By Ikhili Ebalu, Benin City
The euphoria of the victory of Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last governorship elections in Osun State may have subsided, but what may not be forgotten in a hurry are the attendant beneficial moral lessons from the contest that are vividly instructive.
One of such didactic lessons which any political party or individual desirous of electoral victory must indelibly commit to memory is that, it is only the collaborative push of all members that guarantees electoral victory, as palpably exemplified by the Osun example.
It may be safe to say that the mediatory roles played by the former Senate President Bukola Saraki as Chairman of the party’s National Reconciliation and Strategic Committee (NRSC) and other invaluable contributions of the Edo State governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki and others, positioned them to have the ears and heart of many stalwarts of the PDP in a bid to mend fences and ensure that the party enters into the contest against its arch rival, the All Progressives Congress (APC), as an unbreakable, formidable and united force.
Their roles in fence mending amongst the aggrieved party leaders, their planning and monitoring of the decisive moments ensured the victory that the PDP is currently savouring in that State today. Certainly, that would not be possible in an acrimonious atmosphere as is the case presently with Edo PDP.
The Edo State PDP as it were, is an institution. A formidable political institution like a deity, that requires a prescribed and acceptable pattern of comportment. Anything less is unacceptable but a wakeup call for anarchy because a deity that requires, for instance, blood sacrifice, would not accept oil, no matter how much quantity you offer, until the prescribed and acceptable sacrifice is administered.
That sacrifice the Edo PDP urgently requires now to bring it back to the path of corporate sanity, is the sacrifice of peace not of court litigations.
Litigations between the PDP folds are divisive. The party has no business or gain in internal crisis of the party. Litigations in Edo PDP is like cutting off the nose to spite the face.
The choice of litigations in place of internal peaceful resolution of the Edo PDP differences readily brings to mind the words of Frederick Foresight, in his book, ” THE DEVIL’S ALTERNATIVE” where he said and I quote, “WHICH EVER OPTION I CHOOSE, MEN ARE BOUND TO DIE.”
The Edo State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) currently faces the Devil’s alternative in their choice of Court litigations, because the Court victory of any of the factions affects the unity and party cohesion which is the driving force behind electoral victories. A Court win for any of the warring faction is a loss for the unity of the party as a whole.
It is considered in some quarters that the recent Court of Appeal judgment in Abuja which affirmed the power of the party to choose its representatives in elections through processes defined by its internal leadership and consistent with its constitution is soft landing for the party and a leeway for internal peaceful resolution of the current crisis.
During the struggle by the African National Congress (ANC) and the South Africans against the Apartheid policy in South Africa, the late Steve Biko of blessed memories said, “the most powerful weapon in the hands of the opponent or the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.”
It is a fact universally acknowledged that the opportunity of winning an opponent is most often times provided by the opponent himself.
What the above statements translate to is that, the state of mind of the PDP as a corporate entity as it were presently, is a weapon in the hands of its opposition party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) because the PDP has successfully mutilated its corporate esteem and therefore lacking in social and moral capital which are expedient in cohesion building, which are the cumulative recipe for electoral victories.
According to political observers and analysts, what the Edo PDP urgently requires now is a comprehensive action plan of reconciliation in the real sense of it; a reconciliation package that would be all encompassing and acceptable to both divide. A reconciliation package designed to give a sense of belonging to all members of the party; a sacrificial reconciliation which must be concessional from the feuding parties.
Everyone in Edo State PDP for instance, must accept that His Excellency, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, the governor of the State is the Leader of the Party. It has to be acknowledged that though this is not in the Party’s Constitution, it is based on conventional wisdom and it is so in all the States of the Federation that has a PDP Governor, Edo cannot be an exception.
The Governor too, should also accept the fact that he has to do statewide consultations before taking any major decision concerning the party. Every member of the party has to feel that they were part of the decision making process. This allows for easy implementation. With the mien of the State Chairman, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, we are confident that this crisis can and would be resolved soon.
Edo PDP should also solicit the support of prominent and credible individuals at the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party hierarchy to midwife the reconciliatory process.
To consummate the glory of true reconciliation, all the aggrieved must demonstrate, in words and in actions, true preparedness for a peaceful and willingness for an enduring truce that will restore the troubled party to its lost glory.