By Emmanuel Aziken

After nearly one year of bluster that blighted the victory of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the Edo State governorship election of 2020, stakeholders now see light at the end of the tunnel.

The expectation came after a conciliatory statement from Governor Godwin Obaseki on Thursday night in which he strongly rebuffed social media comments linking him to some pervasive actions. He did not, however, open up on the inferences.

Indeed, for the first time in a long while, the governor was preaching peace after months of a verbal altercation that had seen him hit hard at some party chiefs, and notably, some of the leading lights in the PDP who helped him in winning a second term.

In the statement personally signed by him, the governor said:

“There has been a flurry of statements and comments on social media by mischief makers who are hiding under the pretext of the ongoing conversation between leaders within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to stir crisis and cause disaffection.

“These statements and irresponsible behavior are outrightly condemned. We hereby distance ourselves from the actions of these detractors.

“The National leadership of the party is already dealing with the issues and we are open to the harmonious resolution of whatever concerns that may arise.”

The assertion by the governor that the national leadership was looking into the issues was remarkably different from his claim two weeks earlier when he had closed the door on party members who he said should leave the party if they would not bend to his desires as the leader of the party in the state.

Notable among those he named was Chief Dan Orbih, the national vice-chairman, South-South of the party. Remarkably, Orbih was the governor’s campaign manager who took him around the state and PDP enclaves in his second term campaign.

Before the recent assertion, the governor had at a stakeholders’ meeting called in Government House last October presided over a motion that called for the suspension of Orbih from the party.

That move just before the national convention of the party was interpreted in some quarters to stop Orbih who is the leader of the party in the South-South from attending the convention. The move, however, failed after a court upturned the motion and Orbih made a loud appearance at the convention.

Central to the crisis in the party has been the campaign by the governor to “harmonize” the party executive committees across all levels. The argument of those supportive of the move is that the governor ordinarily should be given the structure to dictate all exco members as it is done in some other parties and states.

The argument was based on the claim that those who defected with the governor from the All Progressives Congress, APC should be given positions of authority within the state executive committees.

However, that argument has been rebuffed by the claim that the PDP’s constitution does not allow for harmonization after the emergence of party executives in a congress. Unfortunately for the governor, he came into the party just three or so months after the PDP conducted its quadrennial congresses.

Even more, the PDP in Edo State had under the leadership of Orbih won a national reputation as one of the most vibrant opposition parties even defeating the APC and the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN in National Assembly, and presidential elections in 2011, 2015, and 2019.

However, while many in the original PDP were initially welcoming of plans to lure some party officials into government with appointments, the dithering procrastination in the formation of the cabinet became an issue.

Without appointments, many questioned why they should step down to allow supporters of the governor from the APC to take their positions in the party.

The hardening of positions became even more after the APC followers of the governor took the positions of the deputy governor, Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Chief of Staff among other appointments that were made at the initial formation of the government.

Meanwhile, the push for harmonization or restructuring of the executive committees was also helped by some PDP chieftains. Some of the chieftains with big names but with the little following on the ground hoped to use the harmonization exercise to put their lackeys into the executive committees in the course of harmonization.

Meanwhile, as the standoff continued, Orbih who was seen as the main target of the harmonization given that the party had been built in his image shockingly kept quiet. Orbih and his supporters rather used the courts to push forward their arguments.

What, however, burst the bubble was the comment by the deputy governor, Comrade Philip Shaibu at a reception for the national chairman, Senator Iyorcha Ayu penultimate week where he said that supporters of the governor had become exasperated with the frustrations over the harmonization exercise.

According to him, the exercise had been frustrated at the national level which refused to back it. He particularly mentioned the case of Anslem Ojezua, the chairman of the APC who left his position to join the PDP.

Remarkably, as he spoke the state PDP chairman, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi was seated with some questioning what could turn out to be his fate.

It was, however, the assertion by Shaibu that supporters of Obaseki had options and alternatives that drew the ire of Governor Nyesom Wike who was the chairman of the PDP campaign council that brought about the re-election of 2020.

His stinging rebuke attacking Shaibu was rebuffed by Obaseki who in newspaper advertorials asked the Rivers State governor to mind his business and not be a bully.

“The recent personal attacks by His Excellency, the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, against my Deputy, Comrade Philip Shaibu, is, to say the least, most unfortunate and uncalled for,” Obaseki deposed.

“If Governor Wike was one who is wont to show respect and courtesy to his colleague-governors, he would have ordinarily reached out to me to express his concerns about the views made by my deputy, rather than embarking on this unwarranted public onslaught.”

Wike was to hit back at a function in his state, accusing Obaseki as a serial betrayer, saying that betrayal was in the Edo governor’s DNA. He spoke about Obaseki’s fallout with Comrade Adams Oshiomhole who broke political bones for his first term election.

Wike while describing Obaseki as a “tenant” in the PDP who has never done anything for the party also rebuffed the “bully” label.

“You came to beg a bully for you to have a ticket. A bully was your DG campaign and a bully bullied you into government house. You came back with your wife to thank the bully,” he added about Betsy Obaseki, the normally gentle Edo First Lady who is from a royal family in Rivers State.

The attack between the two governors according to sources was what led to the postponement of the National Executive Committee, NEC meeting of the party as originally scheduled as it was to allow tempers to cool.

Meanwhile, peace appeared to have been further enforced after a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja gave judgment in a suit brought by the Assistant State Secretary of the party, Baba Sheriff Idenobemhe.

The court in its judgment ordered the PDP not to dissolve or tamper with the executive committees until 2024, saying that the party cannot go against its constitution by allowing the tinkering of the executives before the next congress in 2024.

Given the developments and the hullabaloo that followed the altercation with Wike that everybody including the governor and his reluctant followers in the Original PDP are now desirous of peace.