Race for 2016 guber poll begins in Edo

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Governor of Edo state

Although the governorship election in Edo State is due to hold next year, preparations are in top gear and political parties are already rolling out directives to the various aspirants jostling to succeed Governor Adams Oshiomhole.

The All Progressive Congress (APC) speaking through its State Chairman, Anselm Ojezua warned the aspirants not to build any structure that would create factions and urged them to rely on the structure already built by the party to further their ambitions.

On the part of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the party is yet to come out with modalities but its leadership led by Dan Orbih recently said it was already preparing to field a credible candidate that would defeat the APC.

Certain factors like zoning and ethnic consideration and influence of traditional institutions particularly the Benin monarch; the governor and some opinion leaders may however affect the choice of the candidate of the parties especially the APC.

Incumbent governor Oshiomhole who is from Edo North, the second most populated of the three senatorial zones and who got into office through massive support from Edo South (Binis) and their monarch is expected to lend his support for a Bini candidate even though some of his party’s aspirants like former governor Oserheimen Osunbor and Ken Imansuagbon are not from the area.

The aspirants from Bini in the APC include Deputy Governor Pius Odubu, former Chief of Staff and current Commissioner for Works, Osarodion Ogie, former Minister of State for Works, Chris Ogienmwonyi, the PDP gubernatorial candidate in 2012, Charles Airhiavbere a retired army officer.

For the PDP, it is not clear which senatorial zone it would cede its ticket but the race is also dominated by the Binis except former Minister of Works, Mike Onolemenen who is from Edo Central (Esan) just like Osunbor and Imansuagbon.

Other PDP aspirants are Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Solomon Edebiri, Senator Ehigie Uzamere and Matthew Iduoriyekemwen.   There is also a popular Benin musician, Ambassador Nowamangbe who aspires to contest under the Citizens Popular Party (CPP) even though the contest is perceived to be between the APC and the PDP.

The APC aspirants are following party directives not to distract the government but they are also reading the body language of the governor to decode who his preferred candidate would be which many believe would be influenced by two factors, the governor’s influential mother, Hajia Aishetu and the Benin Palace.

But for the victory of the APC in the presidential election, the intensity of jostling to succeed Oshiomhole from his party would have been less because the bandwagon effect of the PDP performance in the National Assembly elections where it won two of the three senatorial seats and shared the 10 House of Representatives seats equally with the APC.

The PDP had hoped to use the expected victory as a launch pad to take over the House of Assembly banking on expected band wagon effect and thereafter begin an impeachment process against Oshiomhole.

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