After the previous trio Governorship Election conducted in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi State, celebrations and petitions have been flying in the political camps across the country which a common encouraging words says "In every competitions, there must be a winner..." therefore, birds have been singing onto the next state.
Edo State, giant of the Nation of the giant of Africa is on the path of conducting another Governorship Election which has been scheduled for September, 2024. Edo 2024 Governorship Election would be a special edition where the electorates would dig their rights into the ballot boxes across the eighteen local government in the state.
The political houses as well as those who have interest in running for the office of the governor have started preparing, many political parties and their aspirants who have shown interest in the Governorship race have analyzed their aspirations and plans if elected as the Governor.
Talking about the Labour Party, Labour party became famous among the parties during the preparations towards 2023 General election after when the former Governor of Anambra defected to the party from People's Democratic Party, popularly known as P.D.P; Peter Obi as a presidential candidate of the party impacted a laudable influence to the Labour Party, although the party was accepted by majority of the young ones and the Students but the APC Presidential candidate Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was declared a winner. Addressing it that some seat in the Senatorial and House of Representatives were won by the Labour Party candidates across the country, Governorship was also won by the Labour Party. Although, Nigerian Students therefore have shown more interest in participating positively in the coming election in Edo State.
However, many aspirants have shown interest and been supported by their friends and families, the atmosphere in Edo State give scent of intra party campaigns against the primary Election to commence, different news have been heard about different aspirants.
Meanwhile, Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata, the former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) through the Director-General of his campaign organisation has cleared the air against a publication claiming that an Edo State Governorship aspirant 'Olumide Akpata' on the platform of the Labour Party, is being sponsored by the incumbent Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Whereas, Akpata's campaign organisation through the Director-General Mr. Toju David has published an article titled 'Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata is his own man' denying the rumor, in his words, Toju said "A few weeks ago, a rag-tag online medium, which we will not dignify by naming, published an article under the title, “Edo 2024: Obaseki’s Sponsored Aspirant in Labour Party, Akpata Celebrates Birthday in Edo.”
The article, whilst deliberately curated as cheap “clickbait,” falsely claimed that Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata, an Edo State Governorship aspirant on the platform of the Labour Party, is being sponsored by the incumbent Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party. This claim
is entirely baseless."
He (Toju) further said "We have deliberately ignored the article these past weeks, as crass publications of this nature are not deserving of any response and should rightly be disregarded. However, considering that the peddlers of this false narrative have been unrelenting in their perfidious enterprise to the extent that this repeated lie is very quickly gaining ubiquity, it has become necessary to set the records straight.
"The immediate past President of the respected and revered Nigerian Bar Association (”NBA”), Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata, is a relatively young yet immensely accomplished gentleman and globally respected legal practitioner who, alongside his Partners built and superintended over one of the largest and most respected legal firms in Nigeria. He is a true legal luminary with over three decades of cognate experience in corporate and commercial law who, despite unwritten conventions, ascended to the very apex of the legal profession in Nigeria. Indeed, his joining the race for political leadership in Edo State was bound to cause major upheavals and send informed media pens scribbling and tongues wagging.
"Olumide Osaigbovo Akpata possesses a distinguished record of service in both the private and public sectors. As a respected lawyer in private practice, he garnered an impeccable reputation
advising both local and international
corporations on significant and widely- acclaimed transactions in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa. His role in transforming a nascent law practice into a world-class, multi-sectoral law firm
remains legendary and awe-inspiring." Toju said