By Ayodele Oni
Striking a conciliatory note, quite unlike how he sounded on Monday, re-elected Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki on Tuesday, extended a hand of fellowship to his estranged political god-father, Adams Oshiomhole and the man he defeated on September 19 at the Governorship polls, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu.
While on a victory parade in Benin to express appreciation to Edo people for making his re-election possible, he told them that he had caged “lions and tigers” in the zoo.
But receiving his Certificate of Return on Tuesday from the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC), along with Deputy Governor Philip Shaibu who also received his, Obaseki asked them to join hands with him for the progress of the state because “we are one family.”
Governor Obaseki had roundly defeated his closest rival Ize-Iyamu at the election.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Governor Obaseki urged Oshiomhole and Ize-Iyamu to put their differences with him aside, and join in building the house which foundation they laid together.
INEC National Commissioner in charge of Edo, Rivers, and Bayelsa, Mrs May Agbmuche-Mbu, made the presentation at the INEC office in Aduwawa, Benin City, the Edo State capital.
According to the results announced by the INEC’s Returning Officer, Prof. Akpofure Rim-Rukeh, Obaseki polled 307,955 votes to defeat his closest rival, Ize-Iyamu, who got 223,619 votes.
Obaseki in his speech, declared that “to our friends and our brothers on the other side of the divide, we are one family in the pursuit to provide services and public good for our citizens.
“Our citizens have decided that as for now, they trust us more to provide them leadership. It does not mean that they do not have a role to play. It does not mean that they are not part of a family.
“I’m using this opportunity to extend hand of fellowship to my brother, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and his other colleagues in the All Progressives Congress to join us and work with us so that we can move Edo forward.
“We have no malice, the only thing we disagreed on is in the approach in moving Edo forward.”
Whether both men would calm down or not is debatable. But it is instructive that the National Leadership of their party has accepted defeat, and congratulated the winner.
Earlier, President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Obaseki, and descibed the election as free and fair.
