Olumide Akpata declares interest for Edo Guber polls

Former president of the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Olumide Akpata, yesterday, declared interest to contest for seat of the governor of Edo State.

The former NBA president made this known during a visit to the Edo State Secretariat of the Labour Party LP, in Benin City on Thursday.

Akpata, whose bid is for the forthcoming governorship election in the state in 2024, would be contesting under the umbrella of the Labour Party.

He said, “my interest is for the people of Edo State. And what I find in politics and governance in Nigeria today is that the people have been taken out of the equation. Nobody seems to care about the people,” he said during the event.

“And when I look around, the only party I find to be people-centric and people-oriented and to be interested in the lots of our people is the Labour Party of Nigeria. It is therefore fitting that it is with this party that I have come to pitch my tent and it is on the platform of this party that I would like to run for the governor of Edo State.”

Recall that Val9ja News had in August, reported that the former NBA president joined the LP, saying he wanted to be a part of the solutions to the state’s challenges.

Akpata was reportedly quoted as saying, “quite a number of people have called/messaged me to confirm the news, currently making the rounds, that I have joined a political party,” he said via post on his official X account.

He added, “Yes…I joined the @labourparty_ng in March this year and on Sunday I attended my first Ward Meeting at Oredo Ward 6, in Benin City, where I was formally introduced to members of the Ward and presented with my Party membership card.

“This was a major step for me and not one that I took lightly…but
I simply got tired of complaining about Nigeria every day and bemoaning her fate and I decided to take the plunge and try to be part of the solution rather than agonising continually over the problem.

“This, for me, is the start of a very important journey and it is my prayer that I arrive safely at my destination.”

In another story, the current governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, has warned against politics of lies, manipulation and blackmail, noting that politicians must begin to put in deliberate efforts to earn the trust of the people to win elections rather than rely on court judgments for political power.

Obaseki gave this advice during the swearing-in of Senior Special Assistants and Special Assistants in Edo Central Senatorial District, in Irrua, Esan Central Local Government Council.

The SSAs and SAs were drawn from Igueben, Esan West, Esan South East, Esan North East and Esan Central LGAs of the state. The governor had early sworn in 186 aides.

Obaseki said, “One of the criteria used for this appointment is that you must reside in your wards and if not, we will withdraw your appointment. Any SSA or SA working outside the local government or operating from Benin City will be dropped immediately.

“You are supposed to give a report monthly which will be reviewed to improve the lives of the people. You are a very important plank of our administration.

“We have just gone through our local government election and you campaigned with me and I thank you for what you did, which made it possible for us to achieve the results we achieved during the election.”

On winning and losing elections by politicians, he noted, “I heard that some people are complaining that they lost the election. I wonder why they will win the election when they didn’t come out to campaign. Well, that is the nature of our politics as they believe that the court will appoint people into power. They rely on the court for political power rather than hoping on the people for political power.

“Politics is being played on lies, misinformation, and rumours as a way to get political advantages. They want to confuse our people but your job is to put the record straight, letting the people know the truth.

“We have Chairmen and Councillors who will administer the local government councils but those we are swearing in today are officers responsible to the Governor of Edo State as your role is different from that of the local government.

“We have done a lot across the State, particularly in Esan land. EdoBEST has brought confidence in our children and we will be grateful in years to come. When these children will be occupying big and important positions across the world, we will appreciate the investment in education.”

He added, “We have done a lot and tried to make changes in the progress of the State and your job is to let me know what is happening in your locality. We are working to ensure the wards across the State have first-class Primary Healthcare Centres as we are training health workers to manage our primary healthcare centres.

“I need to know what is going on in terms of security and creating economic opportunities for our young people. You must continue to keep us updated as you are the eyes and ears of the governor in the various wards you come from. We will train you and have an onboarding session with you in line with our government’s vision to make Edo great again.”

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