As the race for the next governor of Edo State gets intense, political parties fielding candidates for the September 21, 2024 governorship election have signed a Peace Accord.
Though the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate for the election, Asue Ighodalo, did not sign, other parties including the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Monday Okpebholo, signed the Peace Accord. The Labour Party and its candidate Olumide Akpata signed as well.
Political parties and their candidates signed the Peace Accord for the Edo State Governorship election on September 12, 2024.
Accord Party, Accord Alliance, African Action Congress, and African Democratic Congress, Action Democratic Party signed the peace pact as well.
Others include the All Progressives Congress (APC), the All Progressives Grand Alliance Grand Alliance Grand Alliance (APGA), the Allied Peoples Movement, Action Peoples Party, Labour Party, National Rescue Movement, Peoples Redemption Party, the Social Democratic Party, Youth Party, the Young Progressives Party (YPP) among others.
Former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar on Thursday at the venue of the signing of the peace accord in Benin City, the Edo State capital, said the PDP opted not to commit to a peace pact.
While thanking those who signed the peace accord, the former Head of State said, “As you must have seen in the media, I met the Governor (Godwin Obaseki) yesterday and he told me that the PDP is not going to sign this peace accord.
“They have made some observations and I was expecting the Chairman of the PDP to come and make that statement. Having waited for him this long, it is just to announce that the PDP said they are not going to sign.”
According to him, the PDP said it would only sign the peace accord if certain conditions are met.
The Chairman of the PDP in the state, Tony Aziegbemi, who was present at the venue did not explain why the party refused to sign the accord.
Earlier on Wednesday, Obaseki accused security operatives of favouring the APC, saying that the police had obtained warrants and arrested members of the PDP, essentially driving the leaders of the party into hiding.
“Until everybody (party members) arrested in Edo is released or brought back to Edo to be tried for whatever offences you claimed they have committed, we have no confidence that the police is going to protect us in this election,” Governor Obaseki said.
Also, on the same day, the Deputy Director General of the PDP campaign Don-Pedro Obaseki gave reasons why the party would not sign. He spoke during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, also provided updates on the voter registration process, revealing that Edo State now has 2,629,025 registered voters.
The National Peace Committee was founded in 2014 as a non-governmental organisation comprised of elder statesmen in the country to promote free, fair, credible and peaceful elections.
Over the past 10 years, the committee has worked to avoid the breakdown of law and order during election circles. A prominent feature of its activities is the peace accord signings by political parties and candidates ahead of elections.
General Abubakar is the Chairman, Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe (Retired) is the Vice Chairman and Bishop Mathew Kukah is the Convener. Members include the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad III, and Alhaji Aliko Dangote, among others.
