MIMIKO,LABOUR PARTY AND SOUTHWEST POLITICS-Abati

Mimiko, Labour Party and the South West

By Reuben Abati

---

It has been pointed out that the Broom Revolution in the South West represented by the ACN in the 2011 elections takes the South West back to its original mode as the stronghold of opposition politics in Nigeria, and thus puts an end to the dominance of the People's Democratic Party in that part of the country since 2007. But whereas this has been widely remarked upon as an indication also of the South West being the only region that seems to have voted mostly for a "regional party" in nearly all the 2011 elections (except the Presidential), the analysis often overlooks how a state in the South West, Ondo, appears to be the only one that is untouched by the Broom Revolution, dominated as it is by the Labour Party. Both the ACN and the Labour Party in the South West are united in terms of one essential character: their leaders insist that they are progressives, they provide in their areas of influence an alternative to the PDP, both were determined to keep the PDP out and they succeeded in doing so, and once upon a time, the leaders of both parties worked together. There however seems to be an emerging rivalry between the ACN and the Labour Party in the South West which I think needs to be carefully managed, considering how what seems to have started as campaign-moment differences could degenerate into something unmanageable.

There have been insinuations that the Labour Party in Ondo state should dissolve into the ACN to give the South West one major political party running its affairs. Mrs Jumoke Anifowoshe, the ACN Chairperson in Ondo state has threatened that the "broom revolution of ACN would soon spread to Ondo state," a coded threat that the ACN is determined to dislodge Governor Olusegun Mimiko from Ondo state in subsequent elections, the most critical being the 2012 Gubernatorial election in the state. However, elections should be determined by the electorate, not by threats issued by politicians. Besides, those who argue that small political parties are of no use miss the key point about the democratic ideal. The thinking that small parties serve no purpose and should be de-registered or be swallowed by bigger parties defeats the idea of the political party as an aggregation of expressed needs and aspirations in civil society. The real constraint that contemporary political parties taking part in Nigeria's elections face is that they are required to have a national spread, and to win a certain number of seats in order to be considered viable.

The view has even been expressed for example, that with 63 political parties, the list of Nigerian political parties is unwieldy; on 2011 election day, so the argument goes, it was rather difficult looking for party names and logos with the ballot papers running into pages. That inconvenience should be a small price to pay for the diversity and broad choice that a multi-party system guarantees. In the First Republic, small parties made great impact in their localities, and where necessary, they went into alliances with other parties, supposedly bigger parties, in order to pursue their stated agenda in the public sphere.

The Mabolaje Grand Alliance was based in Ibadan. The OtuEdo Union's sphere of influence was restricted to Benin City and parts of Edo. There were such political parties as the Borno Youth Movement, the Igbira Tribal Union, the Dynamic Party and the Zamfara Commoners Party. The party formation process should as we seek to further strengthen Nigerian democracy recognize the potentials of so-called small parties. Indeed, the ACN, the CPC, and the Labour Party prove this point each in its own way. Besides, in the 2011 election, a small party, the Accord Party was quite prominent in Oyo state, and an even much smaller and younger party, the Ogun state-based PPN ended up with two seats in the House of Representatives. APGA's sphere of influence is restricted to the South East and yet in these elections, it wielded considerable influence in Imo and Anambra states. There were parties in the 2011 election that did not win more than 20, 000 votes in total, that should be no reason why they should be "swallowed" by bigger parties.

As at 2007, the ACN was largely a Lagos state-based party, where it won nearly all the available elective seats, including the Gubernatorial; it would subsequently gain a wider spread in other parts of the South, as it secured the Governorship positions in Ekiti, Edo and Osun through the courts, quickly turning those states into its strongholds. In the 2011 elections, the ACN proved to be the most improved political party in the country, it increased its representation ratio in the National Assembly, swept Edo state and the South West except Ondo state, and became a much stronger party in Edo, Plateau, Benue, Akwa Ibom, and Kwara states. The ACN is thus now a perfect example of how a small party could grow, bottom-up, through careful management and promotion. The CPC was formed about ten months ago and yet in the 2011 elections, it won the Gubernatorial election in one state (Nasarawa), 35 seats in the House of Representatives and about six seats in the Senate. General Buhari's personality is the driving force of that party, but it has great potential to become a much stranger political movement. It would be wrong to expect the CPC to dissolve into the PDP or its members to be encouraged to join the bigger party, and whatever may be his future plans, General Buhari would be doing a lot more good by working harder to transform the CPC into a strong opposition. This is why all things considered, it seems to stand to reason that both the ACN and the CPC have rejected offers by the PDP to join a proposed Government of National Unity.

In the 2011 elections, the Labour Party had highly visible candidates in Bayelsa state (Timi Alaibe, LP Gubernatorial candidate); and Plateau state, (Pauline Tallen as LP Gubernatorial candidate), it won state assembly seats in Bayelsa, Anambra and Plateau but it was in Ondo state that the party has put up its best performance so far. LP is only seven years old. In the 2007 general elections, the party won nine seats in the Ondo state House of Assembly, but following the determination of election petitions in that election and ordered re-runs/by elections and cross-carpeting from PDP to LP, by February 2009, Olusegun Mimiko had replaced PDP's Olusegun Agagu as Governor and the political face of politics in the state soon changed from PDP to Labour. In 2011, the Labour Party performed better winning 25 of the 26 seats in the House of Assembly, eight out of the nine seats for the House of Representatives and all three Senatorial seats. The latter was particularly dramatic, with relatively unknown candidates and first-timers, beating well established PDP chieftains. Former state Governor, Dr Olusegun Agagu lost to one Boluwaji Kunlere, Senator Bode Olajumoke and Senator Gbenga Ogunniya, both tested politicians also lost to rookies. The ACN, the dominant party in the South West was almost non-existent in Ondo state, going by the 2011 results.

The key to the Labour Party's victory is the Mimiko factor. In the 2011 elections, many voters were unimpressed by party flags or symbols; they were interested in the candidate and what he or she represents, or the performance of the particular party in power. In two years of being in office in Ondo state, the Mimiko administration has been able to connect with the grassroots, through a series of people-friendly initiatives such as the renovation of markets and the provision of basic infrastructure, improved access to healthcare and careful electorate perception management. It is the same strategy that has helped to make Babatunde Fashola, a popular Governor, and has worked also in Osun state where in less than one year of former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola's exit, the PDP has been completely routed in that state.

The similarity between Mimiko's strategy and that of the ACN is perhaps what is responsible for the competition for territory between both parties. The sub-text of this is the lingering debate over who has the best chance of emerging as the next Yoruba leader, with certain commentators suggesting that Mimiko's achievement in almost single-handedly building the Labour Party into a credible party, makes him a potential leader of the Yoruba. I think the talk about producing the next Awolowo in Yorubaland is utterly diversionary. Awarding the best prize to the best politician in the South West is not a priority for the electorate either.

Both the ACN and the Labour Party have an urgent duty to justify their victory over the PDP in the 2011 general elections in the South West through greater service delivery to the people. The ACN should seek to build on its incursion into other parts of Nigeria in order to become an effective opposition party on the national stage, the Labour Party faces the same challenge but the leaders of both parties should not in seeking more territory in the South West create needless tension, indeed, they should seek to work together on common ideological grounds, without one party threatening to "swallow" the other, and with less emphasis on personal ambitions. This point is made advisedly considering how in the lead up to the 2011 elections, the campaigns in Ondo state almost degenerated into name-calling between the leadership of the Labour Party and the ACN. Both the Chairman of the ACN, Chief Bisi Akande and Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, the leader of the ACN, were said to have dismissed Mimiko as "ungrateful" and his party as "worse than the PDP", with the LP also describing the ACN as the party of "fake progressives." Such currents tend to run much deeper in Yoruba politics

WINNERS AND LOSERS OF 2011 ELECTION IN NIGERIA

Winners and losers

- Ayodeji Ajayi

NIGERIANS from various walks of life, irrespective of political, religious or ethnic affiliations, remembered some days ago, amidst mixed feelings, the immediate former President, Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who left this sinful world following a protracted illness on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 58.

On Thursday, May 5, 2011, it was exactly one year after Yar’Adua’s demise. Now, I remember with profound nostalgia that on December 16, 2006, Yar Adua emerged the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) following an unprecedented display of support for him by his party’s delegates. He was unanimously nominated as the party’s flagbearer in readiness for the 2007 presidential election. When the crucial election took place in April 2007, the Professor Maurice Iwu – led Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him winner of the highly controversial election which generated a lot of heat among Nigerians and even the global community.

But while some characters were losing their heads over the sensitive and worrisome issue, Yar’ Adua himself, especially judging by the general belief among Nigerians that he was deliberately foisted on the country by his immediate predecessor, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, admitted that the election that brought him into office was flawed. He then assured that he would embark on meaningful electoral reforms to ensure that future elections are free, fair and credible.

It is for this reason that Yar’Adua also deserves to share in the success recorded during the just – concluded 2011 general elections which have continued to be described as free, fair and credible compared with many of the elections conducted in the past in the country.

There is no doubt that before his sudden death, Yar ‘Adua, to a certain extent, had provided the template for organising credible elections in 2011.

Having served Katsina State as governor for two terms of four years each, Yar’ Adua crowned it all with that of president but unfortunately, he could not complete his first four – year term due to his death. And if he did not die, not many were sure especially judging by the nature of his ill – health, that he would succeed in clinching his party’s ticket for a second term. It would be recalled that even shortly before he was evacuated to Saudi Arabia for medical attention, many of his party members had started jostling openly to slug it out with him for the coveted seat.

Following his exit on May 5, 2010, his deputy, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, was formally inaugurated as President and Commander-in- Chief of the Armed Forces on May 6, 2010.

Incidentally, as Yar ‘Adua’s departure clocked one year on May 5, 2011, Jonathan’s one year in office as president also clocked one year on May 6, 2011. Interestingly too, having emerged winner of the April 16, 2011 presidential election, Jonathan is now anxiously looking forward to what promises to be the most memorable moment in his life when on Sunday, May 29, 2011, he will formally be sworn in as the President and Commander – in – Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for a four – year term.

From all indications, the successful event of April 16, 2011 which produced Jonathan as clear and undisputed winner of the presidential election, has effectively put an end to what was described in certain quarters, as the Yar ‘Adua /Jonathan joint ticket. In effect, what this means is that on May 29, the swearing – in ceremony will be a joint Jonathan/Sambo ticket. And this is the reality on ground.

As expected, winners and losers have since emerged following the just – concluded elections across the country. Also, as expected, the winners have since been in joyous mood and have accepted victory with humility. The wise among the losers have since accepted defeat like good sportsmen and also congratulated the winners. However, as expected, the foolish among the losers have failed to accept defeat which to right – thinking human beings, are very glaring but have resorted, directly or indirectly, to instigating misguided youths to kill and maim innocent citizens. One of such gory instances occurred in some parts of the North on April 18, 2011 during which jobless and cursed youths went on rampage killing and maiming innocent youth corpers following the defeat of a prominent presidential candidate from that part of the country.

It is time politicians, no matter how highly placed, realise they can no longer hold the country and the citizenry to ransom. Anybody, no matter how highly connected, that engages in activities or is seen to have incited others to engage in activities that are capable of destabilising the country, should be dealt with decisively according to the laws of the land so as to serve as a deterrent to others. Nobody is above the law.

After 50 years of independence, Nigeria is expected to have assumed the position of a civilised country where the actions of the citizenry – both leaders and followers, irrespective of political, religious or ethnic affiliations, should be guided strictly by rules and regulations. Nigeria, 50 years after independence, should not be perceived as animal kingdom where although all animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

It is because we still have lawless, lazy, corrupt and selfish leaders, especially among the politicians, that Nigeria continues to fumble, wobble and wander. It is worrisome that since the return of civil rule on May 29, 1999, Nigeria and its leaders have been dancing in cycle – moving five steps forward and 10 steps backward Bad leadership at various tiers, remains a recurring agonising problem yet to be solved.

Recycling of old horses in various spheres of life of the nation, especially in the corridors of power, is the order of the day and this is why bad results are being churned out. No lasting solution to national problems that continue to threaten the stability and survival of the country.

In civilised countries, losers accept defeat without embarking on activities that could destabilise such countries. And as a last resort, losers go to court to seek redress.

In Nigeria, losers never accept defeat. They want the country to collapse. They believe they must win at all costs even if they do not deserve victory. This especially applies to those politicians that have virtually become habitual or traditional losers in elections.

Having been trounced thoroughly in elections thrice or more, shouldn’t that be a signal that such a contestant is not a good electoral material? Is that not an indication that such a candidate should stop throwing his hat into the political ring even if it was God or Muhammad that told him in his dream to contest? Ahead of the May 29, 2011 swearing – in ceremonies across the country, many political gains and losses have already been recorded that are noteworthy.

Former President and Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, seems to be the greatest loser in spite of the fact that he did not directly contest for any elective position.

The defeat of his candidate in Ogun State, Chief Tunji Olurin, in the gubernatorial election, will continue to haunt him. The loss of Ogun State for the first time in eight years to the opposition, is a catastrophic disaster that will continue to give Obasanjo sleepless nights. The defeat of his faction of PDP by the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Ogun State, despite his grandstanding, is shameful. All the political abradacabras he did in the South – West in 2003 have now been overturned to show that no matter how long it takes, the truth will overcome falsehood and deceit. And above all, the landslide defeat of her beloved daughter, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello and that of the chameleonic Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, during the April elections must have thought Obasanjo and his cronies a lesson that nothing good or lasting is derivable from political lawlessness and legislative rascality. By the time Obasanjo’s tenure as PDP BOT Chairman effectively ends on May 29, his overbearing influence on the party and even on President Goodluck Jonathan would have been drastically checked.

But it is worrisome that rather than waning especially following his recent political losses in Ogun State, Obasanjo’s influence seems to be waxing stronger. Reports have revealed that unscrupulous political jobbers are trooping in large numbers with copies of their credentials, to Otta and Abeokuta to solicit Obasanjo’s support. They believe that with Obasanjo’s support, they will get political appointments from the president.

In his own interest, the president should be his own man. He should remember that he had no political godfather when he contested the recent election. Nigerians, irrespective of political affiliations, trooped out in millions to vote massively for him. He cannot afford to disappoint Nigerians. He should be wary of Obasanjo’s antics and the other “fixers” whose antecedents are not exemplary.

For instance, he should remember that Obasanjo’s undying ambition to ensure Iyabo is appointed minister is still burning like wild fire and he will go to any extent to ensure it becomes a reality.

It is regrettable that it is only in Nigeria that a former president who left office after spending eight years since 2007, is still influencing how the affairs of the country are run. This is very unfortunate. Is he indispensable? Are there no other leaders with superior intelligence who have the interest of the ration at heart?

The on-going retreat in Obudu by Mr. President is a welcome development. However, the objectives for which the retreat was conceived should be realised unfailingly. The President should not allow anybody, no matter how influential, to “hijack” the all-important exercise from him.

Those to be given appointments should be men and women of proven integrity and credibility, as well as unalloyed loyalty, unwavering commitment and unswerving dedication. This time around, the appointees must be performers and not sluggards, Mr. President urgently requires those who will be religiously committed to his goals and vision so that Nigeria can more forward from its present pitiable condition. The president should remember that the blame for whatever goes wrong will inevitably go to him.

Apart from Obasanjo, another political giant that had his dream shattered during the just-concluded elections is the Godfather of Kwara politics, Dr Olusola Saraki. Since the Second Republic when he was the Senate Leader during the President Shehu Shagari-led administration of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Saraki had solely been in control of the political machinery in Kwara State.

He anointed virtually all the civilian governors but whenever there was friction between him and the governors, he made sure they were not re-elected.

And so, in 2003, having been frustrated and disappointed by those he anointed as governors due to irreconcilable differences, he anointed his son, Dr. Bukola Saraki whose two-term tenure of eight years is expected to end on May 29, 2011.

But like others before him, Bukola, shortly before the governship election, started having some irreconcilable differences with his father who wanted Bukola’s sister, Senator Gbemisola Saraki to become the next governor in May, Watchers of political events in Kwara State have since been waiting for the outcome of the election.

It would be recalled that Saraki had boasted before the election that he is the indisputable political leader in Kwara and that the governorship election would determine who the political leader is between him and his son.

Incidentally, the outgoing governor’s anointed candidate, Alhaji Ahmed won gallantly but Elder Saraki’s anointed candidate, Gbemisola, lost woefully. And with the defeat of Gbemisola, Saraki’s age-long control over Kwara politics has crumbled like a pack of useless cards for the first time in several decades.

The septuagenarian, like Obasanjo, has been terribly demystified and rendered politically irrelevant. It is time for Obasanjo and Saraki to finally vacate the political scene and allow young Nigerians of impeccable integrity to help inject new blood and fresh ideas into Nigerian politics in order to take the country to the much-desired greater heights.

It is for this reason that I commend Nigeria’s first-ever military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd) who said recently that he would soon quit active politics, especially judging by the fact that he will clock 70 in August next year.
email;ayodejiajayi2007@yahoo.com

 08066890703

Imo goverorship-Okorocha beat Ohakim

Imo governorship poll latest:

Rochas Okorocha of APGA dusted Gov.Ohakim

APGA-336,859, PDP-290,490 - INEC 

                                   Face of Winner and Looser of Imo 2011 guber poll; Owelle Rochas Okorocha and Gov Ohakim

All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, governorship candidate, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, a former Presidential candidate, has won the Imo state gubernatorial elections.

The final results announced by INEC Saturday morning, showed that the APGA candidate scored 336,859 votes with the incumbent governor Ikedi Ohakim scoring 290,490 votes.

Supplementary governorship election were supposed to be held, yesterday, in four local councils and one ward in Imo State. However, election did not hold in Oguta local govt due to security threat. Notable lawyers however believe that the single local government of Oguta cannot invalidate the election or the victory of Rochas Okorocha.

19 candidates contested for the governorship position in the state.

Prof. Hillary Odoagah, Vice Chancellor of Michael Opara University of Agriculture Umudike and INEC’s Returning Officer, announced the results.

Summary of results

ACN- 107,068 votes, ANPP-3,313,APGA-336,859,APS-364,CDC-447,CPC-3063,DPP-563,LP-1549,NCP-790,PDP-290,490  

Mimiko challenged PDP Leaders over who delivered votes to Jonathan

Mimiko challenged Ondo PDP over who delivered votes to Jonathan

                          Gov Olusegun Mimiko

  Two weeks after the presidential elections, controversy over the victory of President Goodluck Jonathan in the south West is yet to abate. It was taken for granted that Jonathan who was the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) candidate in the April 16 poll would not garner much support from the South west geo-political zone.

This sentiment was understandable. The zone is the stronghold of the rival Action Congress of Nigeria(ACN). But the President won five out of the six states in the zone leaving only one to the presidential candidate of the ACN, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.

Since results of the elections were declared political stakeholders in the South West, particularly in Ondo and Lagos States have been bickering over who was responsible for Jonatha’s victory in the two states. Ondo is governed by Governor Segun Mimiko of the Labour Party( LP) while Lagos is controlled by the ACN.

In the forefront of these claims and counter claims in Ondo State are Labour Party Chairman Olaiya Oni, Minister of Defence Adetokunbo Kayode and of course the PDP leadership in the state. Shortly after the election results were made public, the LP chairman, in Ondo state, told news men that his party mobilized the state for the President. Therefore, the credit for the PDP presidential candidate in the state should be given to his party and not the Presidents party men in Ondo. The LP which did not field any candidate for the presidential poll had adopted Jonathan as its presidential candidate.

Dr Oni said PDP lost woefully to LP in the April 9, National Assembly elections. During the build up to the presidential election, PDP members neither mobilized their members nor came out on the election day with their agents.

It was as if they abandoned President Jonathan to us. If they have come out and mobilized the people like we did, Jonathan would have scored more votes. But the PDP top hierarchy in the state said nothing could be farther than the truth.

A party chieftain in the state, Mr Sunday Oyepetan said it is mischievous for the LP to be claiming credit for Jonathan’s victory in the state. He said it was equally wrong for the Minister of Defence, Mr Adetokumbo Kayode to be laying claim to solely mobilizing the state for the president.

Oyepitian said it is worthy of note that out of the 385,376 votes scored by President Jonathan in Ondo State, 197,291 votes (51%) came from the southern senatorial district, where Dr Olusegun Agagu hails from; 99,726 votes (25.7%) came from the central senatorial district, where Governor Olusegun Mimiko hails from and 90,359 (23%) came from the northern senatorial district, where the Minister of Defense Adetokunbo Kayode hails from.

 Contary to Oni position, that there no PDP agents to man the polling units for the President during the election, Oyepitan said it was the LP agents that were absent during the election. He challenged any one in doubt to cross check from the electorate if LP agents were at the polling units or collation centre to sign the result sheets.

He added that in Ondo West Local Government Area home of the self-acclaimed election mobilizer Governor Mimiko could only bring out 25,463 out of the 125,467 registered voters during the Presidential elections as against the 36,742 he scored for his LP during the National Assembly elections. From the foregoing we can all imagine the extent of massive mobilization that the Labour Party did for Mr President to win, the party chieftain stated.

He said if anything, LP members worked for other parties in the presidential election. The votes that the ACN, CPC and other parties scored during the National Assembly elections increased during the Presidential elections. For emphasis, the ACN scored 64,000 votes during the National Assembly elections while it witnessed a growth in the Presidential elections where it scored 74,253 votes, the CPC, a party which has only a marginal presence in Ondo State scored 3,795 votes during the National Assembly elections but scored 11,830 votes during the Presidential elections. Other parties of little consequence that did not score any votes at all during the National Assembly elections now scored 18,187 votes during the presidential elections.

Also, the party stalwart said contrary to the impression being created by the Minister of Defence, that he single handedly delivered the votes of the state to the president, the Minister only attended one rally in Akure and another in Ikare throughout the campaign and election period. It is on record that he did not visit any of the 18 Local Government Areas of the state during the campaigns except his own local government, Akoko North West. He did not consult with any traditional ruler, religious leaders, youth or women group, the party stalwart added.

Similarly, the Ondo State PDP Youth Leadership Forum said the president’s victory in the state was the outcome of collective efforts of party leaders in the state who worked tirelessly to mobilize the state for the president. In a statement made available to Daily Sun and jointly signed by Messrs Elegbeleye Rasheed and Kolawole Femi, said the presidents victory has nothing to do with the alliance between Kayode and Governor Mimiko.

Also, in Lagos State , the chairman of the PDP , Mr Setonji Koshedo said it is wrong for the ACN in the state to claim credit for the success the party recorded in Lagos during the presidential election. Koshedo told journalists in Lagos that the ACN state publicity secretary, Mr Joe Igbokwe had at a television programme claimed that his party mobilized the state for Jonathan. In his view, the ACN couldn’t have mobilized the state for the PDP, especially as it has its candidate in the election.

As the controversy over who delivered the Ondo and Lagos states votes to Jonathan continues, one thing is clear, the president is happy that he proved bookmakers wrong by winning the South west votes.

This report as culled from The SUN newspapers

Welcome to Our World [The Blogsite of Sunshine VOICE]

  Sunshine Voice Blog is the online version of the Sunshine VOICE weekly tabloid that is going to be the voice of change.
A provincial news magazine devouted to report political news in Ondo State and as well cover political activities across the entire South West on Nigeria.
It is aimed at given an unbiased report to the people.The team are crops of young progressive minded  creative writters,journalist and researchers with biase for political developments in Ondo State and by extention Nigeria.
With the birth of Sunshine voice  the political landscape will not be the same again.The publishers and editors promise to give voice to the voiceless.

GOKE OLUWOLE a versatile,radical and dogged journalist with an undying passion for grassroots journalism was carefully chosen to lead the EDITORIAL SQUARD as the EDITOR-IN CHIEF of the Sunshine VOICE Weely.