Pastor Ize-Iyamu Is Likely The Next Governor Of Edo State

TRACKING___Since he returned to the All Progressives Congress (APC), the political juggernaut, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, has been a corrosive force to the opposition parties.
The mere mention of his name sends shivers to political opponents. Indeed, he has paid his dues and has become a source to be reckoned with in Edo politics.
Keen followers of developments in Edo politics, especially the lingering crisis between the Governor of the State, Mr Godwin Obaseki and his predecessor, who is also the national chairman of APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, would agree that Pastor Ize-Iyamu was drafted back to the APC to wrestle power from the incumbent governor.
Call him a political figure, you might be right. The pastor is not new to the political terrain of Edo State. Being the major campaign manager, he was instrumental to Oshiomhole’s re-election for his second term as governor of Edo State.

He was also the former Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Edo State Government under Oshiomhole. But he left APC for PDP in 2014 due to some irreconcilable differences. He contested for the number one political seat in the state under PDP but he lost to Obaseki of the APC.
Judging with his massive followers, which cut across party, religion and ethnic affiliations, political analysts and pundits have posited that he has the highest chance in the party to pick the ticket at the primary election.
They also believe that he is the only political heavyweight that can give the sitting governor a run for his money, stressing that it would not be surprising to see him becoming the next governor of the state.
It will be recalled that Pastor Ize-Iyamu gave his opponent, the APC a tough time during the last governorship election in Edo. Oshiomhole and his then preferred candidate, Obaseki escaped winning Ize- Iyamu by the whiskers.
As a team player, the pastor has continued to demonstrate his faith in APC since joining the party in November 2019. He has liaised and collaborated with relevant stakeholders in the party on the way forward.
It must be noted that his second coming to the party has made other governorship aspirants in APC to become jilttering. They see him as the candidate to beat and also being the most popular political figure in Edo State.
Pastor Ize-Iyamu has continued to hold rallies and promote the party’s fortune in the state. By so doing, he has been harvesting members from the opposition parties to APC. Let us not also forget that he is one of the founding fathers of the party.
Many see him as actually returning back home. And APC has been gaining from his political skills, and knowledge whilst PDP continued to suffer the greatest of casualty. Remember that politics is a game of number, and the more the merrier.
Pastor lze-Iyamu remains the most formidable, well organised, well experienced and with the most political capital to secure APC ticket for the next gubernatorial election. He is adjudged to be well-positioned to defeat any potential candidate of PDP.
This is said to be the reason Oshiomhole did everything possible to bring him back, since the ex governor’s relationship with his successor, Obaseki, has hit the rock and appeared irreparable.
Oshiomhole and his supporters have said that Obaseki does not deserve the party’s ticket to run for a second term. The party has been enmeshed in a lingering crisis for the past one year, tearing the soul of the unity of APC apart. Factions and more factions have sprung up to support and counter their preferred politicians as the case may be.
But there are also those who disagree with these permutations that favour Ize-Iyamu to defeat Obaseki or whoever stands to contest against him during primary and the governorship election proper.

These sets of people maintain that Obaseki still enjoys the empathy of the majority of Edo voters who don’t belong to any political party. According to them, he stands the chance to be reelected under any party in case the APC led by Oshiomhole refuses to give him the ticket.
They also argue that Pastor Ize-Iyamu popularity would no longer be welcomed, especially by the common man on the street, who see the politician as being too desperate to become a governor.