship candidate has also promised to create 200,000 jobs for the unemployed youth population of the state and grant certificates of occupancy to 12 farmers for 150,000 hectares of land, “If each farmer employs five workers on their farms to work on only 50, 000 hectares of the land, is that not 250, 000 jobs already. We need to run government properly. We will make sure we continue to run an open, efficient and responsible government. The people must come first. We must make them create wealth and election, the party won the state from the former President Goodluck Jonathan with over 60% votes, secured five out of the nine House of Representatives seats and won two out of the three senatorial slots as against the harvest of losses the party recorded during the 2012 governorship election throughout the 18 local government areas.
For the first time in the history of political campaigns in the state, candidates of both the two contending politicaln parties appeared to have caved in to issue-based campaign which they have successfully domiciled at the door-step of eligible voters.
APC governorship candidate has also promised to create 200,000 jobs for the unemployed youth population of the state and grant certificates of occupancy to 12 farmers for 150,000 hectares of land, “If each farmer employs five workers on their farms to work on only 50, 000 hectares of the land, is that not 250, 000 jobs already. We need to run government properly. We will make sure we continue to run an open, efficient and responsible government. The people must come first. We must make them create wealth and create jobs.”
He assured Edo people of better days ahead and took a swipe at the PDP for alleging that his plan to create 200, 000 jobs is not feasible , saying the jobs would be generated from agriculture and urged the people not to be deceived by PDP’s
antics. Accused PDP of destroying state civil service: Obaseki vowed never to forgive the PDP successive administrations in the state for allegedly destroying the state civil service.
Obaseki who disclosed at the interactive session for gubernatorial candidates put together by organized Civil Society in the state posited “For me, I will forgive the past government for all the money they stole. I will forgive them for destroying all the infrastructure of government, but one thing I will never, forgive them for is what they did by destroying the civil service.” “When we came on board, the institutions of government in Edo State had been destroyed.
We can forgive the past government for the infrastructure they destroyed; we can forgive them for the money they stole, but I can’t forgive them for the civil service they destroyed. We need to retrain and restructure the civil service to drive our economy. They key ingredients of growth are here in Edo State.”
Obaseki also promised to use his network of influence in and around the globe to bring in investors to industrialize the state, pay maximum attention to issues of security to boost their confidence in the state, construct more roads to link rural communities and enhance power generation, even though the federal government has it as exclusive right Traditional rulers factor Although they are not partisan, yet their body language and nod seem to be in favour of the APC governorship candidate. The entire Edo North traditional rulers headed by Otaru of Auchi, did not only endorse the candidature of Godwin Obaseki whom they said had the backing of their illustrious son, Governor Adams Oshiomhole, but openly donated funds as part of their contribution to the campaign. The trend of endorsement was equally replicated in Edo South when a sociocultural group comprising prominent Benin palace chiefs, professionals and traders under the auspices of [Etuedoseghe] led by Esogban of Benin Kingdom, Chief David Edebiri, unanimously threw their weight we are not oblivious of the good work of some political parties and the bad work of some other political parties.
Consequently, we have the right to choose if those wanting a particular thing aremore than one. The Oshiomhole factor: Governor Oshiomhole and the APC have been doing a lot by insisting that the parlous state of the country now was brought about by the past PDP governments.
Speaking at a rally in Afuze, Owan East Local Government Area, Oshiomhole posited: “When a man comes to your house, burgled your store where you kept your food and in the morning, you find the store burgled, can you immediately feed your children? “What President Buhari is doing now, when he found that PDP broke into the treasury and emptied it, is to rebuild the door of the treasury to secure it and recover the ones they have taken. The way PDP put fire on our economy, to rebuild it cannot be overnight.
Today, my confidence about the future of our country is that Buhari is blocking all the leakages in our economy.”The Governor Oshiomhole administration in that state in the last seven a half years has not only rekindled the people’s hopes and confidence in government, but has also shown that the state was still viable, owing to the network of roads constructed, massive renovation of schools across the three senatorial districts, particularly the construction of the popular Teacher House road, Isiluko road and Uselu-lagos road abandoned by successive governments.
Oshiomhole has consistently reminded Edo people of alleged role the PDP candidate played during the Lucky Igbinedion administration as Chief of Staff and Secretary to the State Government respectively, adding that a vote for Ize-Iyamu is a vote for Lucky Igbinedion and his father, the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, both of whom he claimed diverted the funds earmarked for the construction of the abandoned Okada two-lane road contract and Siluko road, sacked permanent secretaries and over 5000 civil servants in the state, including building the Okada University with alleged government funds.
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