Former Secretary to Edo State Government, Pastor Ize Iyamu, on Wednesday passed a damning verdict on the administration of the incumbent governor of Edo state and his main rival for the party governorship ticket, Godwin Obaseki.
Pastor Iyamu believed to be the anointed choice of the All Progressives Congress national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole for the ticket ahead September election told newsmen shortly after picking his Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms that the present administration has been a colossal failure.
Pastor Iyamu who was the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party in the 2016 governorship election further claimed that Governor Obaseki has alienated all the party leaders in Edo state and instigated rancour.
He absolved Comrade Oshiomhole of blame in the raging cold war between him and Governor Obaseki.
He said:” We mean well for our state. We are not looking for positions simply because we need to look for something to occupy us. Even though what we have now is an APC Administration, we are not too happy with the pace of development. We are not happy with the rancour. We are not happy with the divisions. We are not happy with the insecurity and that cannot augur well for development. That was why we said our party cannot be changed, that it is better to change the incumbent and ensure that our party remains in office.
“In all the rifts in the party, I have not heard the national Chairman say anything against the governor. It has been one-way traffic. It has been the governor, his deputy and people in his government constantly and persistently abusing the national Chairman, who as a father has kept quiet. The governor has created a rift between himself and leaders of the party in Edo state because the people that put him there, he has dismissed them, used all kinds of negative adjectives to describe them. He has no relationship with them.”
Pastor Iyamu who justified the APC National Working Committee adoption of direct option for the primary fixed for next month, said Governor Obaseki’s claim that his emergence as the party standard-bearer was a done deal and not negotiable would be challenged.
“For me, the governor has a right to seek a second term but he cannot say that it is not negotiable because if that is your position, it means you are saying that the party should not even sell forms to anybody and that Edo people do not have the discretion as to chose who should be their governor. To say it is not negotiable is to rubbish the rest of us who also have a right to contest.
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“If they want us to do indirect so be it if they want us to do directly so be it. If you want to use the COVID-19 situation what should be recommended really is direct because the direct decentralize the system. Meanwhile indirect will congregate people in one place in thousands to come and vote.”
Also speaking with newsmen, the National Organising Secretary of the party, Emma Ibediro assured that the party National Working Committee was determined to conduct the transparent, rancour-free primary.
“The APC is a party that is given to observing the rule of law, our constitution and the guidelines in all our activities and I want to assure the aspirants that this party will offer every aspirant the level playing ground
“Naturally, the social media has been awash with a lot of comments, but I want to assure you that contrary to what people may think, I am very optimistic that the forthcoming primary will prove this party as a party that will be far to all.
“The processes that will lead to the primaries will be so transparent that whoever wins we know that he has won and whoever loses, it will be obvious that you have lost.”
Ibediro appealed to all the aspirants to rally behind whoever emerged victorious in next month primary.
“I urge all of you to see this contest as a game.
“Any time you are seeking political office, you must also not discount the God factor. If God decides to choose A or B as the winner of the contest, we will expect the other aspirants to support whoever will emerge as the candidate of the party, so that we can go into the main struggle of convincing the great people of Edo state, to bring our party back to Osadebe House.
“I want to assure you that any other aspirant that come for the same purpose, we will be very willing and ready to issue our nomination form to the person who has satisfied all conditions.”
“Our major opponent, the PDP is praying for an implosion of our party, but I want to assure them that they will wait forever and wait for nothing. This election, by the way, we are going to conduct it, will leave no one in doubt that the APC is more united more than ever.”
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