The Edo State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party said it won the 18 chairmanship and 192 councillorship seats in the September 2, 2023 local government elections as a results of its vigorous campaigns across the state.
The party also attributed the overwhelming victory to the positive impacts of Making Edo Great Again (MEGA) Agenda of the state governor, Godwin Obaseki on the lives of the people.
BusinessDay reports that the State Chairman of the Party, Tony Aziegbemi disclosed this to newsmen at a press conference to appraise the conduct and outcome of the elections won by the party’s candidates in Benin City.
Aziegbemi noted that the victory of the party’s chairmanship candidates in the 18 local governments and Councillorship candidates in the 192 wards was an endorsement and a vote of confidence on the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led government.
He opined that the outcome of the election was a reflective of the dominance of the party in Edo State and the vigorous campaigns carried out by the party across all the 18 LGAs, 192 Wards,4519 units in the state.
“I told you that PDP is the only party led by the State Governor Godwin Obaseki that gone throughout the state to campaigns for the elections, and no other party did that.
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“The other parties leaders came to Benin to present their party flag to its 18 chairmanship candidates while the other parties did not even bothered to campaign”, he said.
While commending the opposition parties for their gallant fight during the election, he noted that in democracy the minority will always have their say but the majority will always have the trophy.
He extended the party’s hands of fellowship to the opposition parties and urged them to join in the state government’s determination to make life meaningful and better for the people at the grassroots.
He, however, disclosed that the local government elections was almost marred by bad roads in Edo North and Edo Central senatorial districts.
Aziegbemi posited that it took the innovation of the Edo State Independent National Electoral Commission (EDSIEC) to surmount the challenges by passing through the bushes to get the electoral materials to the various local government councils for the conduct of the elections in the senatorial districts.
He, however, added that the party suspended its earlier plan to block all the state’s roads entry and exit to Federal roads as a result of calls received from the Federal Government.
Recall that the party had August 18, 2023 threatened to block all entrance and exit of state’s roads linking the federal roads because of the alleged deliberate neglect of federal roads in the state by the federal government.
He stated that the party decided to suspend the blockade of the roads as a result of calls received from the federal government urging them to exercise patience with it.
“After the press conference here last month, there have been calls to us in the state telling us to tarry awhile that they will do something about the roads.
“We have agreed to give them sometimes but I think our patience should not be taken for granted. But if nothing is done by this September by ensuring that contractors are mobilized by October these roads will be impassable for the movement of goods and services out and inside the state.
“By then nobody can blame us because we have given them a lot of time to put their house together so that these roads can be constructed for the movement of goods and services in the state,” he said.
