The All Progressives Congress (APC) is looking to take advantage of the recent turmoil within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State as the September 21 governorship election approaches.
This strategic move was confirmed in separate interviews with Edo APC Chairman Jarret Tenebe and the party’s Woman Leader, Mrs. Patricia Okoebor-Benson.
The PDP recently expelled two key members, former deputy governor Philip Shaibu and National Vice Chairman for the South-South region, Dan Orbih, citing allegations of anti-party activities. Despite this, the PDP maintains that the expulsions will not affect their chances in the upcoming election.
In contrast, the APC views the situation as a significant advantage for their candidate, Senator Monday Okphebolo. Edo APC Chairman Jarret Tenebe stated that the party is eager to exploit the PDP’s internal issues.
He said, “The thing is that every political party, once an election like this is coming, will want problems in the other party for them to benefit. And if it happens the way things are going (in Edo PDP), I am praying that we will be the ultimate beneficiary of the entire process.
“The truth is that a sensible party will want to hold on to their best hands. These people they are trying to do away with include the South-South Vice Chairman of the PDP (Orbih), an honourable member who has served in the House of Reps for eight years and also a governorship aspirant of the party (Ihama). You can also talk about the deputy governor who they foolishly impeached when a major election was coming.
“So I believe and pray for the matter not to be settled so that we can cash in on it because if we have these calibres of people in our party, then the PDP would not have peace in this governorship election coming up in Edo.”
Echoing Tenebe’s sentiments, APC Woman Leader Patricia Okoebor-Benson expressed confidence in the party’s prospects. She asserted that the expulsion of Shaibu, Ihama, and Orbih is a clear advantage for the APC.
“I can assure you it is a win-win situation for the APC. With them, it is an advantage,” she stated, predicting a victory for the APC on September 21.
However, the PDP camp remains defiant. Ibrahim Abdullahi, the PDP Deputy National Publicity Secretary, acknowledged the internal disagreements over the expulsions but downplayed their impact on the election.
He said, “We collectively are not in support of the decision taken at the state level. A few of us felt it was the way to go. But I am not one of those though. I would have loved people like Dan Orbih to be persuaded well enough. I have spoken in times past to that effect. I don’t see any reason why a factor like him in the South-South would be lost in that manner. I feel it is a minus for us.
“As for the former deputy governor, I do not want to glorify him too much. He saw to it, knew the tide was against him and decided to play to the gallery. If you have a boss like Obaseki who was determined to rubbish you, you need to tread carefully. We saw what he was doing and some of us were concerned about him.
“There was no way you would fight your boss the in manner he was going. Can you imagine Vice President Kashim Shettima fighting Tinubu in such a manner? How far will that take him? It is not politics of ideology and principles we are playing. It is politics of survival. So I saw him deploy too many arsenals against his boss and knew it was only going to be a question of time because he wasn’t going to survive it.
“For me, it is good riddance to bad rubbish. He doesn’t have the electoral capital. But for Dan Orbih, a chairman of Edo State on two consecutive terms and later South-South chairman, there is no denying the fact that he is a factor to reckon with indeed. Therefore, some of us feel terrible to lose him. But I don’t think he will want to work against his own party. What does he stand to gain from that?”
