The forthcoming gubernatorial race in Edo state is one of the most fiercely contested governorship races in Nigeria in recent years. There have been dramatic turns as the election get closer each day.
It is possible that we haven’t seen the most dramatic turns yet as we all wait for the election day and what the outcome of it would be.
Among the activities that have been going on in the build-up to the major event is what many have so far referred to as the breaking of the godfather rule by Governor Godwin Obaseki, will this desecration of a longstanding political culture in Nigeria pay off for him? We’ll have to wait till election day to be sure.
There have been so many withdrawers of loyalty from different quarters and the pledging of same to opposite stakeholders. This action was triggered by the decamping of Governor Obaseki himself due to his rivalry with the former Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Adams Oshiomhole.
The big question here is, who are the loyalty been withdrawn from, who are they currently pledged? Who are/is the biggest stakeholder in the build-up to one of the most contested and definitive elections in the history of Edo State?
We have a few options we can look through to get an insight into how things are or what they could be.
The first option to look at here is the Individual stakeholders. We know that even within parties like the All Progressive Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) all members are not equal and the decisions of the parties’ rest on some powerful few rather than the whole.
Could it be that the key and most prominent members of these two political parties in the state share the biggest power on the people in the state or could it be that there is a major individual in either of the parties that hold the most significant sway in the state?
One could argue that in recent years, Adams Oshiomhole has been the key figure visibly holding this position, as the current Governor of the state Godwin Obaseki won on his goodwill. Still, the fallouts between himself and the current governor and the current trajectory of events have caused so many doubts about his status as the most feared and obeyed personality in the state.
The second option to look at is the biggest decision-makers in the state. It is crucial that we look to see if these group of people are the true political godfathers and mothers in the state.
We know that each party and their flagbearers need the goodwill of these people to win or get through to the day to day people of the state, the people we’re talking about here are the traditional rulers, the religious rulers, the head of markets, etc.
These set of people stands in a peculiar position that gives them the leverage of loyalty of their followers, could it be that gaining their goodwill is the most important play in winning the people over?
Another option to look at is the Outside players. The outside players are the godfathers who do not necessarily have a physical standing in the state but have enough money and good standing in their party that gives them significant influence.
We know that buying the will of the people in Nigeria is not something new in the political clime of the country and sometimes as long as you can splash some cash, you might be able to win.
Could it be that the outside individuals with the bag of money are the key deciding factor in this forthcoming election?
The final option to consider is The People. In a sane political clime operating a proper political culture, even though the people can choose to be loyal to a particular figure, their freewill and knowledge that they’re the primary deciding factor are never tainted.
In Edo state, the people ordinarily should be the biggest deciding factor in this election, but we know this is not usually how politics and elections work in Nigeria.
Godfatherism and its cancerous hold on Nigeria politics is nothing new. Still, it is something that calls for more concern if the people are to choose the people to govern them objectively.
Some days ago, Adam Oshiomhole claimed that he fought godfathers in the state for Governor Obaseki to win his first term in office, one will assume he is or part of the godfathers in this state, but his statement clearly state otherwise.
If he is not, then who is? Who is going to fight the godfathers for Governor Obaseki to win his second term now that he is at loggerhead with Adams, or is Pastor Ize-Iyamu a lucky man for having a man like Adams Oshiomhole in his corner to fight the godfathers?
Whoever the godfathers maybe, the people of Edo State need to objectively look at the candidates and make a decision that is good for them and the development of the state at large – they should restrict the pressure to let their decisions be influenced by the subjective choice of one or group of people because of personal interest.
In any political clime, the true godfathers and mothers should be the people voting.
