Edo: Future elections and lingering feud in PDP

By Cajetan Mmuta

There is no doubt that the nation’s political climate is getting charged once again. Attention of elected political office holders is being continuously shifted towards... second term even when they are yet to deliver to the electorate the dividends of the positions they variously occupy.

Also, intending individuals and the various parties are occupied with serious preparations for yet another uncertain game in the name of 2011 or 2012 as the case may be. In order to make this dream come true, leaders and members of the existing political parties are making frantic and desperate moves to put their houses in order.

First in this direction are the strategic, but somewhat belated designs by the parties to reposition and refocus themselves ahead of challenges before them. Behind these strategies are the secret self targets or agenda of the parties and their leaders.

However the need for the overtures is not far fetched and is inevitable when one takes stock of avoidable mistakes that plunged the parties in most states into what today is their albatross or better put the deep crack on the wall of the folds. Among these mistakes are the supremacy battle that haunt the political godfathers and their godsons in their scheme to control party machineries or structure, brazen display of show of power by party leaders to criminally substitute party candidates with their choice persons even against the wishes of the electorate and members of the political parties or even against the provisions of parties constitution if any.

This ugly scenario is what is responsible for the mess that is today the singsong about the loss of internal democracy that has left the parties, the political class and indeed the Nigerian people with the arduous task of wallowing in the desert in search for a lasting peace that has since eluded the polity even after the iniquities of greed, self aggrandizement, bloodbath and moral depravity have joined to rock the boat of existing political parties and unity among their members.

The sour point of the political macabre dance has done more harm than good at enthroning a virile and peaceful political environment in the country. The tendency to think that the confusion and surprises that went with the 1999, 2003 and 2007 general elections will this time leave politicians wiser if ever they have learnt any lesson from the loss of confidence by the electorate.

In Edo State, the leadership and members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are not any better. The once ruling party and its members are today at crossroad and a shadow of themselves.

The body, apart from reeling in deep wounds inflicted on it by the sour grape of the February 2008 state congress that shored up two factional chairmen under the political power show of the Chief Tony Anenih led group and that commandeered by former governor of old Bendel State, Chief Samuel Ogbemudia, is yet to recover from the death nail that sank into its spine by the March 20, 2008 loss of political grip of the soul of the Heart Beat to the Action Congress (AC) government now in charge at the Osadebe Avenue, the seat of power in the state, where Comrade Adams Oshiomhole is holding sway till year 2012.

The miscalculation which was a consequence of the neck deep internal feud among members of the state chapter of the PDP is part of the problems the key actors are still trying to sort out. At the center is the fierce battle between Chief Anenih and ex-governor Oserheimen Osunbor to control the structure of the party in the state.

No doubt, the Uromi born PDP national leader and ‘Mr. Fix It’ had an unfinished raw deal with former President Olusegun Obasanjo that centered on the choice of a particular candidate to field at the 2007 governorship seat of the state. While Anenih settled for Mr. Odion Ugbesia, now a senator, but Obasanjo’s unbended resolve to compensate his Iruepken in-laws dominated the scene, which led to his support for Osunbor.

However, Osunbor’s eventual emergence and plot to sieve out any unholy dictate from the godfathers to what happened in his government was the adder’s venom that hit the party and the members to near tatters. But, Osunbor was unrepentant with his foot soldiers that oiled his political machinery. Consequently, the political gridlock gave rise to the parallel congresses that saw the Barrister Edward Sado/Osunbor/Ogbemudia and Chief Dan Orbih/Anenih leaderships of the PDP in the state.

The seeming irreconcilable feud and influence of Anenih, who then was the chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT) of the party, coupled with the dramatic scheme and emergence of Prince Vincent Ogbulafor as the national chairman of the PDP assisted in puncturing a robust state party executive in the state. More intriguing was when the national secretariat of the party gave its nod for the contentious harmonization of both Edward Sado/Osunbor and Dan Orbih/Anenih led factions and the eventual appointment of Akoko Edo born vocal politician, Barrister Samson Ekhabafe as the Edo State chairman of the party.

Ekhabafe then a serving commissioner for Water Resources in the Osunbor cabinet had to resign his appointment to face the task of rebuilding the party. However, that plot never went down well with certain interests. While the crisis lasted and the two elephants fought, the Sado led group backed by the likes of Mr. Isaiah Osifo, the former Chief of Staff to Osunbor, Admiral Mike Akhigbe (Rtd.), Chief Ogbemudia, the then state deputy chairman, Chief Ben Edo Osagie and a host of others dragged Ekhabafe and the national leadership of the party to court, restraining the harmonized state executive and the national secretariat of the party as well as their agents from interfering in the affairs or acting in a manner contrary to the provisions of the party’s constitution as it relates to Sado’s election during the controversial state congresses.

The legal battle opened more fronts for discreet move by the Anenih group. The deputy state chairman Osagie made deft overtures with a dramatic withdrawal among 18 other members from the suit at the High Court in Benin.

According to Osagie in a statement making public his withdrawal, dated February 14, 2009 and signed by him “ the legal tussle by the two family group of PDP has subjected the party to a major set back, which has rendered the party voiceless and moribund. This drift can no longer be tolerated if we are to save and refocus the party. We cannot afford to disappoint the people of this state.”

He observed further “since the struggle to control the hierarchy of the party started, the unity, strength and effectiveness of the party had been threatened to the advantage of our political adversaries. This is a self-inflicted political injury”

Sadly however what began as an interesting drama where the actors admit they threw caution to the wind left them finally in tears and sober mood, when on June 14 Barrister Ekhabafe died in a devastating road accident.

The man seen as Chief Anenih’s arrowhead and rallying point for peace died with his eldest son and also a lawyer, Edonose and two other aides, near Ewu Monastery along Benin-Auchi-Okene road. The late politician’s demise left more vacuum than ever for those behind and the entire PDP fold in the state and the national body. Hard still, it came when time was working against the party and they needed a bulldozer, which his name “Ogberagbili” signifies within the social and political circles.

With the man’s exit more hurdles no doubt awaits the PDP in the state to not only rid itself of the looming damage and assault from the AC ahead of 2011 for National/state House of Assembly and 2012 governorship elections in the state.

The inevitable and crunchy battle of uncertainty that needs a courageous and fierce fighter is the fears and tears of Anenih when Ekhabafe loosened his hands to the grip of untimely death.

The PDP family in the state now is left with a bleak fate either to be or not remains relevant in the political draftsmanship in Edo. Interestingly, the battle in the forthcoming polls in the state needs no fortunetellers to remind the PDP that the duel is not going to be easy between them and the Edo North-Etsako born former labour leader and governor of the state, Comrade Oshiomhole under the.

The stakeholders, leaders and members of the PDP may have read in between the lines and are making frantic efforts to reposition and refocus themselves for the task ahead. This is specially so because an appreciable number of the party faithful have since joined forces with the ruling AC government to better their lot and to help provide the sledge hammer or arsenal against.

Speaking on the way forward for the party, the acclaimed chairman of the party in the state, Barrister Sado in an interview with the Nigerian Compass said it was a fact that he “never acceded to anybody the mandate given” to him “by the PDP people in Edo State” and that he remains the duly elected state chairman of the party and therefore should be allowed to work for the party, a condition he insists is the only way so justice would rein in the crisis rocking the party.

According to him “together we should embrace the truth and come out boldly and say A is A and B is B. And with it some of the problems in Edo State are solved and that is the only way people will be willing to come back en masse even those who have left will now come back. If there is truth, there is justice, and there is democracy within PDP. Unless this is done there is no way”

Sado added that he was willing to allow the whole thing roll bye, but insisted that a meeting of the party stakeholders and leaders should be slated to allow members tell themselves the truth and say bye to the whole crisis so that they can reposition the party, “otherwise time is running against us. We will meet one on one and iron out the matter and then forge ahead.” he stated.

On the case in court, he explained that not until a matter is struck out it remains there, stressing that even though the case is pending Ekhabafe was not the only defendant in the suit.

“There are still three surviving defendants. We cannot in one hand be talking about reconciliation and all that …but the case is there quite all right. So at the end of the day I believe when we now reconcile ourselves properly, the case will go on its own, but meanwhile it is there,” he said, adding that going to court would not abort the needed peace process nor deter the resolve by the party to ensure enthronement of internal democracy within the fold.

Also the former Special Adviser to ex-President Obasanjo on Projects Monitoring and Policy Implementation, Professor Julius Ihonbvere in his reaction said that the “the real issue will be that the party leadership will meet, look at the options both strategically and politically and take a decision. This he said should be followed with the zoning arrangement of the party as a way of balancing opportunities to ensure that each segments of the state benefit and equally participate in the management of the state and the state.”

“We have always believed in zoning positions as a way of balancing opportunities to make sure that each segment that constitutes the great state of Edo participates both in the management of the party and in the management of the state. I think the immediate task before us is to have a leadership meeting and decide on a formidable strategy to reposition the party for the challenges ahead.”

He pointed out that Ekhabafe’s death had further brought the PDP members together rather than the division.

“I think it brought us a little more together. This to let us know that this life is so short and all bragging and noise making is vanity and the greater thing to do is to think how to bring people together, how to set programmes and how to confront the challenges. Perhaps, PDP though, we control the House of Assembly, we are in the opposition technically in the state and we have to ratify that one way or the other. So I do not think it will divide us. I think it will strengthen us. And for someone like me I think it gives me more resolve and commitment to help make PDP second to none in the state.”

Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly and Chief Anenih’s strong loyalist, Mr. Garuba Zakawanu said the only way forward for the party and members was for them to continue and forge ahead in the spirit of oneness as a mark of respect for the departed state chairman, Ekhabafe.

Mr. Zakawanu noted that the late chairman further assisted to strengthen the unity of the members of the party, but urged them not to relent, as it would be a mark of respect to the deceased if they resolve to remain more united.

“It is for us to see his death as a unifying factor. It is for us to see it from that point of view that Ekhabafe was acceptable by majority of us and he is late now. Yet when he died we saw the oneness in the PDP, which was exhibited at his death, and see this as the last respect to him to resolve to be united.”

The party’s publicity secretary, Mr. Nosa Adam, also canvassed the need for unity and peace. He disclosed that the party at present has an acting state chairman, Chief Ben Edo Osagie who is believed to be Anenih’s political ally. Mr. Adam is also not opposed to the much-expected stakeholders meeting.

Also the member representing Uhunmwonde/Orhionmwon Edo federal constituency in the House of Representatives, Mr. Samson Osagie reminded members of the party in the state that the exit of Ekhabafe was a serious challenge to all, considering his political track records.

He also endorsed the proposed stakeholders meeting to iron out all the grey areas and particularly to decide on what would be acceptable to all as well as the need to bring all the members together as a united family to confront the challenges of the forthcoming elections. He said unity and peace among the PDP members was not negotiable, adding that there was no basis for members to destroy themselves.

As events unfold, it holds that whichever way the pendulum swings for members of the PDP in the state, one fact remains, that time is now working against them. One needs not be reminded that the AC led government in the state no doubt is not leaving anything to chance as was the case in the past and has equally oiled its political arsenals and set the expected booby traps to ensure that it makes no mistake, but an inroad to the next general elections despite the odds.

The real battle is between the PDP and the AC. The 2011 and 2012 polls will be another eye opener. Nigerians have become wiser.