In Edo State, the Peoples Democratic Party held a congress on Sunday in order to select delegates for the party’s governorship primary on February 22.
However, there was a stir after the exercise since nine of the eleven PDP candidates for governor skipped it.
Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State and chairman of the three-member committee overseeing the election of Edo delegates, also pulled out of the process.
However, the high turnout of party members for the delegates election was praised by Peter Mbah, the governor of Enugu State and rumored deputy chairman of the committee.
Godwin Obaseki, the governor of Edo State, expressed regret over Makinde’s decision to withdraw from the process, but he added that it wouldn’t affect the exercise’s legitimacy because a lot of party members participated, according to him.
The nine candidates for governorship, including the deputy governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, Anselm Ojezua, Felix Akhabue, Ambassador Martin Uhomoibhi, Hafia Hadizat Umoru, Omosede Igbinedion, Dr. Earl Osaro Onaiwu, and Arthur Esene, abstained from the delegate election.
They sent a copy of their protest letter to Chief Dan Orbih, the National Vice Chairman for the South-South region of the PDP, and to Umar Damagum, the party’s acting national chairman.
The nine candidates took issue with the makeup of the committee that was in charge of choosing the delegates.
The governor of Enugu State addressed party members at the George Idah Primary School, GRA, Benin, the collation center for Ward 2. “This is democracy where our people come to exercise their franchise,” the governor declared. We are grateful for the attendance. Our party is renowned for upholding the values of justice, equity, and fairness. I hope everyone behaves appropriately during this election.
Dr. Major Itemowe led others in leading the exercise in Ward 7 of Ugbekun Primary School in the Ikpoba-Okha Local Government, while Kunle Koya from Lagos State led the exercise in Oluku Ward.
Speaking to reporters in his Ward 4 collation center at Idia College, Governor Obaseki declared that the party’s crisis was being exaggerated and that it would not have an impact on the results of the governorship race.
“You can see that it is a lot of success from the crowd here because of the incredible turnout,” he remarked. Our people are politically aware, and we are pleased with the turnout to choose delegates for our gubernatorial primary, which drew over 600 participants. We also anticipate a very high turnout for the primary election.
Obaseki commented on Makinde’s resignation, saying, “It is regrettable that Makinde resigned. The fact that he was only one of the three governors to withdraw does not undermine the legitimacy of the process. The caliber of participation is what lends credibility to a procedure. It is regrettable that Governor Makinde had to make such a choice, as you can see by the turnout. I hope that we will keep up all of our efforts to keep the party united and appease all parties involved. We won’t be dissuaded in the slightest and will see to it that the PDP participates in national politics.
Regarding the non-engagement of PDP members in the Legacy Coalition, he stated, “It is impossible to have 100% participation.” Here’s a view of the crowd. We didn’t have these numbers prior to joining the PDP when we were in the APC. Thus, it is evident that the individuals we encountered at the party are still present.
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“The crisis is overblown; it is not as serious as is presented. There isn’t really a crisis; the ones that exist are created by outside forces, and our people are more astute than that. You’ll see that we refuse to be bought off during the general election.
PDP National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba responded to inquiries about the Edo situation by saying, “It is publicly known that Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde resigned as Chairman of the PDP Edo State Ad Hoc Delegate Congress Electoral Committee for personal reasons known only to him.” No other individuals that we are aware of boycotted.
Additionally, Sulaimon Olanrenwaju, Makinde’s chief press secretary, denied knowing that his principal had resigned when contacted.
“I am not aware of his resignation. I have no idea,” he remarked.
