By Jane Uyi Orobosa
Members of the Obidient Movement from all over the world are vehemently opposed to Peter Obi’s planned visit to Edo State to endorse the candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata.
According several of them our team of reporters interviewed, they were unanimous in their aversion for Akpata’s candidacy under LP.
“See, I cannot be in support of what is not moral,” Omoladun Isibor, a Benin City resident, told one of our reporters. “Akpata is from the same Edo South Senatorial District with the outgoing Governor, Godwin Obaseki. Assuming Akpata wins, which is unlikely anyway, how would you feel if he takes over from the someone who is his relative? What happens to the other two senatorial districts? I am Benin and a member of the Obidient Movement, I fully support zoning, and that was why we left our former party to support Obi for the 2023 election to counter the northern hegemony. Wont it be ironical that after we did all that at the national, we will now come to Edo State to say “to hell with zoning?” That is double standard my brother. I cannot be part of such arrangement; I have my integrity to protect”.
Omagbon Osaro was more lacerating in his rejection of Peter Obi’s support for Akpata. “Akpata does not stand on the tripod of justice, equity and fairness. He stands on nothing. We need to start telling ourselves the plain truth. Peter Obi could not have gotten our support in Edo State when he moved from PDP to Labour because Atiku was contesting and then come to Edo State to support a candidate who does not believe in zoning. The issue of zoning is beyond party politics, it is an issue of morality. In a state that is unequally shared into three political zones, it is only through zoning that inclusivity can be morally sort”.
Several other people we interviewed, who claimed to be members of the Obidient Movement within and outside Benin said almost the same things along these lines. However, Mrs Omonigho Ariyo was a bit more exhaustive. “Peter Obi would have excused himself from this planned visit diplomatically. However, if he comes, which I doubt, it will be a grave political mistake. Apart from the fact it is the turn of the Esan people to produce the next governor, Akpata was never part of us while we were working for Obi in 2022 and 2023. If we had said that we want to rid politics of these illicit money that had marred our development, how come we want to allow someone who bought delegates with one thousand dollars run under our party and movement? I cannot relate with this please. Again, you see Akpata is not a gentleman; he had a hand in the arrest and humiliation of Bar Abure, our National Chairman because Abure wanted an Esan candidate. Just imagine if this man becomes the Edo State governor. That means he will crush anyone opposed to him na…
“For some of us who are members of the Obidient Movement within Benin, we are not supporting him. We are meeting regularly, and we are clear about it. We are pitching tent with the candidate that has track record, that is competent, that has verifiable capacity, that is compassionate, that has umblemished character and who represents justice, equity and fairness”.
Some other member of the movement from Edo State who are in the Diaspora spoke along the same lines their Benin based counterparts spoke.
