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Intrigues
as 2007 guber race hots up in Edo
By Benson
Agwu
Correspondent, Benin
City
As unease reigns in Edo State
over which zone should produce the governor in 2007, indications have emerged that another dimension is
being added to the political temperature of the state as reports indicate that
pressure is being mounted on some members of the Edo State Executive
Council and a local government area chairman, who allegedly declared their
intentions to resign their positions few months ago, not to do so until
cabinet reshuffle next year.
According to reports, they are being pressured to hold on so that when they are
eventually dropped in the
envisaged reshuffle, it will appear as if they were laid
off.
Daily Independent in Benin
City gathered from highly
reliable sources that three
commissioners and two special advisers to Governor Lucky Igbinedion, who
are allegedly financially starved, had opted to cross carpet to a faction of the ruling Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) in the state where their interests will be taken
care of. According to sources, it is better to pitch their tents with a
group in which they believe
their interest would be better served instead of serving in a
government that has not
provided them opportunity to show their relevance and confer any privilege of being part of the government.
The commissioners, according
to sources, wanted to resign to enable them participate in the forthcoming
National Convention of the Peoples Democratic party (PDP) in which the
lingering conflict between the Chairman, Board of the Trustees of the
Party, Chief Tony Anenih and Governor Lucky Igbinedion of Edo State over
which senatorial zone should produce the next governorship candidate for
the party in 2007 will be laid to rest.
A member of the State
Executive Council, who Daily Independent learnt has governorship ambition
and has never made secret about his aspiration and was in 1999 wooed to
the present administration as a commissioner to forestall possible
distraction for the Igbinedion-led government, has now vowed that it is
high time he resigned to enable him actualise his dream.
As for the special advisers,
who often trek to the Government House or are seen in the streets jumping
from one commercial motorcycle to the other, a source disclosed, are
fuming that they are sidelined in the scheme of things in the government.
It is alleged that they hop from one office to the other as they are not
allocated offices to carry out their duties. According to party sources,
they also complain of discrimination, as some openly swagger arrogantly,
boasting about their connections to the Government House and the powers
that be in the state.
This is a new trouble the
leadership has to contend
with, failure of which could
compound troubles for the PDP in the state, which is battling the crisis that may follow the
agitations over which zone
should produce the governor.
A grape vine source confided
in Daily Independent
that Mr. Edos Victor
Ebomoyi, the council chairman of Oredo Local Council, believed to be close
to the Igbinedion family from the childhood, is not well at home with
seeming close relationship between
Igbinedion and Mr. Ize-Iyamu Osagie, the Secretary of the State
Government (SSG), believed to have been pencilled down to clinch the
governorship of the state in 2007, and Mr. Sam Iredia, the Chief of Staff,
who is seen as the SSG hopeful in 2007.
Iyamu and Iredia, until their
appointments, were members of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) in the
state who reportedly gave the present government a tough time during the electioneering
campaign.
Before they were co-opted and subsequently appointed into the State Executive Council,
Ebomoyi was the campaign manager
for Governor Igbinedion. When Igbinedion won, he was offered the
position of the SSG, but he declined, because he reportedly did not know
what the office entailed. He had preferred to be made a commissioner and
he got it. Ize-Iyamu, who was
first offered the position of SSG, also rejected it, and was subsequently made the Chief of Staff, a position that
created a leeway to his becoming closer to Governor
Igbinedion.
Ize-Iyamu single-handedly
mystified the office of the Chief of Staff, as he determined who gets what
in the state so much that for Ebomoyi to see Governor Igbinedion, he
must pass through the Chief
of Staff. He was not happy with the development that he had to pass through an
�inferior officer to the governor�.
To compensate him, Ebomoyi was
posted to the Education Ministry as a commissioner at a time the
development of infrastructure
facilities of the Ambrose Alli University was a top priority to the
government, and which pre-occupied him, leaving him with
virtually no time to begrudge the Chef of Staff. To maintain the calm,
Ebomoyi was again redeployed to the Youth and Sports Ministry when the
state government wanted to renovate Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium. Ize-Iyamu
was then consolidating his base, getting closer to the governor and wielding influence on the
approval and execution of projects.
Charles Idahosa, who was
formerly of ANPP, became the director of public affairs and protocol, but
for alleged poor handling of the Governor�s media relations, was removed.
The office of the Chief Press Secretary occupied by Mr. Lucky Wasa
was
revived.
Sam Iredia came to the fold of
the PDP when observers believed he was becoming irrelevant after leaving
ANPP, for there was no position for him to occupy. He became a campaign manager for
Igbinedion�s re-election, though it is now reported that he still eyes the
governorship race in 2007.
The 2007 governorship race has
now locked the three lieutenants
of Governor Igbinedion
in the battle of wits with Ebomoyi claiming that he is more
experienced politically. And
he is not making a pretence about it He listed his record to include being
as a councillor in Oredo
Local Government when Igbinedion was the council chairman and that he successfully managed Igbinedion
campaign in 1991 when the latter lost to Oyegun over questionable circumstances and in 1999 when he got
elected.
Ebomoyi, according to sources,
claims he has held more public offices and is more visible
politically and that he was
the first Chief of Staff before Iyamu, and has held three separate
portfolios as a commissioner of education, youth and sports and is
currently the elected chairman of Oredo Council.
Amidst the wrangling arose the
Bini agenda seeking the Edo South Senatorial District to unite and retain
the governorship slot. Governor Igbinedion is from Edo South and is now to
serve eight years as the governor of the state. Ize-Iyamu and Ebomoyi hail from Oredo while Iredia is
from Uhumuwnode in Edo South where Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia comes
from.
Daily Independent learnt that
it was in his conviction not to support a bad precedent that Ogbemudia allegedly signed a
memorandum of understanding (MOU) that Chief Anenih, the famed godfather
of Edo politics, should produce whoever he decides as the governor while
his first son becomes the deputy.
Ogbemudia in his wisdom, a
source disclosed, does not want a situation where a particular senatorial
district in the state holds on permanently unto the position of governor,
making other senatorial districts dormant partners. He was reported to have said that
such a situation will spell doom if allowed. To douse the tension,
Ogbemudia used his second son, Mr. Efosa Ogbemudia, who is currently the
chairman of Uhunmwode Local Government, during the election of the
executives of the Association
of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), to break the ranks of the Edo
South.
Efosa, on the alleged counsel
of his father, voted for one Mr. Parley Iriase believed to be Anenih�s
prot�g� as council chairman of Ovwan East as against the choice of Ebomoyi, who was seen as
Governor Igbinedion�s stooge meant to be used to garner more stronghold on
the localities.
Ebomoyi on his own realising
that Igbinedion never wants him to take over from him as a governor in
2007, gave his support to the Anenih�s choice. He has, according to sources,
prepared his armoury that at
the worst, he would resign his council chairmanship position to play a
spoiler against Ize Iyamu who now has the governor�s
support.
Idahosa, perhaps he is not
getting enough of the action, in his public
statements and press interviews, has allegedly taken a cue from
Ebomoyi.
Chief Anenih on his own had
reportedly summoned Ize-Iyamu to a meeting over his rumoured ambition to
contest the governorship
race, which he
reportedly denied flatly, saying that he has no money for such a huge
project.
Governor Igbindion, who often
restates that the governorship position of Edo State is not zoned in the
face of these challenges that seem to be tearing his ranks apart, has
vowed that he cannot stand alone and watch them regroup the way they are
doing while he is still at the helm of affairs.
He maintained that if the governorship slot must go to Edo Central as
Anenih wishes, the �gentleman agreement� entered then with the latter must
be observed.
Sources close to him explained
that the agreement was
brokered by Anenih and the
Governor�s father, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, the Esama of Benin
Kingdom. Then, it was
allegedly greed that after
Igbinedion�s second tenure, Anenih will lend his support and make him a vice president to a northern
president.
Another reliable source from
the Anenih�s camp said that �the agreement was with a clause that only
when the governor performs.
From which angle do you want
Chief to argue and defend the case? W hat do we have on the ground to start with? He
has failed again to deliver to the people the democratic dividends�.
Unconfirmed reports alleged
that Governor Igbinedion is
nursing the idea that if he loses out to Anenih in the struggle for who
becomes the governor come 2007, he will go to the Senate and become the
Senate President.
But currently in the state,
with the intrigues by these politicians, those perceived to be paying
double loyalty while in the service of the Edo State government are denied their entitlements, while some who are
ambitious in making an impact
in the leadership of the state but are still holding political
appointments may soon
resign to pose a new challenge, having been established within their short stay in
government.
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