…as Oshiomhole describe exercise as transparent

By Simon Ebegbulem

BENIN CITY — THREE members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the Edo State House of Assembly lost their bid to become candidates of their party in the forthcoming general elections in Tuesday’s primaries of the party.

The lawmakers,  Ohio Ezomo (Owan West), Sunday Aghedo (Ovia South West) and Bamidele Oloruntoba (Akoko Edo constituency II), were unlucky in the primaries despite the plea by Governor Adams Oshiomhole of the state to the leaders of the party in the affected areas to ensure the emergence of the lawmakers, who have given him support in the crisis between the APC lawmakers and their counterparts in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Meanwhile, Governor Oshiomhole has described the conduct of the primaries as peaceful and transparent, noting that election riggers do not fit into the “change” slogan of the party.

While the trio were unlucky, Deputy Speaker of the House, Victor Edoro; Chief Whip of the House, Folly Ogedengbe; Kabiru Adjoto (Akoko Edo constituency I), Sunday Osazemwinde (Ovia North East constituency I and Bright Osayande constituency II, were returned.

Others include immediate past Edo State Commissioner in the Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Henry Okhuarobo and former chairman of Egor Local Government Area of Edo State, Crosby Eribo.

Vanguard observed that majority of those who emerged in Edo South were consensus candidates while the consensus failed in Edo North senatorial district. Governor Oshiomhole, has, meanwhile hailed the exercise.

According to Oshiomhole, “I will be surprised if anybody who had participated in this transparent election decides to leave simply because he didn’t win. If such people want to leave, we will escort them out because it means they cannot fit into the logic and philosophy of ‘change.’

“The ‘Change’ we talk about is not just to change and replace the Federal Government of PDP, we also want to change the habit, the language of our political design and practice whereby, people use guns rather than ballot papers.”