BANJI ALUKO writes on the claims and counter-claims among the main political parties in the local government election coming up Saturday in Edo State.
GOING by history, Saturday’s local government election in Edo State is the first of its kind since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration of Governor Oserheimen Osunbor conducted such election in December 2007. Then, as the party in power and in line with the ‘Nigeria syndrome’ that ensures that ruling party in the states wins local government election, the PDP cleared the 2007 election to the consternation of the ACN, who had accused the PDP of rigging the polls.
That was 2007. Today, the party is no more in power; it has been supplanted by the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). A big bashing came the way of the PDP last year when its governorship candidate, General Charles Airhiavbere, could not win in any of the 18 local governments in the state. Since then, the party has been greatly depleted with some influential politicians leaving its fold. And right now, the usual bravado and swagger the party was once associated with are no more there. But their chairmanship and councillorship candidates, leaders and supporters are not just ready to give up the fight as they go into Saturday’s election, ready to stake a claim and re-assert themselves.
The ACN, on the other hand, is breathing with confidence for obvious reasons—it recorded a landslide victory during the 2012 governorship election and it is more of a convention for the government in power to clear council elections in the country. Even for many of the ACN candidates in the April 20 election, victory appeared secured the moment they picked the party’s ticket. No wonder the chairmanship candidate of the party in Oredo Local Government, Osaro Obazee, was so confident when he said, “I have no iota of doubt that I would win on Saturday.”
Sources: Nigeria Tribune
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