Weep Not For Ize-Iyamu

 Today, the morning after the Edo Gubernatorial election, the results have begun to come in. From the 16 local government areas declared so far, the incumbent, Godwin Obaseki is bouncing to victory and at this stage, anything that will upturn this expectation will receive a widespread cry of blue murder. Obaseki is waiting for the announcement of his second victory over his now arch-rival, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu. Recall that in 2016, Obaseki while in the APC beat Ize-Iyamu, then of the PDP.

Yesterday's election saw the two men as major contenders but on swapped platforms. While Ize-Iyamu moved to the APC, Obaseki went the other way.

Today, as the results are being announced, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu would be so tensed seeing how Obaseki's rain is drenching him the second time and at a time when he has choosen the broom and his broom cannot cover his head from the downpour of defeat. Do not weep for him because whether you accept it or not, Osagie Ize-Iyamu is a tiger, strong and fierce and solid. He will rise and look back with a smile, only that the smile will be of regrets. 

Today, Osagie Ize-Iyamu would have been in the position of Godwin Obaseki, smiling hopefully that by the end of today, he would be the governor--elect of Edo state. He would have enjoyed the overwhelming support Obaseki just got from Governors Wike, Okowa, Makinde, PDP and all the anti-Oshiomhole forces that have swelled over the years. Only if he had remained in PDP.

Certainly, Obaseki would have sought another platform following his disqualification by APC had Ize-Iyamu remained in PDP. And it would have been a walkover for the pastor.

Desperate men who hunger for power are usually led by the prospect of easy opportunities and oftentimes, they do not consider consequences of their choices in the long haul.

It beats me hollow how Ize-Iyamu reunited with Adams Oshiomhole who had demarketed him before the world, telling everyone who cared to listen that Ize-Iyamu was a bad product. He called him a thief, someone who could not be trusted with funds, a cultist who was rusticated from the university of Benin. Then suddenly, while Oshiomhole was embroiled in a bitter feud with Obaseki, his former godson; Ize-Iyamu came galloping to forge amity with Oshiomhole. Maybe it was Oshiomhole who reached out to him or the other way around, what is important is that the two men, though strangely, became political bed fellows. Clearly, this was possible because Ize-Iyamu saw a political camaraderie with Oshiomhole as an easy opportunity to take him to government house as the man in charge.

He must have seen Oshiomhole as his veritable leeway to achieving his dream of becoming governor after all, Oshiomhole made Obaseki governor and at that time, he was also the the national chairman of the APC.

Adams Oshiomhole must have given him that assurance and without considering any consequence, Ize-Iyamu jumped ship and picked up the broom. He must have begun to see himself as the incoming governor. He started attacking Obaseki and taking sides with his new godfather.

Ize-Iyamu did not ask himself if Oshiomhole's view against him would have changed had he had no issues with Obaseki. He did not see himself as a pawn on Oshiomhole's chessboard just to checkmate Obaseki. He was just after power, the Achilles' heel of desperate men.

I believe that Ize-Iyamu still had his chances to achieve his dreams even while he saw everything falling apart before his eyes. Oshiomhole was suspended from his ward, a smart political move by Obaseki. Though Oshiomhole succeeded in chasing Obaseki out of APC, he himself lost the control of APC as he got sacked. Ize-Iyamu still did not see the handwriting on the wall.

I think at that point, Ize-Iyamu should have begun to be in charge of his political ambition. He failed. He allowed Oshiomhole to sell him to Edo people. Oshiomhole doing this only added insult upon injury. It was an insult for the same man who said Ize-Iyamu was a thief to come and tell the same people that the thief is now the person they should vote for as governor. Ize-Iyamu would have done better without Oshiomhole.

Then the issue of godfatherism came up. Oshiomhole rode to government house in Benin City on the tides of fighting against godfatherism which he identified as the bane of Edo progress. Upon leaving office, he installed a godson in the person of Godwin Obaseki and he became a godfather. This was glaring hypocrisy. When he fell out with Obaseki, obviously due to the latter's resistance to his godfatherism, Oshiomhole had shopped for Ize-Iyamu to replace Godwin Obaseki. Obaseki's camp tactically resurrected the issue of godfatherism. A big blow against Ize-Iyamu's ambition.

I doubt if Ize-Iyamu realised that Oshiomhole was heavy baggage on his ambition. Oshiomhole has made many political enemies especially after he became national chairman of APC. There were many people who would stand against his interest. Unfortunately, Ize-Iyamu came as his interest. Surely, he will end up his fall guy.

Then, Edo is not Lagos began to rent the Edo atmosphere, it was a rejection of the Lagos political model where godfatherism is the order of the day. Bola Tinubu who is seen as the godfather of Lagos APC politics added spanners to the wheels of Ize-Iyamu's campaign. That video he recorded, urging Edo people to reject Obaseki and vote for Ize-Iyamu only irritated the Edo people because it meant urging them to accept godfatherism. Many people swore to stand against his interest in Edo.

Ize-Iyamu might have fared well had Tinubu not come out to throw such punches in the face of the Edo people.

Then, it seemed APC did not intend for Ize-Iyamu to win the election. The choice of Gov. Ganduje who could easily be derided for the dollar tucking video was not a good sell to the Edo people. Then he was quick to make noise about quarantining Gov. Wike. That only intensified the drive to fall Ize-Iyamu. The results are still being announced and it is alleged that Ganduje has fled and he's on his way to Kano. 

The mega rally of the APC did not hold. Ize-Iyamu should not think it was an error. It was long coming. He was not the target; the chess player was.

Today, the dream of becoming governor  has evaporated away for Osagie Ize-Iyamu. All the political emperors he relied on turned out to be his albastross. They were too much baggage for him.

I wish I can tell  Pastor Ize-Iyamu that he has a date with destiny, that one day his dream would come true and he would be governor but then, what if he is destined never to be governor? 

Personally, I like Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu but he has decided to be in the wrong company and his defeat is a clear pointer to that fact. However, it is not the end of the day for Ize-Iyamu, he still has a political life ahead of him. He has tomorrow to smile. Yes, he will regret his yesterday but he can make his tomorrow glorious. As for Oshiomhole, it is a wrap. Failing to deliver Edo to APC will signal goodnight to his political life. He will begin his journey into political oblivion, to be remembered not for much good. As for Tinubu, 2023 has begun to look very elusive.