The stage is set for a titanic battle forthe soul of Kogi as Kogites; as they love to call themselves go to the polls tomorrow. It's a troubled election for political stakeholders and the citizens as well as the hearts of many have been in their mouths since January, when events were kick started for the election. Everyone had thought that Kogi would also join other states to partake in the April general election but the success of the suit on tenure of office by the governors of five states whose elections were annulled after the 2007 election created the waiting game that dragged the election till December 3.Now that the die is cast, stakeholders are knocking the walls to ensure victory for their respective candidates and the frenzy is up in Kogi. The major contenders include the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) whose candidate is Captain Idris Wada, Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), which is featuring Prince Abubakar Audu, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Barrister James Ocholi and the Congress for Progressive Change, which has Elder Ubolo Okpanachi as gubernatorial candidate. There is also the Justice Party (JP) which is featuring Hajia Aisha Audu as the only woman contestant.While lots of stakeholders would keep their gazes on the results that would stream from the polling stations on Saturday, a number of issues are waiting in the wings to assail the power of the ballot. Thus, as some would stay glued to events emanating from the polling stations, a number of stakeholders would also be looking elsewhere, especially the courts for certain succour that could alter the direction of things. One of the issues that make the election interesting is the defection of former Governor Abubakar Audu from the ANPP, his traditional party to the ACN, thus providing the huge drama and making the contest a lot more dicey for the ruling PDP. Alhaji Jubril Isah, who emerged candidate of the PDP in the gubernatorial primaries conducted in January ahead of the initial date of April, had gone to a Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking to be recognised as the rightful candidate of the party in line with the results of the primaries. Again, another wind arrayed against the election is the pending ruling of the Supreme Court on the true tenure of the governors of five states whose victories in the 2007 election were annulled by the courts, including Kogi. It is on record that whichever way the suit goes will create some landmarks for the state. Isah could come up to reclaim the PDP ticket, if the apex court rules that the governors should have left office in May, while Captain Wada would see himself as the biggest beneficiary if the apex court agrees that the governors' tenure did not lapse on May 29.Forces at PlayA major factor at play in the Kogi election is the zoning issue. Kogi East is reputed to have the largest population and it has persistently dwarfed the two other senatorial zones since the dawn of democracy in 1999. It produced Abubakar Audu in 1999 and governor Ibrahim Idris in 2003. In the 2011 race, the same zone has produced the candidates of the major contending parties including that of the PDP and the ACN. Interestingly, Prince Audu has stated in an interview that he was ready to ensure power shift in the state. He had promised that as a founding father of Kogi, he was out to ensure peaceful coexistence among the ethnic groups and ensure that the harmony that led to the creation of the state is nurtured to maturity. The fact that Audu has one term left on his cards as governor if elected is another factor at play. Will the people of Kogi West and Kogi Central vote massively for the Action Congress Party to bring Audu in so that they could activate the power shift clause four years from now rather than wait for possible eight years' Will the aggrieved members of the PDP, who are still battling the emergence of the PDP candidate team up with other indigenes to install Audu' Or will party supremacy prevail at the end of the day and eventually return the PDP to power in Kogi'Though it appeared settled that the party would stick to the result of its primaries held in January for the December polls, a decision came from the blues to the effect that fresh primaries should be held.Sources told The Friday Edition a number of meetings at the National Headquarters of the party yielded the decision, allegedly against the advice of President Goodluck Jonathan, who was said to have advised against fresh elections in order to avoid polarizing the party. Acting National Chairman of the PDP,Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje declared after a stakeholders' meeting of the party in Abuja that fresh primaries would be conducted. The Acting Chairman had justified his decision to the media that it was: 'in line with its commitment to due process and a fulfillment of the guidelines in the Electoral Act to guarantee genuine internal democracy in the Party.'' That was after his team and Governor Ibrahim Idris were said to have justified the decision for fresh primaries before President Goodluck Jonathan at a meeting in the Presidential Villa.Jubril Isah had dragged the party to court seeking to nullify the special congress held by his party on September 23, 2011 on the grounds that he had emerged the flag bearer in January, 2011 primary election. Though the Abuja High Court on October 31 struck out the suit, he has since proceeded to the Appeal Court. It is clear that the battle of the 'winners'-Isah and Wada has created a schism in the PDP. But rather than anything else, the wide perception that under Idris, nothing much happened in the area of development in Kogi is a battle the party has got to fight in the current election. The PDP has, however, described its ruler ship under governor Idris as era of 'silent achievements.'Notwithstanding the troubles of the PDP, the party remains a formidable group in the state. Captain Idris Wada, the former Chief Executive Officer of EAS Airline, is not an unknown face in the state. He has the full backing of his in-law, the incumbent governor, he is also an Igala, like Audu, thus he would not be disadvantaged in terms of voter population. One other advantage for the PDP is the nomination of Mr. Yomi Awoniyi from Kogi West as the gubernatorial running mate. Awoniyi is the scion of respected late Chief Sunday Awoniyi, one of the founding fathers of the PDP, who died as Chairman of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF).It has been said that a major huddle on the path of the PDP's march towards Luggard House this time is the solid challenge posed by the ACN. Prince Audu, like the PDP has also picked his running mate from Kogi West, thus making the zone a sort of decider. Audu, who has ruled the state in 1992 and 2003, has been flaunting his infrastructural achievements and the fact that he won the best performing governor in 2002.His smartest political decision in recent times appears to be his defection to the ACN, where he is being fully supported by the party machinery desirous of expanding its scope.If history is anything to go by, Audu appears to have profited from disunity in the camps of the opposition to ride to victory on two occasions. In the aborted Third Republic in 1992, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) was the most popular party in the state and it had Dr. Steven Achema as the popular candidate. Intra-party conflicts occasioned by five disputed primaries won by the candidate however saw to the defeat of the SDP and Audu of the then National Republican Convention (NRC) emerged.In the Fourth Republic, Audu again emerged through the controversies in the opposition camp. Another opportunity came for Dr. Steven Achema to win the ticket but the division in the party threw up Chief Steven Olorunfemi. The aggrieved members of the PDP were then reputed to have teamed up with the opposition to give victory to Audu, who flew the All People's Party (APP) flag.Besides the two parties, the CPC and JP are also not leaving anything to chance. But the battle is sure to be fiercest between the PDP and the ACN. Many see the CPC candidate, Mr. James Ocholi as a formidable force who could snap a slice of the votes and that his efforts could create some discomfort for easy ride by either of the biggest contenders.With some late steps taken by the leadership of the PDP both at the national level and at the state level, it became apparent that the party has come to recognize the challenges at hand, especially the one posed by Prince Audu. Sources confirmed to The Friday Edition that some aggrieved members of the party refused to attend the gubernatorial campaigns of Captain Wada, while some supporters of top party leaders were already openly working for the opposition ACN. It was learnt that some meetings with the Kogi state PDP caucus in the National Assembly yielded the decision that the lawmakers would resolve to work for the party, despite the individual grudges they hold against the emergence of Captain Wada. The Presidency was also said to have initiated talks with the major stakeholders, especially the incumbent governor and the two contenders to the party's gubernatorial ticket. How all the last minute moves would help the party is a decision that rests squarely in the hands of the Kogi electorate.
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