Edo 2020: Why Oshiomhole Must Calm Down In Ize-Iyamu's Campaign - PGF DG

Director-General of the Forum of governors serving under the All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Moh. Lukman on Friday observed that former National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has turned the party's flag bearer for the September 19 governorship election in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu to an onlooker in his electioneering. 

The administrative head of the Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) stressed that Edo people should be made to believe that when they elect Ize-Iyamu, he will actually be the one that will govern the state, adding that Oshiomhole must be made to calm down and take the back seat while the party’s guber candidate is projected as the face of the campaign.

Lukman in a statement issued in his private capacity as a chieftain of the party lamented that the APC is now faced with the challenge of diminishing electoral viability, saying in an era of forceful propaganda by the opposition, their party must devise ways of winning the hearts of the people.

He reasoned that APC having emerged from a very difficult crisis, its leaders and party members “must be vigilant to ensure that our politics is not recklessly managed as to reduce us to the level of just working to win elections by all means”.

The Governors' Forum DG said Ize-Iyamu has now become an onlooker in an election where he is the candidate of the party, adding that the APC must own up to the activities of Governor Godwin Obaseki, warts and all, prior to his leaving the APC for the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said; “We need to remind our leaders that the last leadership crisis was triggered by the deep concerns around the diminishing electoral viability of the party. The reality is, resolving the last leadership crisis with the dissolution of the Comrade Oshiomhole-led NWC has not solved the problem of diminishing the electoral viability of the party.

“Therefore, what is it that needs to be done to address the problem of diminishing electoral viability of the APC? Do our leaders even agree that the APC is faced with the problem of diminishing electoral viability? This may be the problem partly because if our leaders are unable to recognize that the APC is faced with the problem of diminishing electoral viability then there is a big problem. 

"In the present day Nigeria, with tempers very high everywhere and all manner of negatively imposed public perception, which are false and mostly engineered by our political opponents, it is only people who don’t believe in the votes of citizens as a determinant of electoral victories that will imagine that APC’s electoral prospects are high”.

Lukman further stated that the party needs to recall that with the exception of the Presidential election of 2019, “in virtually all elections between 2018 and today, in almost all cases where APC won, it was marginal”.

He recalled that in Ekiti 2018 Governorship election, for instance, APC won with less than 20,000 votes. “In Osun State 2018 Governorship election, we had to go for rerun before we could win. This was almost the experience in virtually all cases. We lost states like Bauchi, Adamawa, Oyo, etc. where it would have been guaranteed since we won these states during the Presidential election with wide margins. One of the things that should be humbling for every APC leader and member is that whatever is our current electoral credential as a party is on account of the personal popularity of President Buhari. If that is recognized, then we need to check whether we want to take advantage of it, or we want to squander it?” he queried.

Calm down, Comrade

The PGF DG who hailed Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state for reaching out to his opponents in the last primary election despite winning with a landslide, however, expressed dismay at the situation in Edo where he said, as opposed to reconciliation, loud drums of war have taken over the airwaves due to the personalization of the campaign by Oshiomhole.
He said; “Immediately after July 21, 2020, APC primary, notwithstanding that Governor Akeredolu won the primary election convincingly with 2,458 votes with his closest rival Mr. Olusola Oke who came second polling 262 votes, Governor Akeredolu has been going around, meeting all those who contested the elections with him and negotiating reconciliation. This demonstrates that Governor Akeredolu is magnanimous in victory, at least within the party. With this, it should be expected that Governor Akeredolu will approach the campaigns for the Ondo Governorship election based on a strategy of winning the votes of the Ondo people. The message he seems to be conveying is that he respects the rights of the people of Ondo State to make their choice and he is offering himself as a worthy consideration to be the choice of the people.

“The reverse seems to be the case in Edo State. As opposed to reconciliation, it is loud drums of war that has taken over the airwaves in Edo State. Comrade Oshiomhole has relocated to Edo State and taken over the APC campaign and the campaign is proceeding in a manner that suggests the Edo State Governorship election is an extension of the personal battle between the Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki and Comrade Oshiomhole. The APC campaign is personalized around Comrade Oshiomhole and the candidate of the party, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu is an onlooker. The soundbite from the Edo APC campaign is so offensive to the point where Comrade Oshiomhole appears to be disowning almost every APC in Edo State between 2016 and now. To that extent, it simply means Comrade Oshiomhole is disowning himself, which may be why he went on his knee begging the Edo people for forgiveness.

“We need to appeal to Comrade Oshiomhole to ‘calm down’. This campaign is not about his person. More importantly, we need to stress the point that part of the political vision of any progressive is that once elected into government, we commit ourselves to issues of agricultural development, job creation, education, health, infrastructural development, poverty eradication, and rapid technological development. APC has ruled Edo State since the time of Comrade Oshiomhole as Governor of the state. Up to today, whatever achievement Edo State experienced under Governor Obaseki, between 2016 and now, APC must own it, just like we should be able to accept some of the setbacks. Anything Governor Obaseki is able to achieve must be credited to APC as a party. Our Edo campaign should be able to raise the awareness of Edo people that had Governor Obaseki been in PDP, it would have been impossible for him to record any achievement.

“Based on the personalized way the APC Edo State campaign is being carried out, PDP all of a sudden is coming out very strongly to campaign for votes. If the Edo State APC campaign is to go ahead this way when APC wins the election who will run the affairs of the state as Governor? Is it Comrade Oshiomhole or Pastor Ize-Iyamu? If our party wants the Edo people to vote for our candidate, Pastor Ize-Iyamu must be very visible and be seen as the face of the campaign.

"Comrade Oshiomhole should take a backseat and play the facilitatory role our leaders play in all similar circumstances. Lagos State Governorship election since 2007 presents a good model. Without any doubt, our leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, may be argued to be very influential in the emergence of candidates, from Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode to our current Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu. But once a candidate emerges, the responsibility of executing the campaign largely belongs to the candidate on account of which the particular candidate becomes the face of the campaign.

“It is important that Comrade Oshiomhole endorse a situation where the party is able to apply the Lagos model to the Edo State Governorship campaign especially because we want the Edo people to be able to have confidence on our candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and believe that when they elect him, he will be the one that will govern the state.

"The responsibility for ensuring that this is done rests with the Mai Mala Buni Caretaker/Convention Working Committee. Good enough, they have set up a National Campaign Council under the leadership of His Excellency, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Governor of Kano State. Governor Ganduje’s National Campaign Council should be able to assume leadership and take the necessary steps to redirect the Edo State APC campaign to have a clear progressive bearing.

"As part of those steps, it should ensure that APC campaign messages appropriate all development achievements recorded under the APC administration of Governor Obaseki. In addition, we must take steps to also cut the oxygen supply to the PDP campaign, which is presenting our party and our candidate as promoters of violence. Our campaign for the Edo election should, therefore, amplify messages of peace and what we need to do to achieve that.