In a matter of months, Edo State will be in play again, with the citizens offered a chance to choose their leadership for another four years, after the last eight years. All politics is local and elections, held across different states, are hardly the same in Nigeria. But some trends defy location and hold true. Young people will, to a great extent, determine the outcome of the 2024 polls in Edo, just as they did in the general elections.
No longer happy with their passive role as online spectators, youths of Edo State, and Nigeria by extension, have demonstrated their readiness to make their opinions count in leadership selection. Young people no longer want to play at the game’s margins; they want center position, with the attendant attention and privileges.
The foregoing makes it clear that the party best able to leverage this desire by presenting itself as a credible ally of young people and their aspirations will likely win the contest set for next year in Edo State. And it is here that the All Progressive Congress (APC) has a unique opportunity and special advantage in Hon. Dennis Idahosa, the member representing Ovia Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.
Dennis, known for his ability to remain unflustered no matter the situation, first gained state-wide attention with his nomination to serve as Commissioner in Oshiomhole’s cabinet, making him one of the youngest ever to do so in the state’s history. Since then, he has proven that he is not merely a smiling face, but a formidable politician who combines performance with powerful voter canvassing.
*Young, admired, and tested*
Dennis Idahosa is a truly young person who has proven himself adept at making strong connections with voters across all levels, particularly young adults and first-time voters who constitute a significant chunk of the voting population.
As obvious in his adopted alias ‘Denco’, the HOR member speaks the language of youth, is an excellent mobilizer, and is perhaps the most effective utilizer of social media as a platform to showcase competence and achievements, market ideas, and sustain support level amongst a critical voter base. While others struggle and burn through a litany of aides but still fail to strike the tone most appealing to youths and other voters in their media efforts; it comes naturally to Dennis Idahosa. To meet him is to love him. To hear him speak in his characteristic passionate manner about his plans for the people is to unwittingly join his army of loyal supporters in the state. His rare charisma and unprecedented achievements in office aided his re-election and ran the Igbinedions out of town. This is no mean feat and cannot be achieved by a man unversed in the arts of politics.
Like others in the recent past, Omosede Igbinedion, his opponent in the HOR contest, mistook his calm mien and composure for a lack of appetite and guts for a spirited challenge. Because of that costly mistake, she will watch proceedings at the 10th Assembly in her living room.
*A man of many firsts*
Many youths in Edo State regard Denco as a hero because he broke the myth that to be young is to be naive, incompetent, and unable to deliver without catastrophic errors when placed in the saddle. He holds impressive records as the first APC HOR member to be appointed as the Chairman of a Committee in his first term; the first HOR member to execute over 100 verifiable projects in his first term in office; the first HOR member to be returned unopposed in the party primaries in Ovia Federal Constituency.
Known as the David of Ovia for slaying the goliath that is Igbinedion, Dennis Idahosa bagged a master’s degree in Legislative Studies while representing his people, clinching another record as the first HOR member from his state to achieve this. What these unique achievements foreground is his admirable work ethic and commitment to duty. Because of that, he has successfully built a support base that stretches across party lines in Edo State, standing tall as a model of performance in the minds of voters, whether in Edo South, Edo Central, or Edo North. He is the standard, the benchmark of quality representation today, with only four years in office.
*Harbinger of a new dawn*
There is no denying that the APC in Edo State is in need of a make-over. The ghost of the last defeat is yet to varnish and voters remain disillusioned with the party’s assumed penchant for recycling tired horses further bogged down by serious reputation defect. There is a need for a clean break, a fresh start. The party needs to send a message to youths and other voters alike that its internal selection process can, like in the case of Oshiomhole, produce an energetic, bright, and untainted candidate who offers a clear divergence from the lethargy and fustiness of the status quo. Dennis Idahosa has all it takes to be that candidate. Young, fresh, courageous and with a proven track record of performance. He can unite all behind him and rekindle the hopes of the people in the state’s prospects yet again
Chief Joseph Eromosele, a Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) writes from Edo Central Senatorial District, Edo State.