Edo crisis deepens: Obaseki, Oshiomhole in final showdown

By OBINNA EZUGWU

The political atmosphere in Edo State has reached feverish pitch. The battle of supremacy between the state governor, Godwin Obaseki and his predecessor and national chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has literally put the state on the brink.

Determined to ensure that the governor doesn’t return for a second term in office for not patronising them after they had helped him to power in 2016, Oshiomhole’s men are employing every means necessary to stop him. But Obaseki is proving to have learned the ropes. He has gone for broke against the national chairman and his group, in what has become a clash of the titans.

While addressing a meeting of 18 APC local government chairmen on Wednesday, Obaseki vowed to deal with the former governor if he didn’t stop disrupting the peace of the state APC. He gave the chairmen marching orders to deal with any person or group carrying out activities that are not in the interest of the party in the state.

“All these nonsense they are doing. If anybody in the name of our party tries to do anything contrary to what we have agreed as a party, we will deal with that person ruthlessly no matter who he is,” Obaseki had said.

“If you are elected a chairman, your attitude should show if you believe in the party. Party supremacy means the leadership of the party must respect the membership. It is the members that make the party supreme because the members subscribed to a constitution which governs the conduct of the party. One man cannot be the party.

“I am the governor of Edo State and I so authorise it. If anyone comes to your ward or local government to do things outside what the party has agreed I hereby authorise you to deal with that person seriously.

“We are warning the suspended National Chairman. If he continues his activities in Edo State, I will show him that I am the governor of Edo State. While he was governor, he did not tolerate a fraction of the misdemeanour and misbehaviour he is undertaking today. I have declared that if Oshiomhole comes here to Edo to say he wants to disrupt the activities of the state and the party, we will deal with him the way we know how best to do it.

“Comrade Oshiomhole stands suspended from the party. In due course, we will expel him if he does not behave. The party does not belong to him; it belongs to all of us. We are following the wish of our people.”

His threat is the latest in what has been months of intense political battle between the two men and their camps.

But things didn’t quite go as the governor planned. The Oshiomhole camp on Saturday held the last of the reception of PDP defectors in the Edo Central (the Ishan zone), having previously done so in Edo South and Edo North.
As is already the pattern, an attempt was made by individuals suspected to be loyal to the governor to stop the rally. An explosive was reportedly detonated at the home of one of the prominent APC leaders loyal to Oshiomhole on Friday. But the rally eventually held in defiance of the governor.

The previous Saturday, Oshiomhole was to receive decampees from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) at Auchi his home constituency. Thugs, again, suspected to be loyal to Obaseki went on Friday and burnt down the venue. But his people mobilized, brought chairs and other equipment free. For them, their son cannot be disgraced. Ethnic sentiment is also playing strong in the ensuing rift.
The recent episodes were preceded by a war of machetes, stones and guns over the planned defection of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu from the PDP to the APC late last year. Oshiomhole’s men had turned to Ize-Iyamu who they had deployed all manner of tactics, including burning of vehicles conveying ballot papers and snatching of ballot boxes to stop in 2016.

Their idea apparently is to front him as candidate at Obaseki’s expense. In 2016, Ize-Iyamu, running on the PDP platform, was by far the more popular candidate and would have won the election clearly if not for the disruptions.

For Oshiomhole’s group, returning to him is a strategic move, not just because of his popularity, but also to whittle down the ethnic angle to the ensuing rift. Oshiomhole, from Edo North senatorial zone with just about 15 percent of the state’s population, had “pushed” out a Benin son, Chief John Oyegun to take the APC chairmanship job. It was an affront to the Binis of Edo South, who with well over 60 percent of the population are the ‘owners’ of the state.

When therefore, he returned to fight Obaseki, a Benin prince, it was for some, an attempt to take things too far; an attempt to rule the state’s politics as its new godfather. Indeed, the history of Oshiomhole and the Binis stretch further beyond. His emergence as governor in 2008 signaled the end of Lucky Igbinedion and indeed, Igbinedion political dynasty in the state politics.

Oshiomhole had built his political career on the premise of an unwavering assault on the practice of god-fatherism and had hinged his war on the Igbinedion’s on the need to end it. It was therefore, to the surprise of many that he had now become solidly entrenched as the new godfather of Edo politics, even as a minority.

The general opinion among the Binis prior to Ize-Iyamu joining forces with Oshiomhole was that the APC chairman could not dictate the state’s politics as a minority. Ize-Iyamu may have helped to counter that sentiment, but perhaps not by much as recent interactions have shown.

Oshiomhole, however, as it concerns Benin politics, has had one thing going for him. Whilst he was governor, he had endeared himself to the Oba of Benin and established close relationship with the ruling family. He, it was said, increased the state allocation to the palace from N1milliom to N10 million monthly.

Yet, the issues run deeper. Obaseki had indeed incurred the wrath of many APC stakeholders in the state for refusing to patronise them in contract awards and sundry ways. He was not “carrying people along.”

But still, the fact that Oshiomhole, after ‘removing’ a Benin chief as APC national chairman, had returned to topple a Benin prince from office served to sway sentiments in Obaseki’s favour.

But the battle is generally between two nearly evenly matched opponents. Obaseki, with state powers, is using it to full effect. Oshiomhole’s loyalists insist he doesn’t belong to any faction since he is the national chairman of the party. As if to drive home this point, the APC chairman has continued to avoid direct attacks on the governor. His emphasis thus far, has been about peace.

However, even a crawling child knows his men are in the Ize-Iyamu camp and that is where he belongs. The camp is relying, or hoping to rely on federal might, particularly the Oshiomhole led National Working Committee of the party to take the party’s ticket at the upcoming primary.

“The National Working Committee led by Oshiomhole is going to conduct the primary like it has been doing in all other states. Obaseki’s group could only have been sure of the ticket if they were able to remove him from office as national chairman,” a member of the party in the state who prefer anonymity told BusinessHallmark.

“But since they have failed to do that, Oshiomhole will coordinate the primaries. Look at the last National Executive Council (NEC) meeting. The president (Muhammadu Buhari) is on the side of the national chairman. He said the party’s constitution should be followed. The constitution says that the National Working Committee should coordinate primary election.”

The primary election date is yet to be fixed, even though the main poll is to hold later in the year. The PDP appear willing to wait to profit from its outcome. So far, it is a battle no one appears to be winning.

However, Oshiomhole’s NWC had few weeks ago, decided that the method to adopt would be direct primary. It could be the game changer.

“If they do indirect primary, Obaseki will win because he has put his loyalists in every ward and removed all the politicians whose loyalty cannot be proved,” the APC source said.

“But if it’s direct primary, he will find it difficult because most of the core politicians are against him. They are even warning those with him now to leave him because he would betray them if he wins reelection.”

Overall, both individuals remain somewhat popular with segments of the population.

“The battle is now full blown,” another member of the party, Mr. Sylvester Amune said. “It depends on the side of the divide that you are. If you are on the side of the governor, you will say the governor is gaining ground. But if you are on Oshiomhole’s side, you will say that he is dominant.

“Naturally the governor has a lot of sympathy. But he is the sitting governor; he is not supposed to be attracting sympathy.”