Former Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly Mrs Elizabeth Ativie is upbeat about the chances of the Labour Party (LP) in next year’s elections.
Speaking to reporters in Benin City, the state capital, recently, Ativie, who is the candidate of the party for the Orhionmwon/Uhunmwonde Federal Constituency said many politicians are frightened over her emergence as the flag bearer of the LP for the Orhionmwon/Uhunmwonde Federal Constituency, because of her chances of winning on the platform of the LP, which she described as the party of the masses.
On allegations that she was imposed as the candidate, she said: “There are processes to be nominated and elected. I passed through all the processes in the LP. I do not want to take issues with anybody or some hired persons and non-members of the LP, who are protesting my candidacy. I was reliably informed that most of the protesters are members of other political parties, who are frightened by my candidacy.
“The LP is geared towards moving Nigeria forward. If you are not with us, do not come and destroy us. I was never imposed on the LP, and I never gave ‘shishi’ (money) to anybody, to pick up the ticket of the LP.
“I left the APC because it became cash and carry, as no woman emerged as House of Assembly, House of Representatives or senatorial candidate in Edo State. I must commend the leadership of LP, both at the state and national levels because they are living within the tenets of their conviction, belief and objectives. No leader of the LP has asked me for one naira. I am very impressed. They should keep it up, but we should not allow distraction and infiltration from other political parties to cause disharmony among us. The presidential candidate of the LP (Peter Obi) is the darling of the whole of Nigeria.”
Ativie said she joined the LP to add value to the party. The first female speaker of the Edo assembly urged all Edo residents to vote for LP’s candidates during the general elections next year to sing the song of emancipation.
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She added: “We are building the third force in Edo State. I am an ‘obidient’ servant. I have always been a comrade and coupled with the fact that I am a professional nurse. The Nursing Association of Nigeria is an affiliate of the Labour Union. So, it was not difficult for me to go back home in May this year. So, I am a member of LP.”
Ativie who dumped the APC in the wake of the lingering crisis in the Edo State chapter also hinged her decision to leave the party on the non-inclusion of women in decision-making at the state and the national level. She said: “It is unacceptable that all the women in Edo State, who sought elective positions on the platform of the APC during the primaries, were illogically prevented from picking the tickets. I cannot remain in such a political party that has no regard for women’s inclusion. Hence, I decided to throw in the towel.”
The former speaker hailed the wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, (Aisha) on her efforts in putting in place a team to ensure women’s inclusion in all the elective positions in the chapters of the APC across Nigeria, with all the female aspirants invited to a meeting in Abuja, but lamented that Edo chapter of the party did not respect the First Lady’s decision, despite her liaising with President Buhari and the National Chairman of APC, Senator Abdullahi Adamu.
Ativie noted that her name was on the list of Edo women to be specially considered for tickets, but no action was taken in the state chapter of APC, while stressing that she did not rely on the recommendation, and still worked hard to get the ticket, but there was no push from Edo chapter of the party.
She said: “Besides the smaller parties that were looking for candidates, in the bigger parties, it turned out to be cash and carry, with the money bags taking over the political space, without considering if they had the capacity, knowledge, education or passion. In APC, money was then called documents. Edo was the only state that did not benefit from Hajia Aisha Buhari’s project.
“If the APC primary was free and fair, more women would have emerged as the candidates at the various levels. I was a civil servant, after which I went to the Edo House of Assembly. So, I do not have the kind of money that Yahoo boys have, but I have service to give. I have capacity and value that I want to add to the system.”
Shortly after Ativie’s news conference, the supporters of Murphy Imasuen, who claimed to be the “duly-elected” candidate for the Orhionwwon/Uhunmwonde Constituency, also addressed reporters in Benin, kicking against the candidacy of the former speaker.
The spokesperson of Imasuen’s group, Comrade Ken Omusi, who is Edo Youth Leader of LP, declared that any attempt to rob Imasuen of the “well-deserved victory,” would be vehemently resisted.
Omusi, who was flanked at the media event by Orhiakhi Osaigbovo and Austin Oronsaye, Orhionmwon and Uhunmwonde local government chairmen of LP respectively, insisted that Imasuen was duly elected on July 13, 2022, at Abudu, the headquarters of Orhionmwon LGA of Edo, while declaring that any undemocratic move would be rejected by the members of the party, who later protested in Benin, along with some members of civil society organisations.