By OSARO OMORUYI

Like the mythical phoenix, the PDP in Edo State has risen from the ashes of Tuesday, November 11, 2008 rebranded, re-focused and re-engineered for the struggles ahead by accommodating all shades of opinions and soothing frayed political nerves across the divide that cost it political power.

The state PDP has passed through the tunnel of defeat and the crucible of estrangement largely occasioned by unmitigated in-fighting and a very large dose of complacency.

It is trite knowledge that many foot soldiers, entrenched in the two sides of the political divide within the party between 2003 and, as recent as a month ago, sowed the Dragon teeth for personal gains, while the disagreement lasted.

Contrary to what the people have been fed with, the PDP did not invent crises, internal dissent or disenchantment. Neither is it laying claims to being an organisation that harbours only angels, untainted men and women and those who can never err nor does it have a patent to the constant sing song of godfatherism – a feature that is global and catholic in all human activities.

Those who nurtured and nursed the battered psyche of the party men and women who chose to remain as members of the PDP had the arduous task of toiling day and night building new bridges of understanding and confidence and down

Chief Anenih & President Jonathan

playing the crippling effects of the sudden loss of political power.

The frantic search for cure all

That the PDP is a formidable force in Edo is undisputable.

In order not to fall once again into the precipice of contrived electoral defeat, the state PDP leaders and the led (at all levels) have set aside their individual egos and fastly-held positions and are galvanising their collective strength into a homogeneous whole for the advancement of the party especially as the July 2012 gubernatorial poll beckons.

In the frantic search for a winning formula that will rattle and dislodge an opposition that has stridently riled and vilified it, the Edo PDP may tilt towards sentimental projections that will not translate to electoral advantage in the poll.

The Achille’s heel of the PDP in the state has always been the near-intractable issue of who flies the party’s ensign at all levels of electoral competition.

The hopes of many aspirants have been dashed in the past and slaughtered on the altar of indiscriminate imposition of electoral hardsells through skewed primaries donning the false façade of “free and fair” contests.

Zoning and the “Preferred” Candidate Syndrome

The contentious issue of zoning along senatorial lines and the “Na him go beat am” posturing should be de-emphasised in the critical choice of the PDP governorship flagbearer for the election.

The criteria of zoning or the parochial adherence to senatorial sentiments should not subsume those indices of good leadership that will move Edo positively forward. Good leadership qualities do not have geographic correlations and should not be pigeon-holed thereof.

In choosing the governorship standard bearer of the Edo PDP that will match the opposition neck and neck, the following prime factors must form the acceptable benchmark to ensure the overall success of the party.

The quintessential candidate for Osadebay Avenue, Benin City in 2012 should possess confidence, character, charisma, commitment, competence, courage, unfazed focus, initiative, compassion, unwavering vision, humility, fairness, tolerance, identification with positive causes, history of accountability and zero tolerance for corruption, etc.

In addition, the candidate should have a proven track record of positive and untainted service; verifiable achievements and strides at either state, national, continental or global stages; accessibility and grassroots appeal; experience and exposure; positive networks, connections and interfaces with the larger society and acceptability across the passive and active sectors of the political spectrum in Edo.

The electability of a party candidate goes beyond ethnic sentiments and self-serving party permutations, especially when you are confronting a sitting opponent whose mantra of “One Man, One Vote” fizzles out to nothingness when called to action stations on election day.

The Perking Order and the Osunbor Factor

As at the last count, the PDP in Edo parades four visible governorship aspirants, with a fifth yet to formally withdraw from the race, according to speculations.

Professor Osherheimen A. Osunbor leads the pack in a tally that also includes Kenneth Imansuagbon, Major-General Charles E. Airhiavbere (retd), and Mr. Egietseme Idinye, a presenter with the Africa Independent Television (AIT).

Of the lot, Osunbor parades the political wherewithal to convincingly upstage the opposition because of his avowed commitment to the welfare and uplift of the average Edolite in the areas of corporate good governance, due diligence, accountability and sustainable development when he held fort as the governor of Edo between May 29, 2007 and November 11, 2008.

Edolites remember him as the one who, within the 18-month period he was the helmsman of the state, provided suitable interventions, palliative measures and permanent solutions to the challenges of infrastructural development, human capital development, healthcare delivery, education, agriculture, adequate security etc, albeit, with a human face and touch.

It is noteworthy that Osunbor has thrown his hat into the governorship ring with a strong signal and commitment to replace the over-bearing civilian dictatorship, misplacement of priorities, systemic plunder and reckless borrowing with those pristine values and best practices of good governance he has been noted for in his first coming.

It is salutary to note that thousands of kindred elements in the party have identified with Osunbor’s renewed vigour to advance the frontiers of the promotion of the common good; the upliftment of Edo people from poverty; the construction of enduring bridges and platforms of peace, dialogue and security and the transparent and strategic utilisation of the state’s scarce resources in the interest of all Edo people without harassing, dehumanising and embarrassing them all in the name of “governance”.

•Omoruyi, a political commentator, is based in Benin City