Ahead of the governorship election in Edo State slated for 2020, a former governorship aide, Hon. Roland Igbadumhe has harped on the need for the electorate to look beyond the two major parties- The All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
Hon. Igbadumhe who served as Senior Special Adviser on Entertainment to the then governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole stated this yesterday in a chat with our correspondent in Abuja.
Now a chieftain of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, on whose platform he ran for the Edo State House of Assembly Elections in 2018 and came third, Igbadumhe said the internal wrangling in the camp of Governor Godwin Obaseki and the APC national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole is not as a result of ideological differences but a war of ego between two estranged friends.
Calling on the electorate to also shun the PDP, the former governorship aide said only a new party hungry to make a difference in the lives of the people deserves a chance to be in Government House, Benin City.
He said: “The ongoing fight between Governor Obaseki and Comrade Oshiomhole is about selfish interest of a few and is not driven by the quest to make life suitable for the people. This is why I believe that neither the PDP which ruled the state for about 10 years nor the APC are good enough for our people.
“Edo state deserves more than it is getting now in terms of dividends of democracy and with the calibre of human resources we have in virtually all spheres of human endeavour, there is no way the state can’t be better if we put our hands on deck in 2020.
“Hired thugs have taken over the state and when you pick up a copy of newspaper today, all you see are the imprints of chaos occasioned by the fight to the finish by two powerful men who think more about themselves and little about Edo state.”
Hon. Igbadumhe who promised to speak up on the feud between Obaseki and Oshiomhole at the appropriate time, however, called on the two gladiators to call their supporters to order, warning that if not checked, the rivalry may rob the state of a free, fair and credible election in 2020.
“The accusations and counter-accusations of attacks by the politicians must stop now. Credible polls are only possible in an atmosphere of peace. They should not rob Edo of the opportunity to produce a new governor in 2020 because if they do, history will not forgive them.
“We have not learn any lesson as a people but I will like to appeal to them to sheathe their swords because Edo state belongs to all of us. Governance is all about service delivery but how can you do this when all you do is fight all day? Edo is ours to preserve, not to burn,” he added. Nigeria News
