By Folami Ajayi

The battle for the soul of Ondo and Edo States in the forthcoming governorship elections will be tough, fierce and rough because the incumbent governors are contesting.

Godwin Obaseki of Edo was denied the platform of his erstwhile APC, the party whose back he rode to power four years ago.

While the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) screening committee edged Obaseki out of the race by raising dust over his Higher School Certificate to disqualify him from the party primaries, Pastor Ize Iyamu, his opponent at the 2016 poll then on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, was favoured to fly the flag of APC in the election which holds September 19, 2020.

Towards actualising his ambition, Obaseki dumped APC for PDP the major opposition party in the state, where he has emerged as its standard flag bearer.

The infighting between the former National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and Obaseki his political godson, exacerbated the problem of APC in Edo State. The belief is that Obaseki’s disqualification from the governorship race was influenced by Oshiomhole.

Now that Obaseki has succeeded in getting the PDP ticket, the battlefield is set to determine the most popular in the state.

Political pundits believe that Pastor Iyamu is not a pushover in the state politics; he also pulls crowd with desired structure and teeming followership. It would be readily recalled that in 2016, he gave Obaseki a good fight at the poll. It was the support Obaseki got from the National body of the party and Comrade Oshiomhole (then the incumbent governor) that made the defeat of Iyamu easy.

Obaseki was reported to have fallen out of favour with his godfather because he allegedly frustrated an agreement with his former political leader. The fact that he reneged on the agreement was said to have fuelled the crisis that escalated to an unimaginable proportion that resulted in the suspension of Oshiomhole by his Ward and at the end lost his seat as the National Chairman.

The incumbent governor may be at war with the party leadership, he is said to enjoy the support of residents who were endeared to him for his many developmental projects. Succinctly, it could be aptly said that Obaseki may ride on this to be re-elected for a second term.

On Ondo Election

The governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu is not finding his plan to get the nod of his party, the APC to run for a second term easy.

This is because there are other contenders within the party, who want his exit. Though he has been trying to mend fences with many of them, the moves are said to be too late.

The reason for his predicament was as a result of many allegations against him by his party members and the public.

There is the perception that he was not politically sportsmanly, having allegedly used his office to benefit himself and his family at the expense of party members who worked in ensuring his victory at the polls.

Part of the complaints against him is the lack of his commitment to the party ideals. He was alleged to have worked against APC’s interest at the last general elections. He was accused of sponsoring and supporting rival candidates, specifically the Action Alliance (AA) against APC.

This was said to have contributed to the APC losing the presidential election in the state, and later further infuriated the party members.

It was reported that there are no tangible projects embarked on by the governor but rather his administration came up with policies that are inimical to the people, mentioning increased school fees as one of such anti-people policies.

The greatest threat to Akeredolu’s second term is within the APC as some bigwigs have shown interest in the race. The contenders include: Olusola Oke (Southern senatorial district) and Segun Abraham (Northern senatorial district.)

Senator Ajayi Boroffice, representing the same Senatorial zone with the Governor’s, Ondo  North Senatorial District is also interested in vying for the governorship position. Also, the Deputy Senate Leader; Bukola Adetula is keenly interested in slugging it out with Akeredolu.

The party chairman in the state, Isaac Kekemeke is also interested in the race, Kekemeke who hails from Ese-Odo Local Government area has put his political machinery in motion towards realising his ambition.

Kekemeke and Akeredolu fell apart during the build-up and after the APC primaries in 2016.

Others who are interested in the race are Jimi Odimayo. Odimayo was one of the major financiers of Akeredolu in 2016.

Also, in the race is the Executive Director of Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Ife Oyedele.

From all indications, it would be a tough fight for Akeredolu to get the ticket. Bearing in mind other political permutations, it would seem the odds favour Sola Oke out of all the contenders in the APC and there are strong indications that he might get the party ticket.

Considering the scheming in the PDP which also parades an array of tested and trusted politicians who appeared before the screening committee headed by former Speaker of the House of Representatives Yakubu Dogara last week including the incumbent deputy governor of the state, Agboola Ajayi, who recently resigned his membership of the APC, others are Eyitayo Jegede, Boluwaji Kunlere, Dr Eddy Olafeso the National vice-chairman of the party (South West), Ben Okunomo, Bode Ayorinde, Bamidele Akingboye, Godday Erewa and Sola Ebiseeni.

It is obvious that battle for the Governorship election slated for October 10, 2020, would be tough more so that there is no pushover among the contenders.

It is too early to say which of the two major political parties will carry the day but the way the two parties manage the crisis that trails their primaries would determine their chances at the polls.