Edo 2024: Oshiomhole And The Parable Of The Desperate Farmer
Thompson Eferakeya
Once upon a time, a farmer driven by desperation went to his plantain farm to see if he could get some to harvest for sale. He toured the large expanse of farm and could only find one young and certainly unfit for consumption.
But the farmer’s ambition drove him to cut down the plantain, harvested the yet to mature and certainly unfit for consumption bunch and took it to the market for sale.
On arrival at the market, he immediately became the cynosure of all eyes. People were aghast, and asked in hush tones if the farmer had gone insane. How on earth could a man bring a bunch of immature plantain to the market for sale, they asked? People listened as he advertised the pitiable article, they were not interested. They asked him why he embarked on such a shameful venture. He told them he needed to raise money urgently for a project. His listeners replied they would not buy. They insisted that if he was shameless to bring such an article to the market for sale, they would not be shameless to patronize him. At the close of the market, he left with his head bowed, covered with shame as he abandoned the worthless article.
Ahead of the September 21 governorship election in Edo State, Senator Adams Oshiomhole is parading an immature bunch of plantain. He has forgotten that elections have consequences. He has carried to the market an unsuitable, unfit and unmarketable article for people to buy. Edo people will not buy an article that is unfit for purpose.
And to achieve his objective, he has effectively assumed the status and position of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress APC in Edo State, when he is not the man on the ballot. Edo people understand his game. They are by far wiser.
The candidate is increasingly looking like a ‘placeholder’. He has been reduced to a mere spectator in a game he is supposed to be the central striker.
Oshiomhole, in his bid to force his “slowed engine” candidate down the throat of Edo people, has fully taken up the roles of being the face, mouth and body of the candidate, all in a bid to hide his inadequacies from the public and project a false image of him to Edo people.
This is unacceptable to Edo people. The good and highly enterprising people of Edo State, who are generally well enlightened, will not allow Oshiomhole to continue to push an unfit person for such an exalted office as the Governor of Edo State.
Oshiomhole is being clever by half. He cannot be hiding a man he knows does not have what is the irreducible minimum requirement to govern Edo State to be voted for as governor. That is hypocrisy of the highest order.
What Oshiomhole has done is to harvest an immature bunch of plantain to the market for sale. The people in the market are looking at him, they cannot be persuaded to buy an article they will never be proud of. Elections have consequences.
Eferakeya writes from Benin City, Edo State.
