By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor

Comrade Adams Oshiomhole successfully interrupted the hegemony of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Edo State. Now, as stakeholders ponder the future without Oshiomhole, the men of yesteryears jostling for reckoning are being made to confront their past.

It is a mystery that continues to amaze many Edolites. As a local government chairman in the zero party system thrown up by the Ibrahim Babangida administration, Mr. Lucky Igbinendion performed wonders in Oredo local government area, especially in the delivery of democracy dividends.

His second outing in public office as governor of Edo State on the platform of the PDP between 1999 and 2007 in the view of many, including key aides and associates was at best a letdown.

Governor Adams Oshiomhole and Chief Lucky Igbinedion

Now, six years after Chief Igbinendion exited the office of governor echoes of the past are now reverberating on the political landscape of the Heartbeat State in a simulation of the shape and style of the politics to come.

Delivering a lecture in Benin last weekend, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, arguably one of the most powerful figures within the Igbinendion government gave reasons for what he claimed to be the constraints of that administration.

Absence of manifesto
Ize-Iyamu, head of the GRACE group which provided the structure that produced Comrade Adams Oshiomhole as governor on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN cited the debt overload inherited from the military, the absence of a manifesto by the PDP and the dominance brought on the politics and government by a godfather, assumed to be Chief Tony Anenih.

“The PDP that produced the governor of the state between 1999 and 2007 had no manifesto, blue print or plan for governance and Edo State was actually personified by one lead character that was literally worshipped as the owner and giver of political power. The pressure and subtle threat from the god father and his supporters were excessive and distractive in the process of project planning and execution as well as management of resources of the state”.

His assertion immediately drew the ire of the incumbent state PDP chairman, Chief Dan Orbih who said the assertions were an admission that the Igbinendion administration failed.

“I want to state that looking at the profile of that government from 1999 up to the time they left office, there was no office or position created by that government which was supposed to be occupied by a godfather,” Orbih said at a press conference earlier this week.

“What I could pick from his statement is that on his own, he has publicly admitted that they failed as a government. What ought to have followed that admittance is an apology and not to be looking for innocent people to put the blame of their failures on”.

“It is a mark of statesmanship for people to own up to their failure; if he has admitted that as Secretary to the State Government, it is not Lucky Igbinedion, it is a collective responsibility of all the adults in that government, also, I don’t want people to single out Chief Lucky Igbinedion as the one that failed.

Chief Orbih

Orbih’s assertion of collective failure was no doubt a deliberate effort to indict Ize-Iyamu, given the latter’s much speculated gubernatorial ambition. Orbih’s assertion it is believed has already excited the parallel faction of the ACN led by the deputy governor, Mr. Pius Odibo who also has gubernatorial ambition.

Orbih’s assertions were faulted by one of the political stakeholders from the state, Barrister Robert Okpaivbe who is himself a confidant of Ize-Iyamu who accused Orbih of political mischief or ignorance.

Taking Orbih up on the assertion that there is no constitutional role for a godfather in the PDP, Okpaivbe said: “Orbih’s statement is laughable as it is equally mischievous. How did Orbih who was a member of defunct APP become State Chairman of PDP?

Okpaivbe defends Ize-Iyamu
“To say there was no manipulative and over bearing godfather in Edo State PDP because there is no constitutional role for one is to deny the obvious and being hypocritical.”

“During the reign of Igbinedion, who said there was no vacancy in Government House? Even in the last governorship election, where PDP lost woefully who ordered Orbih and his executive to withdraw from the law suit by PDP against governor Oshiomhole”.

On the assertion that the PDP lacked a manifesto during the Igbinendion years, Okpaivbe said: “What Ize Iyamu means is that the PDP may pretend to have a manifesto on paper but over the years there is no clear cut commitment to any recognizable ideals by PDP”.

According to him: “in the Second Republic the NPN was known for commitment to Agriculture, the UPN was noted for its free education programme but today what can you say the PDP stands for?

Chief Anenih

Also, you will discover no similarity in the execution of programmes by the PDP governors across the states unlike where you see a definite commitment and similarities to set goals like improving internally generated revenue, education, provision of good roads and infrastructure across all the ACN States. So it is obvious the PDP has no manifesto or commitment to any as their leaders don’t even insist on such commitment.”

Okpaivbe said as he defended his associate who he said was the first person to openly challenge the dominance of the godfather with through his GRACE group with its slogan, ‘No man is God.’

Besides Ize-Iyamu, another former senior PDP stakeholder that has also been made to confront the past is Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, the incumbent secretary to the state government and former Presidential Adviser on Project Monitoring.

Ihonvbere had in a statement following Anenih’s controversial call for automatic tickets for the incumbent president and governors, chided the PDP chieftain describing his call as evidence of the continuing lack of democratic principles in his former party.

“That is his (Anenih) style as usual, corruption and contaminating the political process. When they are afraid of competition they look for short cut. It is one way of telling people don’t even bother. But that is not in the PDP constitution or in the constitution of Nigeria,” Ihonvbere said in an interview.

The PDP was quick to lash out at its former member as it in a statement last Tuesday recycled past statements of Ihonvbere to flay his lack of political fidelity. PDP’s Administrative Secretary, Mr Gabriel Oloruntobi in the statement, made several comparisons of Prof. Ihonvbere’s past statements about the alleged failures of the Oshiomhole’s government and his present defence of the governor.

“Lately, PDP has become the pre-occupation of this failed governorship aspirant. If one may ask, what is the business of this Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN busybody in the internal affairs of PDP?  It is obvious he is being a meddlesome interloper,” PDP said.