Report by Innocent Okoh
An APC leader in Uhunmwonde LGA of Edo state and two-time chairman of the council area, Hon. Napoleon Agbama, has lambasted governorship candidates of Labour Party [LP] Olumide Akpata and that of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP], Asue Ighodalo in the Edo election, describing them as strangers in the state.
Though he didn’t want to speak on the Abuja High Court judgement that invalidated the process that gave birth to Asue, as PDP governorship candidate, because the case had shifted to the appeal court, he said he believed that it was going to go the way of the lower court because the facts of the matter were obvious.
He stated this on Saturday during an interview with journalists in Benin, ahead of inauguration/flag off of the party’s campaign council in Uhunmwonde LGA.
He said the people in Edo South would not take a risk with their precious votes for both candidates.
Agbama described candidates of All Progressives Congress APC, Sen. Monday Okpebholo and his deputy, Hon. Dennis Idahosa, as home-based politicians capable of beating all other candidates in the September 21, election due to their proven and formidable track records that border on human feelings.
He that tribal or religious sentiments won’t count at all in this election because the people had long passed that stage.
He said, “well, the era of tribal sentiment, religious sentiment is over; you can see that from the 2023 Presidential Election, Tinubu has been somebody who doesn’t struggle to win Lagos State, but in the past Presidential Election, you will observe how difficult it is for the man to win the state. So we are looking for somebody who is very ‘grassrooted’ and that has been with the people.
“Yes, the candidate of the labour is from Edo South but he is somebody that is even a stranger like the PDP, but the one in APC that we are all supporting is home based; he is there in Esan, he has a building and he has a business that he is doing there; he has showcased that he has the interest of the people at heart; he was not a senator when he started buying vehicles for vigilantes, sinking boreholes for more than four communities.
“So, you see, those are the kinds of people we need this time round–those who have feelings for the people and not just because you are fed up with one thing or the other.”
He further emphasized that Senator Monday Okpebholo was over qualified and capable of governing Edo state, being the serving Senator representing Edo Central constituency.
He said in Uhunmwonde LGA the only party competing in the governorship election was the APC, because all the politicians were in the opposition party, and that translated to a massive win for the APC and for Okpebholo in the whole of the council area on September 21.
Speaking on what’s on ground to actualize the winning for his party, Hon. Agbama, explained, “APC, was on ground for eight years under comrade Adams Oshiomhole, before this present PDP administration came in and Oshiomhole performed wonderfully well here in Edo state. So I believe this man (Okpebholo) is also going to perform wonderfully well. He is not a governor yet and you can see what he did recently at Jattu and Ekpoma, see the way he paid N7m instantly for the proposed bill meant for the kidney transplant of that AAU student. In Jattu, the deputy governor of Edo state went there only to speak grammar but Okpebholo went there, dropped N10m to kickstart the rebuilding of the damaged shops and also paid the hospital bill of those wounded. What else do you need to know that this person is very serious? He is at home with the people and he has human feeling,” he said.
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