Edo Guber Clash: PDP Questions Okpebholo’s Capability, Ighodalo Pledges to Uphold Obaseki’s Achievements

What has become a consistent vitriolic attack on the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, at every governorship campaign rally of the ruling People’s Democratic Party, PDP, continued on Thursday at Ubiaja, Esan South-East local government area of Edo State, where speaker after speaker took turns to mock Senator Monday Okpebholo, over his perceived poor communication skills, which had been the ruling party’s most adopted strategy to market its candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo, more so when both candidates are from the same Edo Central senatorial district.

The PDP had consistently pilloried Okpebholo for not being able to address the crowd at campaign rallies, while party leaders did all the talking, and whenever he did, it had taunted him for performing poorly.

 Kick-starting the Okpebholo-bashing at the commencement of the PDP’S state-wide campaign, speaker of the state House of Assembly, Blessing Sheriff Agbebaku, derisively described Okpebholo, the senator representing his senatorial district as “loading brain,” a veiled reference to his perceived inability to articulate his programmes, and lack of eloquence.

Ighodalo, dismissed his political rival as “a mediocre and incompetent” candidate, while Francis Inegbeneki, erstwhile chieftain of the APC who dumped the party following Okpebholo’s emergence as candidate of the party said he “lacks capacity”. The first lady of the state, Betsy Obaseki, similarly described him as incompetent.

The clincher was Governor Godwin Obaseki’s cheeky remark that had the government introduced its EdoBest educational policy earlier than it did, the state would not have produced “that kind of candidate that does not know how to read and write”.

Canvassing support for Ighodalo, Agbebaku, whose description of Okpebholo as “loading brain” was greeted with boisterous laughter by the crowd, praised his party’s candidate, whose brain, he posited, “is not loading, but packed with ideas”.

While describing Governor Godwin Obaseki as a cerebral man who had laid a foundation that only the candidate of the PDP, Asue Ighodalo and his running mate, Osarodion Ogie have the capacity to continue, Agbebaku said  “This is Edo state that has produced Professor Ambrose Alli as governor, Chief John Oyegun, a top Permanent Secretary as governor; Professor Oserheimen Osunbor as governor, and we have an Obaseki whose brain is on fire as governor, are you going to vote for somebody who lacks capacity and education?”

The speaker was confident that the PDP would win the election and promised to continue wooing voters as the D-day approached.

Exuding the same confidence, Ighodalo was sure Edo people would reject a mediocre and incompetent candidate presented by the opposition All Progressives Congress and vowed to enhance the socio-economic well-being of the people by building upon the development legacies of the outgoing government, if elected.

While asserting that Governor Godwin Obaseki had laid a solid foundation for a good and digitally inclined governance needed for optimal functionality in this 21st century, Ighodalo described the governor as good ‘developmental bricklayer’.

The PDP candidate assured that his administration would pay keen interest to people-centric sectors like security, education, health and welfare, amongst others, adding that Edo State had reclaimed its pride of place in Palm produce owing to Obaseki’s progressive administration.

He said “We are ready to continue where our governor stopped; we will take Edo State to the next level. If a man wants to build a house, he has to start from the foundation, Governor Obaseki has started the foundation, and we will continue from where he stopped. The works they have done for the past eight years will soon begin to show. By the next one year, we will begin to miss the governor, but myself and Osarodion Ogie will do our best to maintain his good works. We all know the suffering on the ground, we all know the problem in Nigeria.”

Ighodalo further promised that “I will boost agriculture, improve EdoBEST and build industries, among others to enhance the livelihoods of our people and ensure a prosperous, progressive state. I promise Edo people good governance”.

Addressing the people, Governor Godwin Obaseki, said Ighodalo was one of the advocates of the democracy being currently enjoyed in Nigeria, hence the need for Edo people to vote for him to continue his good works in Edo.

According to the outgoing governor, it took him time to convince Ighodalo to come out of his comfort zone to contest, stressing that “For somebody to give up so much, he is not looking for money, fame, and fortune; he just has the love of his people at heart. If we had started the EdoBEST earlier, we would not have produced that kind of candidate that does not know how to read and write; he would have known how to read, write, and think”.

Governor Obaseki’s wife, Betsy, said the PDP was the first to ensure fairness by bringing Ighodalo, from Edo Central, as the candidate, while the others were just copying the PDP. The first lady regretted that “surprisingly, they brought somebody who is not competent. But remember that Edo is always first and believes in fairness and equity; that is why the governor worked to bring the candidate from here”.

Mrs. Obaseki said “This governor respects law and order, fears God, and loves the people. That is why an Esan man has been picked to govern the state and continue where the incumbent stops. That Esan man is Asue Ighodalo, not the other one who can’t speak English.”

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and a national leader of the party, Tom Ikimi, appealed to President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to provide a level playing field for all the parties contesting the election.

On his part, Inegbeneki said contrary to reports that he was on the run, he was not, adding that “after 24 years waiting to produce the governor, we cannot produce Okpebholo because he lacks capacity. I have left the APC for good; I am now in PDP, and we in Esan, have unanimously agreed to vote for Asue Ighodalo. I saw Oshiomhole jumping; somebody should tell him that his era is over. If they win, they will take Edo backward”.