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The line-up is formidable and the mission is to wrestle Edo State from the firm grips of Adams Oshiomhole, governor of the state. Can they stop him?

With just a few months to the July 14, 2012 governorship election in Edo State, the tempo of political activities in the state has been intensified. Although Adams Oshiomhole, the incumbent governor, is working hard to brighten his chances of securing a second term mandate, the number of gladiators from the various political parties jostling to wrestle power from him is causing concern in his camp.

 The greatest challenge Oshiomhole has in his bid for a second term mandate is coming from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, which is the major opposition party in the state.  So far, five politicians have indicated their interest to vie for the election on the platform of the PDP. They include Charles Ehigiemwanabgon Airiahvbere, a retired major general; Julius Ihonvbere, a professor of political science  and former special adviser to President  Olusegun Obasanjo on Policy and Implementation, and Kenneth Imansuangbon, a lawyer and former governorship aspirant under the ACN .  Other aspirants who are struggling for the PDP ticket are Oserhienmen Osunbor, former governor of Edo State who was removed by the Appeal Court in November 2008 and Matthew Iduoiyekemwen, former member of the Edo State House of Assembly.

There are also aspirants in some other opposition political parties. They are working under the platform of the Coalition for Progressive Political Parties, CPPP, and their goal is to stop Oshiomhole. The parties involved in the coalition include the Labour Party, LP, the People’s Progressive Party, PPP, All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, and All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA.  Already, they have adopted Solomon Iyobosa Edebiri of the PPP as their candidate. The implication is that the governorship race will likely be a straight battle between Oshiomhole of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Edebiri of the PPP, and the candidate who will eventually fly the PDP flag.

There are strong indications that the PDP   has zoned the governorship position to Edo South Senatorial district. It was gathered that based on the results of both the National Assembly and state House of Assembly elections in the state, where the ACN won the seats in both Edo North and South senatorial districts, the leadership of the PDP felt that the only way to oust Oshiomhole is to zone the seat to the Edo South which is predominantly ACN and has the largest population in the state. In spite of this preference for Edo South, aspirants from Edo Central and Edo North are not giving up their aspiration.

Of all the PDP governorship aspirants, Airiahvbere is believed to be favoured by the power brokers to grab the ticket. It was gathered that Tony Anenih, the former chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees, BOT, is his political godfather who is positioning him at a vantage position to secure the ticket.

Airiahvbere, who is confident that he would secure the PDP ticket said he was in the race to enable him transform the state because Oshiomhole’s policy has made him unpopular. But whether Anenih has enough political goodwill that could help a candidate remains to be seen.

Imansuangbon, a lawyer, who hails from Ewohimin in Esan South-East local government area, is another PDP aspirant  who is bent on giving the incumbent governor a good fight.

Ihonvbere, a political scientist, who has been in the fore-front of the struggle for the political emancipation of the people, is also a serious contender. In 2007, he contested the PDP primary and lost to Osunbor. Many of his supporters believe that the PDP needs a populist personality like Ihonvbere to contest the election against Oshiomhole. Ihonvbere hails from Edo North just like Oshiomhole. However, if the PDP decides to zone the position to Edo South; Ihonvbere would not stand the chance of securing the ticket.

For Osunbor, the forthcoming election would be a good opportunity to reclaim the seat he lost to Oshiomhole in 2008 through the Appeal Court verdict. Already, a pressure group known as the “Restoration Project 2012,” is working hard to ensure that he gets the PDP ticket. Nosa Omorodion, the co-ordinator of the group, believes that Osunbor is the man Edo people need to take them to the promised land.

On his part, Osunbor, who recently declared his intention to contest the position of the governor, said he was on a mission to restore Edo State. “I have come with the message of restoration of a government with a human face, a government that understands that the well-being and the welfare of the people take precedence over every other thing, the restoration of a government that understands that roads can be built, that flooding can be controlled without rendering citizens homeless, anguished and fraustrated without hope of compensation for the demolition of houses. I have come with a restoration of a government that understands that Benin City needs good access roads rehabilitated, reconstructed and constructed to enhance functionality,” Osunbor said.

Last Saturday, February 25, the PDP governorship primary was held in Benin City.

There were strong indications that the ticket would be clinched by either Airahvbere or Osunbor. Whoever clinched the PDP ticket will now face a tough battle for the governorship seat against Oshiomhole.

Oshiomhole  said recently that  he was  not  bothered  by Anenih’s vow to use his influence to ensure that PDP wins the election. The governor said the election would be based on visible achievements and not rhetorics or propaganda.  He was confident that when the chips are down, he would beat the PDP again to retain the seat. “Chief Anenih will be defeated again even in his local community. I will show him the number of roads leading to his house that I have tarred. I’m not afraid of the general in Edo State politics, I’m not a military man, but when the time comes we will see. The era of ‘promise and fail’ politics is over,” Oshiomhole said.

In preparation for the election, Pius Odubu, the deputy governor of the state, recently spearheaded a rally in Benin City under the auspices of the Oshiomhole Solidarity Forum to drum up support for the governor’s re-election, this year.

Celestine Egberuare, the director-general of ‘Oshiomhole Solidarity Forum,’  said the group was fully prepared to take its  campaign to all parts of the state with a view to ensuring that Oshiomhole returns as the governor of Edo State in July, this year. 

But Dan Orbih, chairman of PDP in Edo State, believes that the July 14 election would mark the end of Oshiomhole’s administration. When asked if the PDP’s poor performance in the last general election would not affect the party in the 2012 poll, Orbih said a journey of a thousand miles begins with a few steps. “What we did is that we have taken the first positive step towards reclaiming the state. We won in one senatorial district overwhelmingly. Haven taken one, we are taking the rest. We are saying Oshiomhole has not done anything to transform the state… He destroyed houses that have official approval for road expansion. The good thing about what is happening in the state is that more people have seen the deceit of Oshiomhole’s administration. The people of the state are ready to return the PDP to power on July 14, this year,” Orbih said.