The People’s Democratic Party ( PDP), in Edo State is charting a new direction after its painful loss to the Action Congress of Nigeria (A C N). The new course insiders posit, is aimed at redeeming the party’s image and recouping some lost grounds that caved in after its woeful outing in the last election. They are doing this on the aegis of ‘Concerned stakeholders’, a group that draws its base from some youths comprising professionals. They also signalled their readiness to ‘retire persons described as “old leaders” in Edo South senatorial district.
Obviously still sulking from the misfortune that befell the party members from the zone, the group at a recent meeting in Benin, expressed strong commitment to free the party from the grip of old leaders in the senatorial district whom they alleged have continued to foist their self-serving agenda that have for years not only continued to bring the people to the crossroads, but also relegated the youths to the background.
Speaker after speaker at the event condemned the domineering posture of those who had before now presided over the affairs of the party, whose ages according to them, fall between 65 and 80 years and have in the process, left the people with a total disconnect from the positive developments and capacity building expected to come to the area which has the highest population in the state
The latest move of the PDP may not also be unconnected with an attempt at setting a new agenda for membership drive in order to reclaim the state from the hold of the ruling ACN government, particularly as the local government election draws near in the state. It also targets strengthening the existing ties between members of the elected state executive and inject new blood into the structure of the party.
Since it lost the governorship election to ACN , the battle for control of Edo State chapter of the party has continued to rage. This has followed calls by certain stakeholders for the removal of the Orbih-led executive over the allegation that he worked for the party’s loss at the July polls.
The last has not been heard concerning the lingering crisis in the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), being the ruling party at the national level since the commencement of democracy. The PDP in the state has refused to demonstrate the same cohesion that has characterized the party at the national level.
LEADERSHIP can authoritatively report that the current crisis stems from the same quarrel pattern that has always rocked the party; that is who controls the party structure in the state as a build-up to the February 2013 scheduled local government elections, state and national assembly elections in 2015 as well as 2016 governorship poll.
In order to avoid being caught napping, the two gladiators in the struggle, Chief Tony Anenih and Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia are said to have begun oiling their political machines just to gain the upper hand when the bell begins to toll.
One of the strategies was the call for the removal of the Chief Dan Orbih-led state executive of the party just after the July 14, 2012 governorship election.
According to those clamouring for Orbih’s removal they are supposedly loyalists of Ogbemudia and former Chief of General Staff, Rear Admiral Mike Akhigbe. They allege that the party executive was responsible for the dismal failure of their candidate and therefore is not morally justified to remain in office.
But the argument seems to have failed and as a result, the Ogbemudia group adopted another approach, which includes exhuming the corpse of the 2008 crisis that cost the party the governorship election following the declaration of Adams Oshiomhole as the duly elected governor of Edo State by the Election Petitions Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, Benin City. That 2008 crisis started when the party held two parallel state congresses.
At that time, the Ogbemudia group held their congress at the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium and was lucky to be inaugurated by representatives of the PDP national, which observers interpreted to mean tacit recognition by the National Working Committee (NWC). On the other hand, the Anenih faction held theirs at the Benin NTA pavilion, but was unfortunate as no member of the NWC attended the congress.
But Anenih was to have his way as then Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Ambassador Babagana Gingibe, facilitated a phony peace meeting with the aim of power sharing among the warring factions.
Confussion marred the process, especially when the meeting saw the then PDP former national chairman of the party, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor constituting a committee to work out modalities for power sharing arrangement between the two rival groups. In the end, a committee headed by the PDP Deputy National Chairman, Alhaji Mohammed Haruna, ceded the state chairmanship of the party to the Anenih faction, while the Ogbemudia group got the state deputy and the state secretary.
Other positions for the Anenih group were Treasurer, Publicity Secretary, Financial Secretary, Woman Leader, State Vive-Chairman [South], State Vice-Chairman [North], one assistant Secretary, Assistant publicity Secretary, and two elected members of which one shall be a woman.
While the Ogbemudia faction got State Organizing Secretary, Youth Leader, State Auditor, State Legal Adviser, State Vice-Chairman [Central], two Assistant Secretaries [South and North], State Assistant Financial Secretary, one Organizing Secretary, Assistant Legal Adviser and two elected members of which one shall be a woman. The two groups were to produce nine local government party chairmen each. However, the Ogbemudia group rejected the sharing formula, saying it is unacceptable to them.
As expected, Anenih declared that his group has accepted the decision of the party’s NWC. In his words, “the decision of the National Working Committee of our great party, the PDP, under the leadership of Ogbulafor, was communicated to me. While I have one or two reservations, I have decided to accept the decision of the party as a loyal and committed party member and as one of the leaders of the party.”
Under that arrangement, the Dan Orbih and Edward Sado-led factional state executives down to its local government executives were dissolved and a new unified executive enthroned with Chief Ekhabafe as its chairman. Not satisfied, Sado headed for the courts, claiming that his executive was duly elected as provided in the party’s constitution. He argued that the PDP national secretariat had no right to dissolve an executive that was duly recognized and inaugurated.
Orbih was to come on board as a replacement to Ekhabafe who died within the period. He emerged as the consensus chairman. Consequently, he stayed in the position to prosecute the 2011 elections in the state. He is still the state chairman of the party, but may be facing some heat occasioned by the discontent within the party as a precursor.
However, crisis has erupted with a letter to the PDP national chairman, Dr. Bamanga Tukur, on October 23, 2012 by the duo of Dr. Francis Omo-Osunde Iyasere and Solomon Ebuwa on behalf of the Edo PDP stakeholders. The two who were one-time Publicity Secretary and ex-officio member of the party respectively, were said to be political associates of Ogbemudia complained in that petition that the present executive led by Orbih were handpicked by Chief Anenih without the input of other stakeholders.
They opined that the outcome of all the elections conducted so far in Edo State under the Orbih-led executive have ended in failure, a point they said were raised and described by Ogbemudia as worrisome. Orbih has however dismissed the petition saying he will not dignify it with any response.
Nonetheless, observers believe that the warring factions should rather sheathe their swords in order to avoid a repetition of the war of attrition which landed them a painful defeat in the 2007, 2011 and 2012 elections in the state.
According to them, for PDP to make remarkable impact in any future election, there is need for peace and tranquillity to reign.
A chieftain of the party, Chris Nehikhare, said the stakeholders who want to turn things around in the Edo PDP, want a total departure from the old order saying, “we are made of professionals, intellectuals and men with ideas and these are people who under normal circumstances, leadership should be thrust upon them”.
He added that, “there is a total disconnect between the people and there is therefore the need for the older generation to give way for the younger generation. We have in Edo south, people who have been doing things over and over again and we are saying they should step aside so that the younger generation should take responsibility.”
“We are going to create a new face for the party because the same faces have been appearing in the party and they have been giving the party wrong name. We are strong and lettered professionals; we cannot fold our arms and allow the party to die. Time will come when the future generation will ask us what we have done. We want to take our destiny in our hands”.
Nehikhare added that, “we are not asking the elders to go but they should delegate responsibility to the younger generation”, adding that, “everybody should fall in line with the party structure. The idea that when election ends the people should scatter is over. We want to democratize our party and any structure that is recognized by our party, we all will fall in line.”
Also, the former chair of Edo State oil and Gas Producing Areas Development Commission (EDSOGPADEC), Mr. Larry Ogieva, stated that the PDP has learnt from the past mistakes and therefore the group would not allow a repeat of what led to the crisis that rocked members of the fold in the past years.
Ogieva harped on the essence of members of the PDP in the senatorial district and the state to rally round the state executive and warned that the era of godfathers and impositions of people was over. He said the, ‘’the mistakes made by our past leaders and followers will not be repeated. We are ready to establish democracy, those who were the architects and masters of this wrong picture being painted about PDP are now either in ACN or ANPP; there are still a few of them still remaining in PDP. We consider ourselves among those who have not been tainted. Therefore, look at the faces now that we’re presenting those who would mount the leadership of the party.”
Also speaking, Messrs Elvis Omoregie and Samuel Osazuwa, maintained that members of the body have apart from creation of awareness, also made conscious efforts across the three senatorial districts to mobilize people to join the campaign and clamour for positive change in the leadership of the party in the state.
The group pledged support for the PDP candidate in the last election, retired General Charles Airhiavbere and urged him to pursue the petition he filed at the state Election Petitions tribunal challenging the election of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole to its logical end.
It is expected that a new Edo PDP will be one that can close ranks and work to reposition the party ahead of the local government election and that may probably explain why the party faithfuls are angling to control the soul of the party in the state.
Leadership
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