Edo gov’ship: Obaseki picks PDP ticket to battle Ize-Iyamu, 13 others

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, yesterday, picked the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for this year’s governorship election in the state. With this development, Obaseki is set to slug it out with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and 13 other candidates of other political parties at the […]

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, yesterday, picked the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for this year’s governorship election in the state.

With this development, Obaseki is set to slug it out with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and 13 other candidates of other political parties at the election.

In 2016, Obaseki on the platform of APC defeated Ize-Iyamu who was the flagbearer of the PDP, when he polled 319,483 votes against Ize-Iyamu’s 253,173.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of Edo State, Dr. Johnson Alalibo Samikiem, said yesterday that 15 political parties would participate in the September 19 governorship election in the state.

Samikiem disclosed this to journalists in Benin at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, venue of the PDP primary election.

He said the commission was well-prepared to conduct a hitch-free governorship election in the state.

The REC, who was at the stadium to monitor the PDP governorship primary in the state, said the commission has no challenges in the preparation for the governorship election in the state.

“INEC is fully prepared to conduct a free and credible election in the state. And to this regard, we have 15 political parties which have registered with us to participate in the forthcoming governorship election in the state,” he said.

Meanwhile, one of the governorship aspirants, Kenneth Imasuagbon has said that he stepped down for Obaseki, due to his desire to build a strong and united party in the state.

“It is a defining moment for the party. It’s painful for me to submit my 16 years of trying to be governor. The struggle is not about me anymore but about the country, Edo and Obaseki himself is doing very well. So I have decided to step down for him and support him,” he said.

Congratulating Obaseki, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the PDP, Senator Walid Jibrin appealed to all members of the party to rally round the governor to win the September governorship election.

“I want to appeal to the leadership and all members of our great party  to continue making our party strong and more united in our efforts to rule Nigeria come 2023. I want to assure the party and all members that BoT is one and united and is ever ready to carry its responsibilities as the conscience of the party,” he said.