By Nosa Omorodion<\/p>\n
The problem of Governor Godwin Obaseki, nay Edo State, started from the
\nmoment he took office. It was, however, self inflicted as it arose from
\nhis character flaw and negative policy direction. Right from the day
\nObaseki took over the reins of government, he made it abundantly clear
\nthat he was going to run a non-inclusive government.<\/p>\n
Without mincing words Governor Obaseki made it known that his government
\nwas not going to accommodate members of the opposition party the PDP,
\nwho had struggled the governorship seat with him. This was an
\nunprecedented decision in words and in deed. True to his words, for the
\nalmost four years of Governor Obaseki’s administration, he has never
\nconsidered it expedient to reach out to members of the opposition party
\nso as to swell the ranks of the APC as his predecessors had considered
\nit wise to do and actually did.<\/p>\n
It is instructive to note that the preceding administrations of Governor
\nLucky Igbinedion and Governor Adams Oshiomhole made overtures to members
\nof the opposition parties, ANPP and PDP, respectively, and converted
\nmany not only to join the ruling party but to join government. The
\neffect of such reaching over was that it strengthened the ruling party
\nand weakened the opposition party.<\/p>\n
If only Obaseki had left the non inclusiveness to members of the
\nopposition party, one could by now have excused it on his inexperience
\nas a politician and a political administrator. He however, extended his
\npractice of exclusive governance to members of his own party, and in
\nparticular, all those who contested the APC governorship ticket with him
\nin 2016. He went further to exclude virtually all the party members that
\nsacrificed their time and resources to make him governor despite his
\nlack of popularity.<\/p>\n
To make the matter worse, when he was confronted with the anomalous
\npractice, Governor Obaseki resorted to blackmailing and maligning his
\nbenefactors. The matter came to a head when he interfered with the
\ninauguration of the House of Assembly in 2019 by causing the clerk of
\nthe House to selectively invite a couple of the members-elect for a
\nsecret inauguration so that they could elect a Speaker and Principal
\nOfficers he had handpicked. What followed has been a serious crisis
\nwhereby the House has largely remained improperly constituted to date
\nand Obaseki had launched a campaign of calumny against the stakeholders
\nwho have vowed to make sure he never gets a second term.<\/p>\n
Obaseki’s disruptive attitude had not only brought about chaos in the
\nAPC, it reduced the quality of governance such that instead of
\nsuperseding the developmental initiative of his predecessor and
\nbenefactor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, he has been struggling to make a
\nmark and has become a poor shadow with a flicker of grandeur sustained
\nby sheer propaganda.<\/p>\n
While Obaseki cannot be absolved of blame for his uncanny
\nself-centeredness that distorted the synergy between the government and
\nthe party and has in a way affected the desired progress of the State,
\nthe APC stakeholders who brought him to such a critical office without
\nproper appreciation of his competence to manage government with party
\npolitics should equally be blamed. We should however not rest at the
\npoint of regret and blame. There is an urgent need to redress the
\nunfortunate situation that has not only brought Edo APC into public
\nridicule but Edo State to its present deficiency and the potential of a
\nperilous future if Obaseki is reelected.<\/p>\n
Therefore, as Edo State is at the threshold of another governorship
\nelection, we must learn from the lesson of Obaseki’s failure and
\ntherefore elect the right governorship candidate for the APC and
\ngovernor for Edo State. What this means is that Edo APC and Edo
\nelectorates must elect a man with a proven record of sensitivity and
\ninclusiveness in his character and public service.<\/p>\n
One person that readily comes to mind in the foregoing regard,
\nconsidering those that have signified interest in becoming the governor
\nof Edo State, is Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, former Chief of Staff to Edo
\nState Governor, former Secretary to Edo State Government, founder of the
\ndefunct Grace Group and Action Congress\/Action Congress of Nigeria,
\nwhich is today the All Progressives Congress (APC), former Vice
\nChairman, ACN, South South, former member, APC Constitution Drafting
\nCommittee, former DG, Governor Oshiomhole\u00a0 Re-election Campaign
\nOrganization (2012) and the immediate past Governorship Candidate of the
\nopposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Edo State.<\/p>\n
Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu has proven to be a man of the people since the
\nbeginning of the Fourth Republic in 1999. He can be trusted as a man
\nthat understands and practices the inclusion of similar and diverse
\ninterests in furtherance of stability and dynamism of governance
\nstructure.<\/p>\n
It is an indisputable fact that of all the aspirants jostling for the
\noffice of Edo State Governor, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu is the only one
\nthat has a mutual relationship with the widest range of the political
\nactors in Edo State. This is not strange.<\/p>\n
As an engine room of sorts, of the political associations and parties he
\nhas been involved with, like no other person, Osagie Ize-Iyamu has
\ninteracted with almost all the critical stakeholders at very close
\nquarters. In fact, in the governments of Igbinedion and Oshiomhole,
\nrespectively, Ize-Iyamu was the major facilitator of almost all the
\ndecamping exercises, whether from the ANPP to the PDP or from the PDP to
\nthe ACN\/APC. He has also been instrumental to the appointment or
\nemployment of diverse political interests more than any of those running
\nfor the office of the governor.<\/p>\n
His relationship is so closely knit with all interests that even the
\npeople in opposing camps entertain little or no fear that they would be
\nsidelined or denied their due positions in Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu’s
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, Osagie Ize-Iyamu has a unique way of relating with
\neverybody on the basis of what present value they can add to any process
\nhe is involved in without prejudice to the prior position they held in
\nalignment or opposition with him. He is someone that does not take into
\naccount political differences occasioned by the individual’s need to
\ndefend his immediate political interest.<\/p>\n
In building his political structure, Ize-Iyamu has always looked out to
\ninclude those that were formerly opposed to him but possessed a peculiar
\nbrilliance that could be used to achieve an excellent building block.
\nWhile he is not a man that does not recognize and reward the loyalty of
\nfriends and political associates, he also has a penchant for
\naccommodating merit and granting concession to his opponents who he
\nbelieves has something of value to contribute to the development of the
\nsystem.<\/p>\n
For this awesome quality, it is no wonder that all manner of political
\nactors are included in Ize-Iyamu’s political structure. He is one man,
\nwhether in PDP, ACN, PDP or APC, there has always be an air of freedom
\nand confidence for persons of contending ideological and political
\nbackgrounds around him.<\/p>\n
In employing people, Ize-Iyamu has always looked beyond partisan and
\npolitical interests. His goal has always been to put together the best
\nhands from all divides to build an all encompassing political force for
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
Having been tried and proven for two decades, one cannot but be rest
\nassured that Ize-Iyamu will not change his positive pattern as governor
\nof Edo State. It is instructive to note that it is only Ize-Iyamu that
\nhas a prior relationship with more than 50% of the managers and major
\npromoters of the respective campaign organizations in the APC
\ngovernorship race. The same applies to the PDP. If there is one man that
\nthe majority would have confidence in to run a government in which his
\nopponents, including the opposition parties, will not be left out in the
\ncold when he becomes governor, that man is Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu.<\/p>\n
In conclusion, I want to say that Ize-Iyamu’s all-inclusive approach to By Nosa Omorodion The problem of Governor Godwin Obaseki, nay Edo State, started from the moment he took office. It was, however, self inflicted as it arose from his character…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":73337,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-73357","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nleadership and governance is what Edo State needs now. Edo is in dire
\nneed of a leader that will run a government of unity; a governor that
\nwill unite all the campaign structures and give them a sense of
\nbelonging in the Edo project. Under this kind of atmosphere, I believe
\nthat the Man of God, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, who has an excellent
\nblueprint for taking Edo to a glorious level will be free of
\ndistractions to execute his excellent plans and make all Edo people to
\ntruly have access to the dividends of their mandate given to the
\ngovernor.
\n—<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"