All the materials for the great combustion are now present in Edo State as the political events unfolding in the State point to an imminent conflagration between Governor Godwin Obaseki and his predecessor and national chairman of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. At issue is the clash of vested economic and political interests, which climaxed with the recent hoax “attack without bruises” on Oshiomhole. This hoax and the ensuing war of words over-heated the polity and complicated the smooth functioning of the state security system, especially the police, in addition to distracting effective governance, while promoting anarchy and lawlessness.
There is an unrelenting clash of interests, between the government, led by Obaseki, and the entrenched economic interests that he has vowed to upstage and dislodge from Edo. But if Obaseki thought that he could use the instruments of State power to assert his authority as governor of Edo state, he must by now, have come to the realization that these entrenched interests have become too powerful and will not go down without a fight. The first salvo was fired by Obaseki when he manipulated the process of elections into the Edo State House of Assembly and arm-twisted the legislature to elect his favored candidates into the leadership, to the chagrin of Oshiomhole who has so far failed to invalidate the process; leading to a stalemate.
The latest in Obaseki’s war on the status quo has been his decision to demolish a hotel owned by business magnate, Tony Kabaka, ostensibly because it was built on government land that was improperly appropriated under the previous administration. Obaseki has denied any political motivation behind his decision, saying he had warned in the past that his administration would not tolerate lawlessness; adding that no amount of blackmail would stop him from demolishing the hotel owned by Kabaka. Speaking on the sidelines at the AGM of the Edo-Delta chapter of the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN), Obaseki said his administration is not afraid of anybody and would not succumb to blackmail.
Hear Obaseki in his own words: “If any law has been breached in Edo State, I have sworn to the constitution to preserve order. This is a government that is not afraid of anybody and will not be subject to blackmail. Anybody who contravenes the law no matter how highly placed you are in Edo State, you will be dealt with. It has no political undertone. If you go to Etete now, I am doing the same thing. I am fencing the sports centre. I have warned in the past that anybody who encroached on government land or school properties will be dealt with. Go to Bénin Technical College; that is evidence. As long as they continue to behave lawlessly, we will enforce the law.”
These vested interests, comprising self-imposed revenue collectors, briefcase contractors and sundry political jobbers want nothing short of business as usual. Somehow, unfortunately though, they have coalesced into a political movement with Oshiomhole as their godfather. This begs the question: What does Oshiomhole and his revenue war lords want? The answer lies in the fact that they have become too wealthy, at the expense of the elected government and the people, leading to concentrated raw political power that undermines democracy and public trust in the institutions of government.
It is this entrenched tendency that portray participation in politics as high risk by civil, law abiding citizens with the skills as well as the character to provide, high impact public service. This aberration where thugs and cultists dictate who get elected and where they form a parallel enforcement channel with the constitutional law enforcement state agencies is the crux of the matter. Adam Oshiomhole called them his “infantry” or military wing, and said so during his address of the touts after the so called arranged attack on him. It is instructive that he was ” rescued from the attack” by this “infantry ” and not by the official police force. The state Commissioner of Police, caught up in this toxic political situation, had to rise up, very professionally, to explain that Adams Oshiomhole was accorded full security protection or cover throughout his stay in Benin. Moreover, and putting it factually, there was no attack, and perhaps no formal report to the police of a threat of any form. It was a hoax!
Is it true as contained in a press statement by the Edo State government that Adams Oshiomhole does not inform the State APC chapter, or the State government of his visits, to his own state? If true, this is preposterous and can only be compared to an oddity where a father, relocates to his neighbour’s house. It seems that the Comrade has succumbed to the dissenting voices within the party, instead of playing the role of a neutral leader with the credibility to reconcile the contending forces. In all these, where is the public interest, the masses, whose purpose the elected government should serve. It is only by weighing the issues clearly, wearing the lenses of the party manifesto and of President Muhammadu Buhari’s stance on corruption, as well as, on the welfare of the masses that Adams Oshiomhole can rescue the situation. From all his actions and indices,for now, he has allowed himself to be captured by those within the party that cannot resonate with the public.
The Comrade has earned his place in history but how he handles this Edo situation will be the make or mar; he needs to return to his political main stream and allow the incumbent governor to stamp his style. The old ways must change to the Next Level. Supporting touts, thugs, fake infantry, delinquent contractors and political parasites will only muddy the political waters; what is required are the type of civilized and transparent reforms that the award winning Governor Godwin Obaseki has courageously and skillfully embarked upon; this momentum cannot be reversed. Reinstating the Kabakas should never be contemplated. A word is enough for the wise.
