The APC and its candidate, Odod, will rely so much on the power of incumbent governor, Yahaya Bello. Both Bello and Ododo hail from the same Okene community. To some, Ododo can easily pass as Bello’s cousin.
WITH the completion of the governorship primaries of the various political parties, the battle for the Kogi State Government House known as Lugard House is getting clearer and tougher.
Political gladiators have returned to their trenches plotting to win the November 11 governorship election and become Governor Yahaya Bello’s successor in January next year.
Interestingly, the just concluded governorship primaries produced 11 candidates, who are jostling for the votes of the electorate in the Confluence State.
The candidates
Those eyeing Lugard House and holding party tickets are Ahmed Usman Ododo, All progressives Congress, APC; Dino Melaye, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; Leke Abejide, African Democratic Congress, ADC; Olayinka Braimoh, Action Alliance, AA; Dauda Isah, Allied Peoples Movement, APM; Adejoh Okeme, Labour Party, LP; Usman Jibril, Social Democratic Party, SDP; Julius Elukpo, Action democratic Party, ADP; Musa Mubarak/Abdullahi Bawa, New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP; Samson Omale, Young Progressive Party, YPP; and Abdullahi Bayawo, Peoples Redemption Party, PRP.
Of the 11 contenders, one is from Kogi Central, three are from Okun extraction of Kogi West and the rest are from Kogi East.
Disputed primaries
Majority of the parties’ primaries ended up in disputes, some parties even held parallel primaries.
In the NNPP, Musa Mubarak and Abdullahi Bawa emerged as parallel flagbearers.
While Mubarak was elected in the primary at the Children Amusement Park that party members in Kogi participated in, Abdullahi Bawa, a serving House of Representatives, emerged from a process allegedly handled by national officers from Abuja.
Also, while Okeme emerged at the KAFAS multipurpose hall as the Labour Party candidate, another faction of the LP produced another candidate the same day at the Big Brothers Hotel in Lokoja.
The same scenario played out in ADC which produced Leke Abejide as the sole candidate on Saturday only for the Kogi West Senatorial candidate of the party, Dele Williams, to be declared winner of another primary spearheaded by the suspended state chairman, Kingsley Ogga, 24 hours later.
However, the ADC national body had forwarded the name of Abejide to INEC as the party’s candidate.
In the APC, the direct primary adopted has been criticized by majority of the aspirants who felt that the primary committee favoured Governor Bello’s anointed candidate, Usman Ododo, who emerged as winner. For the likes of Senator Smart Adeyemi; APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Muri Ajaka; former Minister, Stephen Ocheni; and four others, the primary did not hold. Even now, a party stalwart, Mr Rilwan Okpanachi, a lawyer, has approached the court for the primary to be quashed. It was the same Okpanachi who made the court to nullify the delegates’ election the APC intended to use for indirect primary before opting for direct mode.
The People’s Democratic Party, PDP, also has its fair share of dispute, as no less than three other aspirants, namely – Yomi Awoniyi, Bolufemi Olarotimi and Haruna Usman, have kicked at the emergence of Dino Melaye as the party’s candidate.
To them, Dino connived with some executive of the party to have his stooges as the 185 delegates instead of the authentic names. They had, days before the primary, vowed to ‘destroy’ the party if nothing was done to change the delegates list to the authentic names. They have continued their threats insisting that authentic delegates did not vote at the primary that produced Melaye.
Despite the number of candidates, the contest as of now, appears to be a three-horse race among the ruling APC, PDP and ADC.
Burning issues
Two major burning issues in the state have been the tussle for power rotation and demand for a Christian governor.
Power shift
The emergence of Dino Melaye (PDP) and Leke Abejide (ADC) has not only rekindled the hope of Kogi West agitators for power-shift but has also balanced the demand for a Christian governor. Leke and Dino are of the Okun extraction from Yagba East and Ijumu council areas of Kogi West Senatorial District respectively; and both are Christians.
The agitators for power shift are hinging their stand on the fact that the Igala-dominated Kogi East had held power for 17 cumulative civil years while the Ebira-dominated Kogi Central are on the verge of completing eight years but the West has never tasted power.
To them, the 16:8:0 formula is unpalatable to a heterogeneous state like Kogi and there’s a need to balance power.
On another hand are Christian governor agitators like former CAN chairman, Bishop Emmanuel Ibenu, who said that it was not out of place for people to demand for a governor of Christian extraction in a 32 years old state that has experienced five elected Muslim governors.
Abejide’s chances
The ADC candidate, Leke Abejide, is expected to garner a majority of the votes from the Western axis of the state if all things remain constant. Abejide, through his widely accepted Free WAEC payment for his Yagba Federal Constituency was not only able to win a resounding second term in the February 25 National Assembly election, he has also been able to spread his good fortune to another Federal Constituency, Kabba-Bunu/ Ijumu where his party won the seat. He also helped to deliver Yagba West state Constituency for his party.
The ADC as a party may not have strong structures but what they lack in structures they made up in Leke’s goodwill. Abejide had twice defeated APC and PDP in their strongholds of Yagba Federal Constituency through coalition. He understands the politics of harvesting aggrieved party members from other parties to work for his victory; same strategy he will be taking to the governorship poll.
Sources said the ADC is already talking with Muri Ajaka of the APC to come and deputise Leke. The combined forces of Leke, Muri and other aggrieved members of PDP and ADC may spring a surprise in the election.
The opposition ADC on the other hand is perceived to enjoy a robust relationship with the APC President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Abejide jettisoned his party’s presidential candidate to create a support group – Asiwaju Confluence Campaign Organization, ACCO, that worked for Tinubu success in the February presidential election.
Despite being a first timer in the National Assembly from an opposition party, Abejide was made the Chairman, House Committee on Custom and Excise duties. Abejide is also a close friend of Jigawa State Governor, Badaru. It is to be seen if these factors will swing victory to him at the poll.