The Presidential and National Assembly elections in Kogi State was a woeful outcome for the ruling Peroples Democratic Party in Kogi State. Joseph Amedu, in Lokoja examines vividly what led to the down fall of the ruling party which had held the firm grip of the state in the last 12 years
In the said elections, the Presidential candidate of PDP, President Goodluck Jonathan was wildly expected to trounce General Muhammadu Buhari of the opposition All Progressives Congress in Kogi State. But that did no happen. In fact the party, against bookmakers prediction, came close to the rival APC who won more of the votes, while the three senatorial candidates of the party who were seeking re-election lost their bid to return to National Assembly.
Similarly, out of nine House of Representatives seats in Kogi, the ruling PDP struggled to secure only three in the contest.
To many the poor outing of the largest political party in Africa who is still in firm control of Kogi with rooted political structure was unbelievable and surprising.
What readily comes to mind with this poor performance even when PDP had every chances and upper hand to win just as it has been in the previous elections is that some thing went wrong somewhere.
The UNION investigation on the inability of the ruling PDP to deliver the state as it has been in the past was over confidence and in -house problems, which it could not manage effectively. One of such internal problems that consumed the great party in the state was the crisis that greeted its primary elections before the general elections.
There were alleged cases of imposition of candidates in the said primaries, which did not go down well with some of the political gladiators and party chieftains in the state. This singular reason led to the defection of notable PDP members to APC, which is the next strongest opposition party in Kogi. The failure of the leadership of PDP in the state to resolve the crisis that triggered as a result of its primary elections it was gathered, led to the defection in droves of the party faithfuls like the former Acting Governor of Kogi, chief Clarence Olafemi, Air Vice Marshal Saliu Atawodi, former accountant general in the state, Elder Ubolo Okpanachi, former state chairman of PDP, Barrister Dangana Ocheja, Senator Nicholas Ugbane, Samson Ihiabe, former executive chairman of Local Government Service Commssion, Mallam Sani Ogu and former Speaker of the State House of Asssmbly, Abdullahi Bello with their supporters to APC.
Another internal crisis that worked against the strong hold of PDP in the just concluded elections, according to some members of the party who spoke to THE UNION but did not want their names in print was the alleged grievances arising from some members of the party who claimed to have not benefitted any thing from the ruling party in the last 12 years after working very hard for the party to come on board while some persons who never laboured for the party nor have any political value have been continuously favoured by government.
The Buhari factor arising from the clarion call from across the country for change in the leadership of the country, The UNION learnt was yet another reason that weakened the strength of PDP in Kogi to deliver.
The dissolution of the 21 Local Government Councils in Kogi by The Kotokarfe High Court which invariably rendered former council chairmen and councillors jobless also contributed to the poor performance of the PDP in the presidential and national assembly elections as they were demoralized to fully mobilize for the victory of PDP candidates at the polls.
The percentage payment of local government staff salaries and the iregular payment of primary school teachers salaries as well as their none settlement of four years leave bonuses, annual incremental rate and implementation of their promotions, equally made it more difficult for the ruling PDP to smell victory at the polls.
With this ugly development, investigation shows, the elders of the party who have let things go unattended have seen the urgent need for PDP in Kogi to restratragise in its planned actions in view of the enormous challenges ahead of this week governorship and state houses of assembly elections to avert the repeat of the monumental failure witnessed in the last elections. The state is not however running for the governorship as the incumbent had to go for a bye-election two years ago. It is only the House of Assembly elections that would hold in the state on April 11. There is no doubt that the victory for the APC has posed the campaigns for the local legislature and it promises to be an interesting fight shadowed by the outcome of the March 29 Presidential and National Assembly poll.
