From the look of things, the politics of governorship tickets in Lagos State is becoming breath-taking in both the ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), reports KUNLE ODEREMI.THE rank of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State is not lacking in influential figure. Such men are indeed plentiful in its list of members, going by their pedigree. They include former and serving PDP national officers, ministers, seasoned administrators and a legion of professionals.During the build up to polls, especially governorship, the party usually renews a promise: to end the hold of the ruling party in Lagos. The leaders try to set aside personal differences, avoid ego trip, build a coalition and raise logistics with the sole intent of turning the apple cart against the hitherto Alliance for Democracy (AD), then the Action Congress and later the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), which has since transformed with three other parties into the All Progressives Congress (APC).Now, the chorus among Lagos PDP chieftains as the 2015 election approaches is another promise that the PDP will form the next government in the state. But, has anything changed in the party to guarantee such dream this time around' Have a few of those black sheep behind the dismal performance of the PDP during past governorship elections been purged of their sins' What is it that the PDP in Lagos hopes to do differently now to guarantee its ultimate desire of displacing the APC administration through the ballot in 2015'.These are a few of the teasers that some stakeholders in the PDP and in the state in general have raised as more party big wigs indicate interest in the race for the Lagos PDP ticket. Their foot soldiers have hit the ground running, deploying varying antics to curry favour for their individual principals.The intense horse trading ahead the choice of the candidate of the party has also thrown up wide ranging issues from the real to the imagined or what some critics have termed fantasies. In concrete terms, they include the antecedents and clout of the contestants, provisions of the PDP constitution regarding membership and eligibility and age as well as other primordial sentiments that are gradually coming to the centre stage of Lagos politics in the current dispensation.The list of the major contenders for the PDP is an admixture of old and new entrants. Each of the contestants parades a different background with a few of them coming from the academic world. The list of the aspirants includes the Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro; Dr Ade Dosunmu; Mr Jimi Agbaje; Dr Segun Ogundimu; Salis Owolabi; Babatunde Gbadamosi; and others.Musiliu ObanikoroHis first attempt in 2007 left the PDP with a bloody nose as he and a couple of other party chieftains took others to the cleaners over factors that led the PDP meeting its waterloo. Part of the major fallout of the acrimony was that Obanikoto became estranged to some influential Lagos PDP elders, who felt they did not deserve any form of insult from the camp of Obanikoro, after standing by him when some pary faithful had insisted on Mrs Hilda Williams, widow of the murdered Engineer Funsho Williams, as the declared winner of the Lagos PDP primaries. According to them, it was the PDP National Executive Committee, NEC, led by Dr Ahmadu Ali, that gave the ticket to Obanikoro against the popular wish of the party members in Lagos. Ironically, when the cold war simmered in 2009 through reconciliatory meetings, as the late president Umaru Ya'Adua named Obanikoro as Nigeria's High Commissioner to Ghana. The appointment was part of the policy of the party of rewarding unsuccessful PDP governorship candidates after elections, though a similar gesture was not extended to Dr Dosumu, who flew the party's flag in 2011 in Lagos.When he embarked on his maiden chase for the soul of Lagos in 2007, Obanikoro informed he had actually prepared and done his homework painstakingly before coming out. He said he had commissioned experts to research and prepare a blueprint preparatory to his formal declaration. He said: 'We need to know our past, where we are, how we got there and how we are going to get there.' He said this became imperative because the 'best way to recover the soul of Lagos and find a remedy to its myriad of problems was to investigate, to the very fabric, the nature and complexion of what he saw as the 'the depth of economic, social, and political rottenness' of Lagos. Accordingly, he said he had commissioned 'different groups of professionals, committees and a highly research-oriented team to investigate Lagos and find why things have deteriorated so horribly.' Thus, he believed he was the man the PDP needed to boot out the ruling party out of the Oval House.But, Obanikoro is coming into the race with some controversies trailing him. His critics say he is part of the establishment in Lagos that he now sees as evil. He and most of the major actors in the then AD were close allies, friends and associates. Besides, some have raised a couple of issues concerning his tenure as the chairman of the Lagos Island Local Government in the past. However, his associates say those raising such issues are ignorant and bent on giving dog a bad name in order to hang it.Some critics and party members are also accusing him of trying to eat with both sides of the mouth. Some alleged that he influenced Abuja to give him a ministerial slot. To them, he should be content with the job and allow others to try their luck over the governorship ticket. So, in a way, some see his current venture as not only based on an inordinate ambition, but also egoistic. Their thinking is that he ought to allow the ticket to go to any other party member with necessary pedigree, charisma and sagacity, since he has elected to be a minister, after serving as Nigeria's ambassador to Ghana.Some have also raised the issue of age. He is said to be about 57 years old. They believe Lagos PDP needs a younger person to make hay in 2015, because of what is gradually become a fad in the Nigerian political environment. They cite Ondo, Lagos and a number of other states, whose governors were a little over 40 at the time they assumed office and are about to complete two-terms, while still under 60 years. Such critics believe Lagos should not be seen as departing from the new political culture that appears to have brought good tidings to the electorate in most states that had jettisoned 'gerontocracy.'Jimi AgbajeA similar sentiment is being expressed by some commentators over the ambition of Agabaje, whose governorship campaign in 2007 tickled many, and whose wit and intellect during the pre-election debates created waves about his personage. No doubt, the entry of the pharmacist into the governorship race has changed the political calculation in the Lagos PDP. Before he joined the party in July, rumours doing the rounds were that he was in a quagmire. The talks in the political circle were that he was in a dilemma on if he should move to the PDP or settle for the Labour Party.Beyond the euphoria among his admirers and supporters over his decision to 'relocate' to the PDP are what some pundits have described as some critical issues surrounding his membership of the party. He has come at a time the party is a flurry of activities designed to choose a standard bearer for the 2015 governorship. He will need a waiver to run for the ticket as the constitution of the PDP stipulates a minimum of two years for eligibility of a member. How the issue is handled by the party's hierarchy will go a long way in shaping the destiny of the party ahead the real election, as a few party buffs are insinuating that Agaje might be acting the script of some influential party members, just as other critics claim that the man is actually on his own, as his camp might just be dropping names to place their principal on a better pedestal.On the other hand, some observers say Agbaje should be prepared for a tough battle, especially from the camps and sympathisers of the other contestants whose body language in relation to the Lagos PDP ticket has not been salutary or in disguise. According to them, the possibility of a few of them teaming up to engage Agbaje in a fight to the finish cannot be ruled out. This is because of the belief in certain quarters that apart from having the pedigree to lead the party to the election, they have invested enormous resources in oiling the Lagos PDP machinery since 1999. To them, it will be a travesty of justice, if there is no level-playing ground for all the contestants. The coming of the candidate of the Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN) in the 2007 election has created suspicion in some camps in the Lagos PDP with some alleging the perceived favouritism and sympathy by a few leaders for Agbaje. The party, had prior to this time, hoped to reap from a possible implosion in the ruling APC in the state over the choice of standard bearer, as some camps had introduced religious sentiments into the matter. Their contention is that it should be the turn of a Christian to govern the state in 2015. So, in the opinion of pundits, to exploit the acrimony to an advantage, the Lagos PDP will have to find a way round the likely opposition from contenders who might insist on the sanctity of the provisions of the party's constitution on the issue of membership vis-a-vas eligibility.DosunmuIn the race for the PDP ticket then, the suave scholar, technocrat and administrator, won the PDP primary held on January 10, 2010, as he secured 431 votes out of the 872 , to defeat Tokunbo Kamson, who polled 182 votes, while a former minister of state for Defence, Mr Demola Seriki, was third with 120 votes. Dosumu, 51, came with an intimidating credential. Urbane and sagacious, he is a lecturer at the post-graduate school at the University of Lagos and has held various high-flying positions in the public establishments, including the director general/chief executive officer of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). He revved up the campaign that preceded the 2011 election by raising the bar through issue-based campaign as opposed to mudslinging and shadow boxing by most political actors. He couched his ambition thus, 'For over 24 years of my career life, I have been committed to giving service that makes a difference and I have interacted extensively with people of different cultures and nationalities. I have learnt to appreciate the fact that leadership is about service, and service is about selflessness which in turn guarantees a better life for a greater number.'Other contendersThe remaining contenders are no less formidable, given their backgrounds and antecedents, coupled with experiences in both in the public and the private sectors. For example, Dr Segun Ogundimu was one of the leading lights in the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC). A vocal politician with oratory power, the interest of the former state Commissioner for Health in the Lagos PDP ticket is a climax to his political career. In a similar vein, Dr Adetokunbo Pearse, who is a senior lecturer in the Department of English at the University of Lagos, is also in the race for the (PDP) ticket, though with some critics saying his creating an upset is slim. Only time could tell if his political affinity with former PDP national chairman, Alhaji BamangaTukur could significantly count for him this time.Another contestant, who has been in the political circle dating back to the aborted Third Republic is Akintoye Branco-Rhodes. He was the alter ego of the Nigerian Advance Party and gave a good account of himself against the plan by late Head of State, General Sani Abacha to transmute to a civilian president.Last lineThe heightened frenzy over the governorship race is already catching up with some caucuses within the Lagos PDP with one of them called Lagos PDP Patriots, led by Chief Jide Damazio, expressing confidence that the party would make a difference in 2015. Part of its objectives is to resist every attempt from whatever quarters to impose candidate(s) on the party at any level of electoral contest to avoid divisive tendencies, as well as work to ensure that whosoever must emerge as a candidate of the party at any level of electoral contest must be a known and committed party member who possesses the capacity to accommodate every interest within the party. 'If we can achieve our basic objectives as we hope to do, then we would be really happy because we would be going in to the 2015 elections as a major contender for the Government House in Alausa. We are convinced that power will change hands in Lagos in 2015 as a matter of necessity to better serve the interest of the good people of Lagos.''The Abuja factor is critical in the ongoing battle for the Lagos PDP ticket. But it will not be without the local inputs. The issue is, who will determine the local contents and through what process
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