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MARCH 19, 2007 VOL. 20. NO 23

Tackling the Afenmai Agenda

**Adams Oshiomhole**

The ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State battles to whittle down an alleged Edo North agenda to support the Action Congress(AC's) Adams Oshiomhole as Edo State governor
By Walid Ogunseri, Benin City
ess than five weeks to the governorship election, leaders of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State are neck- deep in a battle to stop indigence Edo North, popular as Afemai people from actualising their long- held dream of producing a governor of Edo North extraction against the PDP governorship flag-bearer, Professor Osheriemen Osunbor.
The Source investigations revealed that since the First Republic, the Afenmai people, now domiciled in Edo North Senatorial district had fought without success for an Edo North indigene to clinch the governorship position of the state.
In this regard, they appear to have resolved that the 2007 election is not going to be about political parties but about individuals.
The president of Afenmai Summit held on July 8, 2006, Jaiye Ojeikere told The Source that the main thrust of the agenda was to sell the Afenmai quest at the summit where some gubernatorial aspirants were present except the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe and Professor Julius Ihonvbere, who at the time was represented. Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and Tom Uloko were present on that particular occasion and they took part in the briefing before the December primaries.
At the end of the summit, the Forum issued a communiqué and two of the items on it were that Edo North, since the region was created in 1973, had not had the opportunity of producing a Civilian governor of the state. It was so termed civilian governor," because the late General Agbazika Innih was military governor for six brief months during the military era and that was the only time the district smelt the seat of power.
According to Ojeikere, “We believe that having regard to that, the central has produced a civilian governor in the name of Dr. Ambrose Folurunsho Alli, Edo south has produced two civilian governors, Chief Odigie- Oyegun and Dr. S.O Ogbemudia.
“We have never. Now, we have Chief Lucky Igbinedion who is running two terms from South. We should be given a chance this time around,” he pleaded.
Ojeikere said the agenda was well bought by everybody who was present and that a couple of weeks later, they had the privilege to attend a meeting of Afenmai traditional rulers in the palace of the Otaru of Auchi on August 5, 2007 and that the Afenmai Agenda was the main topic. His words: “I was surprised that we received an overwhelming support from the traditional rulers. At that time, we had just three aspirants under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) platform and one aspirant under the Action Congress (AC).
The PDP aspirants were Professor Ihonvbere, Oghiadomhe and Uloko. The worries then were on how to reduce the number because Oshiomhole apparentlywas the only candidate of Edo North extraction in AC. Continuing, Ojeikere said, “Of course, events have unfolded and we lost out of all the three aspirants we were expecting from the PDP and the slot went, as we were predicted and as we were told that this was already an anointed thing for Edo Central. But as I am talking to you now, I think we have a candidate selected or appointed from Edo central, and we have only one candidate”.
Ojeikere told The Source that they will make sure that the people of Afenmai vote for their son given the point they have reached. His words: “The second part of our communiqué is that any political party that chooses an Afenmai for gubernatorial candidate, we would enjoined all Afenmai to vote for that person and that is the point we have reached now. We are going all out to get all Afenmai to vote for Oshiomhole, because he is the only one who survived the primaries of the party under which platform he wants to contest.”
Another strong supporter of the Afenmai Agenda is Vice Admiral Mike Akhigbe, who was elected as the president of Afenmai people shortly before the primaries. The Source gathered that 13 prominent persons were nominated to work with Akhigbe in furtherance of their struggle to uphold easy realisation of the Afenmai Agenda, or the dream of the Afenmai people producing a democratically elected governor.
According to Tunde Lakogu, a senatorial aspirant under the platform of the AC from Edo North, who was nominated to work with Admiral Akhigbe, “he will attest to the fact that I did my best to support his leadership of Afenmai people when Professor Ihonvbere came out to contest for the gubernatorial race, I left what I was doing and I assisted him to coordinate his campaign because I believe in that Afenmai Agenda and when he did not win and AC gave that opportunity to an Afenmai son, the celebrated Adams Oshiomhole, I decided to bury any personal ego or pride and work within that fold to also assist that ticket, because I believe firmly in the Afenmai Agenda.”
Lakoju stated that his own senatorial project is not just incidental to it, but is part of a larger Afenmai Agenda. According to him, “We want a governor from Afenmai and I see myself, if God helps and I get a senatorial ticket, supporting that agenda at the national level. Why Oshiomhole is here doing the best of what he can, I will be there, doing whatever it is possible at the national level. I will also be fighting for it for our people.”
He noted that the Afenmai people in its quest to produce a governor are not loosing sight of the fact Afenmai people are not an isolated entity in Edo State. He maintained that Afenmai people do not come from an impossible district, explaining that with this Afenmai Agenda they have moved beyond that level of impossible area.
According to Lakoju, “Whatever party any Afenmai person is, I believe very strongly that his interest is how we would produce a governor , because look at what Ambrose Alli did. By being a governor from Edo central, he brought Ambrose Alli University to Ekpoma, his home town. At least N250 million on a monthly basis goes into the economy of Ekpoma.
“Those who have houses there know how much rent they are harvesting, women who sell akara, pure water, know how much they have harvested. The boys who run okada business know how much they are harvesting, all from the University. The economy of Ekpoma was not like that before the university got there.
“So whether you are in PDP, AC, NDP, ANPP, or whichever party you are, I am an Afenmai. A governor from Afenmai would have a responsibility to do something in Afenmai for the general upliftment of our people, so it is not a party thing for now” he said, pointing out that he believes very strongly that every son or daughter of Afenmai will vote Oshiomhole for governor come April 2007.
It is, perhaps, in line with the Afenmai Agenda that all the traditional rulers in Edo North decided to adopt Oshiomhole at Uzzeba as their sole candidate for the Edo governorship position in the 2007 election.
In Edo North, they, howvere, have the G.7 that is seriously working against the Afenmai Agenda. They spread through the six local government areas that make up the area. In Akoko Edo, there is the former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Chief Samson Ekhabafe. The Uneme-Erhurun- born lawyer is alleged to be an Anenih loyalist. One who does not believe in the politics, of ethnicity or family politics, he publicly fought against the Deacon Domingo Obende senatorial ticket, preferring, instead Yisa Braimoh of the PDP, who is also a member of the G.7 from Owan East Local Government. Ekhabafe hails from the same local government area as Domingo Obende. For him, his kinsman was not the party’s choice for the Edo North Senatorial seat.
He is, nonetheless, a force in the area. Also among the G.7 is Barrister Johnson Abolagba, another combatant from Owan. He was a former council chairman and at present the House of Representatives PDP candidate for Owan Federal Constituency. Alhaji Kassim Ozeto is the third of Anenih’s foot soldiers in Owan. A young and fast growing politician, Chief Dan Orbih, Chief Bruno Oshiokpekai and Chief Joshua Ogene, alias Scatter decide who gets what in Estako. They do not believe in Oshomhole’s ambition, neither the Afemai Agenda. They are simply a threat to the Afemai Agenda, just as Bruno Oshiokpekai exuded his anger for the agenda at the Otaru of Auchi’s palace recently and was subsequently shouted down irresistibly.
In his contribution, a PDP leader in Edo South, Dr. Omokaro Izevbigie, a die-hard Ogbemudia loyalist and Orhionmwon political strategist, said that the Afemai Agenda cannot stop the PDP from winning the governorship election in Edo State. In his own words, “if you put the equations together and you analyse you wil arrive hing at the conclusion that there is not that will stop the PDP from winning," pointing out that the PDP at the moment is controlling the executives of 30, out of 36 states in the country, adding that in Edo State leaders of the PDP include Anenih, who is the chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees working hand in hand with Ogbemudia. Both of then, Izevbigie said, carrying the banner, will carry the day when the chips are down. The reasons, he said are obvious. “Chief Tony is a very well-known expert in electioneering and manager of elections. He has never failed... when he was state chairman of NPN, he carried the day. When he was national chairman of SDP, he carried the day, now that he is the chairman of the Board of Trustees in PDP, he led the winning in 1999, he led the winning in 2003, so he is now working to led again to score another victory for the PDP in 2007, and with Ogbemudia his handwriting is everywhere in the state, even up to the Delta." At a time he was military governor of the then Mid-west region and he came back as civilian governor in 1983. His hard- work is glaring and he is everywhere. His record has not been beaten. His name is synonymous with success. They are leading the party and when the electorate look at the leadership at the PDP they feel satisfied, we are going to win again”.
Speaking specifically on the Afemai Agenda, he said most people choose to look at "paperwork, listen to the radio too much but they don’t look at what is on ground," stressing that the structure on ground is not there for the AC to win, and PDP has stronger structures.
According to him, there are still some wards where AC does not have executives till now, whereas the PDP has strong structure down to the village level, not just the ward level. He said the Afemai Agenda is also being propagated by the AC, noting that the PDP rally in Fugar and Agenebode, has gone to show that it is not all of Afenmai that will vote for Oshiomhole, as good numbers will not vote for him.
The community leader disclosed that the Deputy Governor, Oghiadomhe at a recent meeting he held with youths at Etete area of G.R.A in Benin City, had countered the Afenmai Agenda, noting that there was no such decision that the whole of Afenmai will vote for Adams Oshiomhole.