By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor His associates see him as the Governor-Elect of Kogi State. Party officials see him as the Deputy-Governor Elect. Meanwhile, the people of Ikeja Federal Constituency, Lagos State see him as their representative in the House of Representatives. Now Rep. James Faleke two-term chairman of Ikeja local government area, two-term member representing Ikeja Federal Constituency must make a choice between now and next Wednesday when the inauguration of the new governor of Kogi State takes place on the hat he must continue to wear. FalekeWill he eat humble pie and submit to party supremacy as he once chorused during the Femi Gbajabiamila/Yakubu Dogara tussle in the House and take the hat of deputy governor? Or will he still stick out his neck for the governorship and continue his case in court? Or even relatively safer for him, will he abandon the intrigues in Kogi and return to continue representing Ikeja? Even if he chooses that, his political antagonists have already laid a mine for him in the courts to stop him from relocating his voting point from Kogi State to Ikeja. Faleke’s main problem is the fear that the party’s decision on Yahaya Bello may not stand court scrutiny and hence his unwillingness to surrender Ikeja for the wind in Kogi. Has Mrs. Ekwunife’s rollercoaster ride come to an end? Former banker, former member of the House of Representatives, and until recently, Senator, Mrs. Uche Ekwunife has until now had a rollercoaster ride on the political terrain. Mrs. Ekwunife who delved into full time politics with her election into the House of Representatives on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in 2007, has remarkably excelled several of her compatriots of the class of 2007 in the House with her remarkable political forays including two abortive governorship aspirations and most recently, a failed attempt at retaining the Senate seat that was earlier declared in her favour. In her political gyrations, she has crisscrossed the PDP, the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, the Peoples Progressives Alliance, PPA and most recently, the All Progressives Congress, APC. Remarkably, her disqualification from the APC Senate primary for the Anambra Central ticket may have been traced to the lack of political fidelity. The five-man committee that screened her and Mrs. Sharon Ikeazor used four criteria, namely, education (20%), Integrity (40%), Experience (20%) and Party Loyalty (20%) to screen the two declared aspirants. The committee’s report did not state what Ikeazor got but indicated that all five members of the panel scored Ekwunife below the pass mark of 51% needed to qualify. Edo APC governorship aspirants Could APC national chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun survive a political battle with his home governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole? That was the question last Wednesday when the national chairman hosted governorship aspirants from the state in Abuja ahead of the March primaries. The closed-door interactive session was meant to reassure the aspirants who came to the meeting complaining that officials of the state administration are projecting an anointed candidate. Odigie-Oyegun, himself the first civilian governor of the state, assured them that the party was determined to keep the state. He even told them that the delegates’ list to be used would not be tampered with. He also promised to address the issue of party officials suspended allegedly because of their failure to support Godwin Obaseki, the supposed anointed aspirant. Given the media blitz by associates of the governor to trump up his right to support a successor, a faceoff between the governor and the national chairman may not be too far away.
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