Same Old Story And Same Old Campaign Strategy.
By Cofeimun
I started voting 41 years ago in Nigeria. And for the over four decades of my voting life, gubernatorial elections campaign has always been carried out with the same story especially in Edo south.
The story always borders on a particular candidate or those around him as being labelled as enemies of the highly Reverend Oba of Benin and the Benin royal palace. But how much this campaign strategy has yielded positive results is to be carefully analysed.
In the then Bendel state 1983 gubernatorial election between Prof. Ambrose Alli and Gen. Ogbemudia, there was a campaign against Prof. Alli, that he attempted splitting Benin kingdom into two by proposing to create one EGBEMA kingdom, and thereby, Prof. Alli was labelled an enemy of the Oba and enemy of the Benin kingdom. Though Gen. Ogbemudia was declared the winner of that election, it clear enough that it was not because of that campaign against Prof. Alli, but because of the massive electoral rigging by the then NPN using their federal might.
In 1991, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun ran against Chief Lucky Igbinadion in a two party election, and Chief Gabriel Igbinadion was labelled as the enemy of the Oba and the enemy of the Benin Royal palace, though it was made believe that Chief Oyegun defeated Chief Lucky Igbinadion because of the campaign strategy, but those with understanding knew that Chief Lucky Igbinadion lost that election to a superior candidate in Chief. Oyegun.
Though in 1999 the campaign of being an enemy of the Oba and the Benin palace was against Chief Lucky Igbinedion, the election this time around favoured Chief. Lucky Igbinedion because of the military support for PDP.
In the subsequent elections, the Oba and the Benin palace was not a campaign strategy, until the 2016 gubernatorial election that produced Mr. G. O. Obaseki.
In 2016, the Edo electorates were reminded of the purported sins of Chief. Agho Obaseki, the great grandfather of Mr. G.O. Obaseki, how the great grandfather Obaseki betrayed Oba Ovonramwen and connived with Capt. Philip to deport the Oba, and that Mr. Godwin Obaseki and Comrade Philip Shaibu were the modern day Chief. Agho Obaseki and Capt. Philip of the 1897 Benin invasion. Yet Mr. Obaseki won the election due to the federal might.
In 2020, it was an open secret that the Oba and the Benin palace was obviously against Mr. G. O. Obaseki, so much so that Mr. G. O. Obaseki, a seating governor, and his campaign entourage was attacked with guns at the palace gate in the present of the ancestors, without the ancestors dealing with those criminal elements who perpetrated such disrespectful and shameful acts against the highly Reverend Oba and the Benin palace. However, Mr. G. O. Obaseki won the election before noon.
Election is once again around the corner and Mr. G. O. Obaseki is again labelled as an enemy of the Oba and the Benin palace with the intention to pull down his party candidate and the candidate of his support without asking ourselves how much this campaign strategy has produced positive results in the past.
One thing the proponents of this campaign strategy always fail to realise is that the major areas they are always out to reach with this old story is a metropolitan area with more than 60% populated by non Benins whose political positions can not be influenced by Benin palace affairs, while more than 15 % of the other remaining percentage are intellectually minded people that can not be influenced by palace affairs as well. Moreover you also have a high population of Christians who have bad long breaks from the beliefs in ancestors and so cannot be influenced by the Benin palace affairs.
I can categorically say that in my over 40 years as a voter, this “enemy of Oba and Benin palace” campaign strategy has never helped any candidate to win elections.
Prof. Alli was rigged out in 1983.
In 1991, Chief. Lucky Igbinadion lost to a superior candidate in Chief. Oyegun.
In 1999, Chief Lucky Igbinedion defiled the campaign and won due to PDP federal might.
In 2016, Obaseki defiled the campaign and won due to APC federal might.
In 2020 again, Obaseki again defiled the campaign and won due to popular support from the Edo state voters.
The campaign strategy that did not help to win elections in the past cannot certainly help today, hoping to be proven wrong.
Every candidate and their parties should be ready for an issue based campaign rather than engaging in this old story and old campaign strategy that has never helped in the past.
God bless Edo state.
By Cofeimun
