Ondo governorship election: Trouble everywhere

The two major parties in today’s election, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the All Progressives Congress, APC were enmeshed in difficult internal squabbling leading to strong dissensions that as at press time have refused to abate.

The internal battles in the PDP FOR almost two months, the crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party PDP in Ondo State over the choice of its governorship candidate rocked the party to its foundation. It was a supremacy war between Governor Olusegun Mimiko and business mogul Jimoh Ibrahim.

Ibrahim, however, did not endear himself to many when he showed no seriousness in the contest even after the court declared him the governorship candidate of the party. The war between the two gladiators goes back many years and it is alleged to flow from Mimiko’s refusal to recognise what associates of Ibrahim see as his global achievements as a business mogul. Mimiko’s defection to the PDP from Labour Party about two years ago brought the supremacy battle between them to the fore. Indeed, Ibrahim perhaps perceiving that Mimiko would continue to shun him had strongly resisted Mimiko’s entry into the party. Mimiko’s complete takeover of the structure of the party did not help matters as it set him against many of the leaders he met in the party. Many left for APC while those who stayed back worked against the party in the presidential election last year. Araba as Ibrahim is called and Olusola Oke, another strong party member who previously served as national legal adviser and commissioner in the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, joined forces to stab Jonathan at the back by working for the APC because of their hatred for Iroko. Araba sponsored many court cases within the party just to fester. The internal crisis made the party hot for Mimiko. His position was not helped by the defection to the APC of the former deputy governor, Alhaji Alli Olanusi. Ibrahim eventually cooled his heels when the futility of his efforts to uproot Mimiko, famed as Iroko, dawned on him. In fact, it was widely claimed that he had left the party for Mimiko and defected to Accord. His interest was, however, sparked again when the crisis over the national chairmanship of the PDP began to stir. It was especially an opportunity given the reported rapport between him and Alhaji Ali Modu Sheriff, leader of the factional PDP. He was able to gather to himself many other disaffected members of the PDP and they organised a governorship primary in Ibadan, Oyo State where Ibrahim emerged as the candidate of the faction. They took it outside the state for fear of hostility from established interests in Ondo State. That was after the former attorney-general and justice commissioner, Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) had emerged in the Ahmed Makarfi faction. The emergence of rival candidates led to a legal battle that was only concluded on Thursday with the pronouncement of the Supreme Court that Jegede is the candidate of the party. Ibrahim during a recent stakeholder’s meeting told newsmen that his aim was to stop Jegede and through him Mimiko from achieving what he described as a third term. However, the mammoth crowd that trooped to the major streets after the court sacked Ibrahim may now be a shocker for him.