TheCable

The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) says there is a threat to the lives of politicians in Edo as the state prepares for the September 19 governorship election. 

Godwin Obaseki, the incumbent governor who is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Osagie Ize-Iyamu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), are the main contenders in the exercise. 

In a poll review, CDD observed that threats of violence from both parties may affect the electoral process.   

“The election is a hotly contested race between two political heavyweights, and thus the potential for violence is high,” the review read. 

“The pre-election period featured violent confrontations between the two major political parties. Clashes between supporters of the two parties in front of the palace of the Oba of Benin, His Royal Majesty Oba Ewuare II, resulted in several injuries and damage to vehicles. Supporters and political thugs have been seen at campaign rallies bearing unlawful firearms and defacing opponents’ campaign posters.

“As the state heads to the poll, there are fears that parties and their candidates have been constituting machineries to disrupt the electoral process, especially by fomenting violence in areas considered as opponents’ strongholds.”

According to CDD, the two major political parties in the election have been “accused of sponsoring cultists and recruiting, training and arming thugs and criminals to disrupt the campaign and the election”.

The centre also listed two trends which have been noted in the build-up to the election.

“Firstly, there is a threat to lives and properties of politicians who hold strong allegiance to their parties and failed to yield several calls for defection. For example, in July 2020, Fred Aimienwanwu, the vice-chairman of Ovia South West LGA, raised the alarm over a threat to his life. In his petition to the assistant Inspector-General of Police, he alleged that political thugs visited his apartment and threatened to eliminate his entire family if he did not defect to the PDP,” CDD noted in the document.

“Secondly, political candidates and their supporters have been promoting inflammatory statements that could potentially trigger violence ahead of the election. In a viral online video, Ize-Iyamu was seen addressing a group of youth and reminding them that ‘their influence on the election goes beyond a single one on polling units’. He encouraged them to move beyond their units to other local government areas.”  

CDD said the APC candidate subsequently promised to handsomely reward youth that “move” to protect his votes.

Describing it as a dangerous statement, CDD said this could incite the youth to employ any means, including violence and intimidation, to ensure that he wins the election.

The centre also cited Obaseki’s statement at a press briefing, during which he had promised his supporters that the government and PDP would resist any threat as “nobody has a monopoly of violence”.

“Despite signs that election-induced violence has begun to manifest in the state, it was gathered during CDD’s preliminary assessment of the political situation that the capacity of both parties to perpetrate violence may lead to a violence-free election,” the group added.

“Citizens and party chieftains who were interviewed argued that except for the 2007 governorship election that recorded high violence, election day affairs are often conducted in a peaceful atmosphere, even if the threat of violence remains a feature of the campaign period.”