By Kehinde Okeowo
The removal of former Edo State governor, Adams Oshiomhole, as national chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) , continues to resonate in the politics of the ruling party, months after. Though the sack might have come as a rude shock to unwary APC faithful and Nigerians in general, a critical look at the matter will suggest it was an action waiting to happen considering how polarized the party had become under him. There were, for instance, incidences of power struggle among stakeholders and many unedifying encounters among various organs of the party which preceded the sack. While some of his admirers argue that he was a loyal party man who paid the price for daring to confront the powerful blocks within the party, his detractors insist that he was a divisive figure who protected the interest of his friends and cronies to the detriment of party.
Oshiomole rose to prominence in 1982 when he was appointed as General Secretary of the National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria. Later in 1999 he became the president of Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC), a position he occupied until 2007. Thereafter he delved into politics and became the governor of Edo State between 2008 and 2016, during which he demystified the political myth surrounding the then former Minister of Works, late Chief Anthony Anenih, who was seen as the godfather of Edo state politics at that time. He went on to become the national chairman of APC in 2018, and was eventually removed in 2020 and replaced by a National Caretaker Committee led by Yobe State Governor, Governor Mai-Bala Buni.
As a former labor leader and governor of a state, he was expected to have been adequately equipped with the managerial and bargaining skills required to become a successful party chairman. However, when this is juxtaposed with his performance, it would leave much to be desired. For example, in 2019, the Supreme Court invalidated the participation of APC in the Governorship, National Assembly and State Assembly in Zamfara State for failing to hold credible primary elections in accordance with party constitution, the electoral act and the 1999 constitution respectively. Shortly after, the party’s candidate, David Lyon who won Bayelsa State gubernatorial election in 2019 was also sacked by the Supreme Court barely 24 hours to his inauguration on the ground that his deputy, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, presented false information to the Independent National Electorate Commission (INEC). On these two occasions, the party had contested and won the elections before disqualification. They were also developments attributed to the failure of leadership in the party.
The most recent in the list of his offences was the way he mismanaged the crisis in Edo State chapter of the party. The former chairman who was at daggers drawn with his erstwhile political son, Governor Godwin Obaseki, refused to avail the latter the necessary support to realize his second term ambition. The governor was consequently disqualified from participating in the primary election. This led him to decamp to People Democratic Party (PDP), the main opposition in the state where he later became their flag bearer and will now contest the September 19, 2020 gubernatorial election against Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, the anointed candidate of Oshiomole.
The fear is that unless Ize-Iyamu wins the upcoming election, the state just like Zamfara and Bayelsa States will be added to the list of states handed over to the opposition on a platter of gold.
While some political commentators have argued that these failures occurred at the state level, therefore, the management at the centre cannot be held responsible, it is pertinent to note that the appointment of the party’s Electoral and Appeal Committees which conducted the elections that produced the candidates that were eventually disqualified was made by the national executives. Since most of the issues that caused the ineligibility arose from the conduct of primary elections they must be held accountable. Observers note that Oshiomole may have lasted as long as he did after mismanaging the party affairs because it was an issue of politics that comes with many considerations. A head of any business corporation would have gotten a boot for this type of conduct, promptly.
They urge the former Chairman to learn from Governor Buni, who since taking over as the acting chairman of the party, has demonstrated serious managerial and leadership capabilities as well as a good understanding of the internal workings of the party. Though it may be too soon to conclude that APC’s troubles are behind it, there are pointers to the fact that some progress has been made under his watch. A testimonial to this is the way he managed the crisis in Ondo State. Prior to his assumption of office, the governor, Rotimi Akeredolu was in a battle of his political life with another faction of the party called Unity Forum that consists of several influential chieftains of the party who had vowed that he would not achieve his second term ambition. A lot of people within and outside the state had also predicted that the political imbroglio would affect the fortune of the party in the upcoming election. To the credit of the new chairman, this prediction did not come to past as he did not only ensure a peaceful primary election was organized, but brought together all the warring factions to work together in the upcoming gubernatorial election in the state.
Analysts recommend these deft political strategies as well as people-oriented leadership style for Oshiomhole in his future engagements if he intends to achieve sustainable results.