Edo guber: More aspirants disobey peace pact, APC disassociates itself from agreement

…Ize-Iyamu, Ehigie Airhiavbere, others purchase nomination forms
…Party rakes in N.4b from 8 aspirants

 

From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja

Strong indications emerged this week that the resolution to trim down the number of aspirants jostling for ticket for the Edo state governorship election may have broken down as the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has disassociated itself from the arrangement.

Speaking to Daily Sun at the headquarters of the ruling party in Abuja on whether the National Working Committee (NWC) has pulled out of the agreement, Deputy National Organising Secretary, Nze Chidi Duru, said that the party’s leadership was never a party to the resolution.

“The concern of the party’s leadership is the democratic process of electing the candidate of our party for the Edo governorship poll. We are not party to the agreement to trim down the number of the aspirants.

“The task before the party leadership is to provide a level playing field for all the aspirants to test their popularity at the party’s primary election. All we are assuring the aspirants is that the primary will be fair, credible and transparent,” Duru assured.

And in what looks like a confirmation that the peace pact has broken down completely, no fewer than eight aspirants, including Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, Charles Ehigie Airhiavbere and others that are not among the anointed aspirants have defied the resolution to purchase nomination forms.

Insisting that the agreement is not binding on him, Ize-Iyamu warned Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, behind the arrangement, that he cannot play God by anointing aspirants to contest the primaries.

Speaking on behalf of Ize-Iyamu after picking up forms for him on Wednesday, Emmanuel Momoh, who led the delegation, said: “That he is not among the anointed aspirants has no meaning. It is only God that anoints. Let me make it clear to every Nigerian, what was done does not reflect in the constitution of the APC.

“The committee that was set up is not the organ of the APC, there was nothing done, it was an action of one man and who has only one voter like me. No single voter has the right to anoint any aspirant, we are all members of APC and we stand on that. It is today that Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu officially presented himself to the party as an aspirant, an intending candidate of the party, and the process begins today.

“If you look at the calendar of APC, the issue of somebody been anointed does not hold water, and we want to let you know that he is going ahead with the race and whatever have been done can be considered as a sham and is not in line with the direction of the NWC of the party,” he insisted.

Meanwhile, following the collapse of the arrangement, the ruling party has raked in over N400 million from the sale of expression of interest and nomination forms to the eight aspirants that have so far purchased the forms.

Information sourced at the Organising department of the ruling party in Abuja, confirmed that the following aspirants have picked forms as at Wednesday afternoon.

They include Prince Clem Agba, Monday Okpebholo, Hon. Lucky Imasuen, Hon. Anamero Dekeri, Pastor Osagie Andrew Ize-Iyamu, Gideon Ikhine, Col. David Onabure Imuse and Major. General Charles Airhiavbere (Rtd).

Also speaking to newsmen after picking his form, the immidiate past state chairman of the party, David Imuse, who is among the anointed aspirants said he is on mission to rescue the state from bleeding further.

“Primary is purely a party affairs, we have contributed our quota to the growth of this party, the next stage is governance of Edo. For those of you from Edo state, you know that in the last eight years in spite of our great human and material resources, the government of the state headed by Obaseki have not been able to fulfill the legitimate expectations of our people, Edo have been left to drift.

“Edo is bleeding, Edo is in a coma, in a state of severe hemorrhage, the state needed to be rescued, we need to reset Edo state. Today my purchase of this form is a clear demonstration, of my commitment in resetting Edo state. It is my commitment to rescue our people from the deadly fangs of the political predators and vampires, that presently occupies the state Government House in Osadebe Avenue,” he declared.