As Edo Decides

In less than 24hours, the good people of Edo State will be filing out to decide the course of the next four years of the existence of their state. I can only wish them well.


The sitting Governor Adams Oshiomole has certainly made a mark on the lives of Edo people as evidenced by the endorsements he has received far and wide. He has taken the same vigor and pro-activeness that earned him a good reputation as NLC Chairman into the Edo State Government House and one must commend him for that.


Not to play down Oshiomole's effectiveness and efficiency but its hard to do any wrong if you are taking over from Lucky Igbinedion and Ose Osunbor. Lucky raped Edo State mercilessly everyday for 8 solid years and did it very confidently. Osunbor was so inert that I won't waste time berating him.


The main contestants for the Edo prime office are the incumbent and Maj. Gen. Charles Airhiavbere (rtd). While the latter has been automatically and fundamentally faulted by his running on the platform of the PDP, Mr Adams has enjoyed appreciable goodwill from all walks of life. 


I try to remain as non-partisan as possible in my perspective, thus proceed with an open mind. 


Two days ago, I heard the old warhorse, Chief Tony 'Mr Fixit' Anenih, addressing a rally on behalf  Charles Airhiavbere and he told Edo people at that rally that PDP now had a candidate that was going to provide schools, hospitals and roads and maintained that Adams Oshiomole was an irresponsible man. Now, this is the same old man that raised Lucky Igbinedion's hands in 1999 as the savior of Edo State. We all know how that turned out. It is thus safe to say that either Papa Anenih has developed full blown senile dementia or he is just a terrible judge of people and character. 


It is also hard to ignore the mischief the PDP has played in Edo State. Last week, social media was agog with news that the Oba of Benin shunned the President and other high ranking criminals who had come to his palace on a courtesy visit. The Oba behaved honorably and I must say I was thoroughly impressed by his firmness. A lot of people do not know GEJ went there with Charles Airhiavbere and the Oba in trying not to give the erroneous impression that he was endorsing the PDP candidate wittingly declined a public reception for the misguided entourage. He however hosted our dear President privately.


We can also not ignore the inundation of the streets of Benin with troops of the Nigerian Army, almost in a manner suggestive that the Presidency anticipates a war in Benin during the elections. GEJ certainly chooses carefully when to wield his power as C-in-C and order out the armored tanks. Thumbs up Sir.


In terms of the quality of the competition, Adams has little to lose sleep over. My concern however is the disturbing trend of Nigerian politicians especially Presidents and Governors and their demeanor during their second terms in office.


We all remember a certain Otunba Gbenga Daniel, who when he took over as Ogun State Governor, we all believed was the man sent from God. As a medical student then, I plied the Benin-Sagamu expressway a lot and I remember vividly during OGD's first term, how Ogun State Road Maintenance Agency (OGROMA) dutifully did repair works on that expressway. It was more interesting to note that the expressway was not a state road but a federal one. OGD was that selfless, he claimed he was using state funds to fix federal infrastructure. He was well applauded for his intiative and strength of character. Alas, the tragedy that befell Ogun people in OGD's second term is now written in marble. It was a different man that returned for the second term and he stole as if he had overnight, developed a obsessive-compulsive disorder to loot or better still, had been possessed by an ogbanje spirit or demon. Some even proffered theories that OGD's alter ego was the one that ruled between 2007 and 2011. He was simply on a rampage.


More recently, Babatunde Fashola, a man tagged the most progressive Nigerian Governor showed us how a first term can be on Earth and the second, on Pluto. The buzz BRF generated in his first term was almost hysterical. 'Eko o ni baje' became a common line in almost every household in Lagos. Even though a school of thought holds that BRF's seeming infrastructural development was simply completion of projects initiated by his predecessor, he still shone very brightly. In his second term however, BRF has toned down on the action and is now a 'Nigerian Politician'. Even though he has not been totally somnolent in his second term, he certainly has lost some steam and gained some hefty security vote sums.


Some of us remember BRF's response when asked about second term during his first term. His response was that only dull kids repeat a class so why would he repeat his term if he didn't fail. That's now water under the bridge. No be so?


This is why I am genuinely worried for Edo people as they exercise their enfranchisement at the polls tomorrow. Yes, of the candidates standing for election tomorrow, Adams is eon years ahead of his contenders. But Edo people must be wary as they thumbprint. They must not just speak tomorrow, they must decide to be heard. This involves holding whoever wins tomorrow accountable once the term begins. They must start to plan on how to #Occupy the Government House in an unflinching and fearless manner should the Executive fail to deliver on its pre-election campaign promises. Enough of the sweet words, they must demand action.


Personally, I strongly recommend the idea of second terms should be done away with until our politicians prove to us that the second term won't be a pension-plan tenure for them. They know they are leaving at the end of that term thus throw caution to the wind in their service. They have absolutely nothing to lose, they cannot be unseated, except through death, till they complete that term. Some may argue that second terms aid continuity in government;I also think second terms abet corruption. We must weigh these very carefully.


May the best man win tomorrow.




Follow 'Wole @drwalls28 on Twitter.