Oshiomhole’s Politics of Tribal War
By Erasmus Ikhide
ADAMS Oshiomhole is seeking to recreate himself as a political dynamo in Edo State politics, once again. However, he deserves the latitude to enjoy his bragging rights – and rightfully so – after conning his way into power for three consecutive times as two term former Governor of the state and as a current serving Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
At 75, because he doesn’t know his actual age, Oshiomhole is still striving for a new prefix to be attached to his name, “Elder Spokesman” to prove a point of outright political dominance, renowned ethnic malcontent warlord against the Esan people in fulfillment of his avowed boastfulness that an Esan indigene would only be Governor of Edo State over his dead body.
Oshiomhole has never hidden his disdain for politics of inclusivity and his love for absolute rejection of those who are not from his Etsako conclave, even though his tribe constitutes a paltry of 9% of Edo State total population. Here’s the voting pattern of his Edo North senatorial district and its constituent makeup.
Edo North voting strength based on 2020 Edo gubernatorial election:
*ETSAKO*
1) Etsako East (Agenebode) 27,679 votes.
2) Etsako Central (Fugar) 15,837 votes.
3) Etsako West (Auchi) 44,099 votes.
• Total number of votes in Etsako 87,615
*OWAN/AKOKO EDO*
1) Owan East (Afuze) 34,057 votes.
2) Owan West (Sabongida Ora) 22,678 votes.
3) Akoko Edo (Igarra) 43,064 votes.
•Total number of votes in Owan/Akoka Edo 99,799.
As evidence from this voting pattern, it is clear that Etsako people are numerically less when the Edo North voting population is considered. Yet, Oshiomhole, Phillip Shaibu, Jaret Tenebe, Abubakar Momoh (Minister for Niger Delta), and Dan Orbih, all Etsako, have always used Owan/Akoko-Edo to achieve political relevance and dominance. Oshiomhole, as grand author of tribalism and grand patron of tribal hatred, has, in his display of wickedness, continued to deceive other Edo North tribes of Owan and Akoko-Edo. His much touted mantra that he is fighting for the interest of Edo North political relevance is self-serving. He uses the Owans and Akoko-Edos as pawns to service the political relevance and fortunes of his Etsako tribe unto the bargain.
It’s on record that Oshiomhole brought tribalism into Edo State politics in 2008, using his Etsako tribe of merely 9% of Edo State population to suppress and oppress all other tribes in the State. Under his watch for 8-year as Governor of the state, 90% of political appointments and projects were given and executed in his ethnic tribe’s favour. Continually, he uses the Owan and Akoko Edo tribes as Etsako tools to launch his marginalization quest from Edo North against the entire State. Political appointments that are supposed to be spread across Edo State, Oshiomhole hijacked all of them to the benefit of only his Etsako people under the guise of getting it for Edo North. Today, 95% of slots for Federal appointments to Edo State since 2015, have gone to Edo North and in Edo North, to Oshiomhole’s Etsako enclave, to the exclusion of the two Owan Local Government Areas and Akoko-Edo people who he invariably treats as slaves to him and to his Etsako people.
Here is his deception and evidence of his control of political dividends accruing to Edo State from the Federal Government. Federal appointments allocated to Edo State as at today are:
• Federal Minister, Edo North, Etsako tribe – Abubakar Momoh.
• EFCC Secretary, Edo North, Etsako tribe.
• Police Service Commission, Edo North, Etsako tribe.
• Senator Edo North, Etsako
Since 2015 with Oshiomhole an Etsako as the incumbent.
• FERMA, Edo North, Etsako tribe.
• SSA to NDDC MD, Edo North, Etsako tribe.
• At every opportunity, he fills the slot with his Etsako tribesmen.
To be true, the mute candidate of his political party, Another Problem Coming (APC) Monday Okpevhbolo can’t be looking for enemies elsewhere with an aberrant, intrusive and destabilizing Adams Oshiomhole as his unofficial, self-selected spokesman. Oshiomhole’s delusional twitches of witches and wizards charge against the Esan people of Edo Central have been long in coming. He has been spewing completely false hate speeches and rambling about how Edo Central should fight for power vigorously, instead of hinging their mandate on the none existent gentleman agreement of rotational Governorship.
Prior to the rancorous APC primary election that produced Monday Okpevhbolo, against Oshiomhole’s preferred candidate, Dennis Idahosa, the erstwhile disgraced National Chairman of his party had agonised against having a Governorship candidate from Esan land thus: “is democracy imposition of a smaller numbers on a bigger numbers, look at Edo State demographics with the Esan in smaller numbers, they can’t be allowed to governor the state”, Oshiomhole roared in an interview with a national television station.
Oshiomhole’s rage is embarrassingly, scandalous for preaching division in a state where he once governed for 8-year, and specifically against Ewohimi people where both his late wife, Clara and Asue Ighodalo hail from. Obviously, power drunkenness has mired Oshiomhole in such extraordinarily self-created moral collapse and the most ethical chaos that would ultimately truncate his political career as he stepped into the water for the second time.
Politics of racism in Western terms or politics of ethnocentrism in Black race politics involving tribal flag-waving, is known to frequently ignite politics of aggression. Oshiomhole’s creation of burly men in Nigeria politics, political thugs baring their teeth, thumping their bared chests, and chanting war songs at campaign stops only reminds us that Oshiomhole and the ape who are descendants from a common hostile ancestor hasn’t changed his tactics.
Politics must be viewed differently from Oshiomhole’s perspectives and prism, which resonates in tribal rituals, programmed to get out of hands towards determined act of violence. Oshiomhole should have known by now – regardless of his limited education – that the principles of democratic nationalism is less about tribal wars or the notions of blood and soil, but about something more real: a yearning for togetherness, politics of inclusivity and widespread concrete governance where both the majority and minority ethnic tribes have equal access to power in a democratic political space.
Oshiomhole’s type of ritualized politics of tribalism allows people to indulge in emotions that could otherwise be dangerous to the universality of politics of integration and oneness. Edo people must come to the conclusion that Oshiomhole is NOT who we are as a people. He does NOT represent Edo people. Oshiomhole IS contrary to all we stand for as a people. It is time for Oshiomhole to step down from playing primitively vacillating godfather’s role in Edo and Nigeria politics. This is the horror of Oshiomhole’s politics of tribal war.
Erasmus Ikhide contributed this piece via: ikhideluckyerasmus@gmail.com
