Prince Kassim Afegbua, former spokesman of ex-military President Ibrahim Babangida and a former Commissioner for Information in the administration of Senator Adams Oshiomhole, has thrown his hat into the ring for the upcoming gubernatorial election in Edo State.
Afegbua made his intentions known at the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) secretariat, citing infrastructural decay and leadership deficiencies in the State as the driving force behind his decision to contest.
Running on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform, he pledged to rejuvenate Edo, aligning its progress with national development objectives while seizing emerging opportunities for growth.
He promised to focus on education and healthcare, aiming to revitalize sectors he believes have suffered neglect.
Championing a new era of purposeful leadership, Afegbua vowed to reset the State’s political landscape, emphasizing the resourcefulness and resilience of the Edo people despite current despondency.
Addressing the debate around zoning the governorship ticket to Edo Central, Afegbua dismissed the notion of a zoning arrangement, highlighting the historical absence of such arrangements in past elections and encouraging aspirants from all zones to contest without restrictions.
His words: “There has never been zoning arrangement of governorship position in the State. He noted that anybody who says there is zoning will be missing the point.
“In 2007 when Oshiomhole came on stream to contest the position, as at that time Edo central had three ministers, yet Osunbor, who is also from central, was elected governor.
“Now, from that time till now, every primary conducted by political parties has always been featuring every aspirant from all the zones.
“So, this time, nothing of zoning should stop any worthy son of Edo from aspiring to govern Edo.”
