Comrade Igbini Odafe Emmanuel
In the recent Bayelsa Governorship Election, Bayelsans overwhelming voted for Mr David Lyon of APC in strong and total rejection of decision of former Seriake Dickson to impose Sen. Diri and his Deputy on them.
The wide margin between total valid votes cast for David Lyon and Dickson’s Candidates was so wide to confirm the decision of Bayelsans to destroy and bury godfatherism in Bayelsa Politics.
But despite this decision by the people, PDP went to Court and exploited the provision of section 138 (a) of the Electoral Act 2010, as amended, to seek the annulment of this Decision of Bayelsans by questioning the inconsistencies in the names of the Deputy Guber Candidate of David Lyon.
The Supreme Court granted PDP’s request and imposed fmr Gov. Dickson’s Candidates on the Bayelsans as their Governor. PDP went into wild celebration across the country, thanking GOD, PMB and the Judiciary.
What then is different now in Edo State that the same PDP is putting pressure on PMB to encourage him to discourage Pastor Ize-Iyamu from also doing what it did to David Lyon?
It is no longer secret that in 2016 this same PDP filed an Election Petition challenging the authenticity of the Certificates of this same Gov. Godwin Obaseki and seeking to use same to annul the Electoral Mandate given to him.
It is also instructive to note that during the Edo 2020 Campaigns, Pastor Ize-Iyamu and APC on several times raised the same issue against Gov. Obaseki.
Will it therefore not amount to injustice to deny Pastor Ize-Iyamu the opportunity to approach the Election Tribunal and Supreme Court to test his luck like PDP did against David Lyon?
We must note that the issue of Qualification or otherwise of any Candidate in an Election is very fundamental and far more important than the vote cast as no house can be built without a Foundation first firmly laid.
It is no longer news that in recent past, many persons overwhelming elected by the Electorates in our General Elections have to be sent packing by Judgement of Courts as a result of questions raised about their qualifications to be lawful Candidates in those Elections.
The “victory” that PDP now claims in EDO will only be merrier if and only if Pastor Ize-Iyamu is encouraged by PDP to approach the Courts to clear his doubts, if any.
Would PDP not have filed an Election Petition if INEC had declared Pastor Ize-Iyamu and APC as “Winners” of the EDO 2020 Guber Election?
I am not APC or PDP but only care about Equity and Justice to be equally served to all Nigerians.
Let me restate for the record that President Buhari has no constitutional and or moral authority to stop or discourage Ize-Iyamu from going to Election Tribunal because he Gen. Mohammadu Buhari, as he then, also filed Election Petitions in all three Presidential Elections he participated in despite threats and pressures on him from his then political party and majority of Nigerians not to do so.
Our Nigeria shall overcome and must rise.
