Rev. Peter Obadan is a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Deputy Governor of Edo state. In this interview, he bares his mind on the recent defection of some APC members to  Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, the Osun governorship election and other national issues. Excerpts:

By Simon Ebegbulem

HIS take on the deployment of the military for elections
I will tell you I am not worried if the idea is to keep the peace. I know both the military and the police are there to serve all parties. Although their presence could keep some innocent ones at home because if you look at the Osun election results, where you have 400 registered and 200 were accredited, almost close to 50 per cent did not show up.

Fear has been created in the heart of men and there is no doubt that some could have stayed back thinking that it could be rough.
But  I think their presence was also welcomed because their presence will scare those who came to snatch the ballot papers. Again let us not forget, it is because we are having a single state election.

When the whole country is involved how are you going to police the entire country the way you have policed these states? This is where Jega’s reliance should not be wholly on the police but thoroughly educating the public and wearing the coat of transparency. And when that is done then we can achieve the level of international community.

On defection of some APC members to PDP in Edo
Well, there is no boundary in political parties and people are free to exit when they decide to exit. Any day, any time APC will still win and govern Edo state. I will not want to judge those who left APC because they have their individual reasons for leaving but the time of sharing the wealth of the state is gone.

I am happy they are not saying that they are leaving because Oshiomhole did not work, but they are simply leaving because they failed to achieve their personal interest which is not the interest of the people of Edo state and that is unfortunate.

I think they could not bring themselves to the knowledge of the current dispensation where democratic principles are applied to issues and based on that, for flimsy reasons some left. But I can assure you that it is not going to affect the fortunes of the party in Edo state.

Where you have one or two leaving, you have about 10 coming in. The party is not shaken at all. You can imagine this feeling in the air that what happened in Ekiti will be replicated in Osun, but it was not so. If the votes counted properly in Osun state, you will discover that the PDP did not even score 25 per cent.

We know the expectations of the people in Edo state and many people must be put into consideration, the rot of the past cannot be fixed in 20 years. Like we always say, it is always very difficult to build but to destroy is very easy. This state was utterly destroyed before Oshiomhole came in and we have seen the changes today. So for those who left the party, we can only wish them well anywhere they are.

Don’t you have fears that the PDP might use the Federal might to manipulate the election in Edo state?
I am sure Osun state PDP got all the assistance they needed from the federal level. The federal might was there to intimidate APC members. They had all the money there, whatever they wanted they got, but that did not shake Aregbesola. We know that the chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees is from Edo state, we respect him as our father.

We know all the money bags are in PDP, but Edo people are very principled and they cannot be bought with money. They have seen what Governor Oshiomhole is doing and they are also feeling it. They know the game plans of these money bags, it is not the issue of money, these fellows are just insatiable. Their decision to take over Edo state is to enhance their fortunes and not the fortunes of Edo people and that is the painful aspect of it.

Those are the issues APC has stamped out and that is why it is difficult to beat APC in Edo state. It is a party driven by democratic principles. It is a party where the ordinary person has a voice. We are turning around the believes of people in the past, we are changing things to ensure that the poor can also have a voice in the political setting and not being trampled upon every now and then.

What the APC is doing is creating the future for the unborn, creating the future for the poor, creating a level playing ground to everybody. To me, PDP is yet to begin but you have many of them who are mouthy, that is their asset. But to us in APC, we have the focus. The PDP will make all the noise to encourage the presidency to dole out money  to them that is all they are after. You can imagine those who left, the impression they created was that as they leave, APC will collapse, everybody will move with them. So we are not bothered, there is nothing you can do to stop APC, forget their boast, they are only after their personal interest.

But why the gang up against Oshiomhole in Edo especially from his kinsmen?
This is why I love the Bible, a prophet has no honour in his own town. And those you have mentioned are myopic about the potentials of Oshiomhole. They are myopic about the achievements of the governor. Unfortunately, we are all friends and brothers from that axis and I believe that the fact that Oshiomhole is from Edo North does not mean that all the positions must come from Edo North.

So, it is a case of light against darkness but the truth is that at the end of the day, they will go through the tunnel and still return to the bright light. I see all these fellows returning to APC and working with Oshiomhole. Like I said we are brothers and friends.