The Death of PDP in Edo State: Blame Obaseki, Ordia, and Azingbeni After the Passing of Chief Tony Anenih

Introduction

The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State once stood as the most formidable political institution in the South-South region of Nigeria. It was a party deeply rooted in strategy, discipline, and strong leadership. At the heart of that leadership was Chief Tony Anenih, fondly called “Mr. Fix It,” the grandmaster of Edo politics whose wisdom, authority, and network bound the PDP family together. His word was law, his counsel respected by all, and his presence a unifying force that transcended personal ambition.

But after his passing, the PDP began to lose direction. Without the father figure who held competing interests in check, cracks widened into deep fissures. Today, the PDP in Edo is in ruins — disorganized, divided, and almost leaderless.

The principal culprits behind this political decay are Governor Godwin Obaseki, Senator Clifford Ordia, and Hon. Azingbeni. Together, through acts of impunity, selfish ambition, and cowardly silence, they buried the once-mighty PDP in Edo State. Their actions not only destroyed internal democracy but also dismantled the moral structure that Chief Anenih built over decades.

This essay traces the death of PDP in Edo State from Anenih’s passing to the present chaos, analyzing the roles of these three men and the critical moments that sealed the party’s fate.

1. Chief Tony Anenih: The Glue That Held PDP Together
Chief Tony Anenih’s leadership was not just about political power — it was about order, balance, and justice. Under his influence, PDP in Edo State was an organized family. Disputes were settled internally, candidates were chosen through consensus, and party discipline was enforced.

Anenih’s strength lay in his understanding of human nature and Edo’s political diversity. He knew every ward chairman, every youth leader, and every elder in the PDP family. His word could end a feud; his endorsement could make or break a candidate.

When he passed away, a huge vacuum emerged. No one possessed his stature, network, or moral authority. The absence of “Mr. Fix It” unleashed an era of confusion and personal ambition. Everyone wanted to be a leader; no one wanted to be a servant. In the words of one PDP stalwart, “After Chief, everyone started calling himself a leader, but nobody was leading.”

The PDP in Edo lost its spiritual compass, and into this vacuum stepped men who lacked Anenih’s political discipline — men like Obaseki, Ordia, and Azingbeni — who prioritized personal power over collective progress.

2. Governor Godwin Obaseki: Impunity and the Politics of Imposition
a. The Defector Who Conquered the Party
When Godwin Obaseki defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PDP in 2020, it was hailed as a political masterstroke. Having fallen out with Adams Oshiomhole, he sought refuge in the PDP, which offered him a platform to run for re-election. But instead of joining as a loyal member, Obaseki entered like a conqueror.

The PDP, desperate to reclaim Edo State, handed him the gubernatorial ticket on a platter — without proper primaries or consultation with long-standing members. This single act sowed the seeds of disunity. Legacy members who had kept the PDP alive during its opposition years were marginalized overnight.

Obaseki saw the PDP not as a party to be served, but as a tool for personal survival. His government became a replica of his earlier APC structure — filled with loyalists and technocrats who had no roots in the PDP.

b. Imposition of Candidates and Collapse of Internal Democracy
Once in control, Obaseki perfected the art of imposition. During the 2023 elections, he single-handedly selected candidates for both national and state assemblies, sidelining popular aspirants. Party primaries became a mere formality — the governor’s word was final.

In local government appointments and political nominations, loyalty to Obaseki mattered more than competence or electability. Those who challenged his choices were branded rebels or “anti-government.”

This culture of impunity alienated the PDP’s grassroots base. Ward meetings grew cold; local mobilizers withdrew; key financiers stopped funding campaigns. The result was predictable — disillusionment, apathy, and eventual collapse.

By 2024, the PDP under Obaseki had become an empty shell, surviving only by name but dead in spirit.

c. Betrayal of Anenih’s Legacy
What makes Obaseki’s conduct even more tragic is that he was once regarded as a political son of Chief Tony Anenih. He had learned strategy and political communication under the master himself. Ironically, the very principles that helped Obaseki rise — consensus, humility, consultation — were the ones he later destroyed.

Anenih built bridges; Obaseki burned them. Anenih unified factions; Obaseki created more. And in doing so, he dealt the PDP its heaviest blow since its inception.

3. Senator Clifford Ordia: The Third-Term Betrayal
a. From Defender of Justice to Power Addict
Senator Clifford Ordia, who represented Edo Central Senatorial District, was once admired as a reformist voice — a man who criticized excessive ambition and campaigned for fairness in political rotation. Yet, in a shocking turn, he sought a third term in the Senate, despite previously condemning former Senator Odion Ugbesia for attempting the same feat.

His third-term bid was not just hypocrisy; it was political betrayal. By choosing personal ambition over party harmony, Ordia deepened the rift within the PDP, especially in Esanland.

b. The Esan Central Division and the Fall of Trust
Ordia’s move divided the Esan Central bloc. Many party members who had supported him for two terms turned against him. Aspirants who expected a level playing field were shoved aside. His influence, coupled with his alliance with Obaseki’s camp, ensured he secured the ticket — but at the cost of peace and unity.

This arrogance mirrored the same impunity Obaseki practiced at the state level. The PDP, once a school for democratic mentorship, had turned into a battlefield of greed.

The fallout was disastrous: several committed PDP members defected to other parties, while others sat out the elections. The Esan region, once a PDP fortress, fell to rival parties. The umbrella was torn apart by those it sheltered.

c. From Statesman to Symbol of PDP’s Decay
Ordia’s third term ambition became the symbol of everything wrong with the PDP — self-interest over service, ambition over legacy. His inability to nurture successors or support new leadership left the party aging, tired, and uninspiring.

By betraying his own principles, Ordia helped to bury the PDP alongside the moral code of Anenih’s era.

4. Hon. Azingbeni: The “Yes-Sir” Politics of Silence
a. The Loyalist Without Courage
Among the trio, Hon. Azingbeni represents the silent killer of PDP in Edo State. Unlike Obaseki’s authoritarianism or Ordia’s ambition, Azingbeni’s weapon was silence. A man who once had the ears of the grassroots became a “yes-sir” loyalist to Obaseki, refusing to confront the governor’s excesses.

Leadership requires courage, but Azingbeni chose comfort. When the party cried out for fairness and inclusion, he stayed quiet. When Obaseki imposed candidates, he defended the indefensible.

b. Silence as Complicity
There is an African proverb: “The child who keeps quiet while the mother cooks a poisonous soup will eat it too.” Azingbeni’s failure to speak truth to power made him complicit in PDP’s destruction.

Instead of standing with legacy members and mediating between factions, he chose to align with the governor’s every decision. His silence gave legitimacy to impunity, confirming fears that the PDP had lost its conscience.

When the elders are afraid to tell the king the truth, the kingdom collapses — and that is precisely what happened in the Edo PDP.

5. The Senatorial Bye-Election: The Final Betrayal
The death of PDP in Edo was sealed the night before the last senatorial bye-election. The same actors who had divided and weakened the party — Obaseki, Ordia, and Azingbeni — came together again, not to rebuild, but to impose.

They met and endorsed Joseph Okojie against the candidacies of Friday Itulah, John Yakubu, and Ehia Akhabue — three respected PDP figures with deep grassroots appeal. Sensing the direction of the wind, Ehia Akhabue quietly withdrew from the race, unwilling to legitimize another round of manipulation.

This move angered many PDP members across Esanland. It became clear that the party no longer respected merit or democracy. Loyalty was rewarded; principle was punished. The endorsement of Okojie symbolized the last nail in PDP’s coffin in Edo State.

As one observer noted, “That night, PDP died officially in Esanland. The same people who killed the party came together to bury it.”

6. The Crisis of Leadership and the Vacuum in Esanland
With the passing of Chief Anenih, Esanland — once the intellectual and political nucleus of Edo PDP — has been left adrift. There is no longer a central authority, no figure capable of uniting the factions or commanding universal respect.

Today, every politician in Esanland calls himself a leader. Meetings are held in fragments, alliances shift weekly, and loyalty is dictated by immediate personal benefit. The spirit of collective leadership that Anenih nurtured is gone.

The consequences are clear:

The PDP can no longer coordinate a unified strategy in Esanland.

Traditional institutions have withdrawn from political mediation.

Youth leaders have lost confidence in party elders.

Without order, the PDP has become a house without a roof — everyone shouting at once, but no one listening.

The Esan people, once proud of their role in Edo politics, now lament the absence of direction. They miss their great leader — Mr. Fix It — who would have ensured justice and stability.

7. The Need for Justice: The “Ebakota” Question and the Esan North-East Claim
In Esanland today, the demand for fairness echoes louder than ever. Many believe that the Edo Central Senate seat must now shift to Esan North-East (Uromi) in keeping with the spirit of “Ebakota” — the balance and equity principle Chief Anenih championed.

The idea is simple: without justice, there can be no peace. If the PDP truly wants to rebuild, it must begin by acknowledging this imbalance. The refusal to rotate leadership positions has bred resentment and apathy among communities that feel perpetually sidelined.

Chief Anenih understood this balance instinctively — he shared power equitably to maintain harmony. But today’s PDP leaders have forgotten this wisdom. They hoard positions, ignore zoning, and then wonder why the people no longer follow them.

If the PDP continues on this path, it will remain unelectable in Edo State for the foreseeable future.

8. Exodus and the APC/ADC Reality
The current situation has pushed many PDP members to defect to other parties, particularly the APC and ADC. For some, it’s survival; for others, it’s protest. But the trend is unmistakable: PDP is bleeding out.

Every week, ward leaders, youth coordinators, and women mobilizers decamp, citing frustration and lack of direction. The once vibrant structure built by Chief Anenih has become a hollow frame.

Ironically, while PDP is dying, those responsible for its demise — Obaseki, Ordia, and Azingbeni — continue to parade themselves as party elders. They hold meetings, issue endorsements, and pretend that all is well. But the people are watching. The voters remember.

If the PDP is ever to rise again, it must first purge itself of these internal saboteurs.

9. The Way Forward: Rebuilding Through Leadership and Truth
Rebuilding PDP in Edo State requires honesty, humility, and reform. The first step is to admit the truth — that the party lost its soul after Chief Tony Anenih’s death and that its current leaders have failed.

To revive, PDP must:

Fix the leadership vacuum. There must be a clear, respected figure to unify all factions — someone who embodies Anenih’s discipline and integrity.

Return to internal democracy. No more imposition of candidates; every election must be fair, transparent, and competitive.

Respect zoning and equity. Esanland must have its fair share of representation in line with the Ebakota principle.

Empower the grassroots. The ward and local government structures must be revitalized through genuine inclusion, not tokenism.

Encourage truth-telling. Leaders must learn to speak truth to power, even when it’s uncomfortable. Silence is no longer an option.

If these steps are ignored, PDP will remain a relic of history — remembered only for what it once was, not what it could have been.

10. Conclusion: Esanland Misses Its Great Leader
The death of the PDP in Edo State is not just a political story; it is a human tragedy. It is the story of a great institution undone by arrogance, ambition, and cowardice.

After the passing of Chief Tony Anenih, those who inherited his political structure squandered it. Obaseki’s impunity destroyed party unity; Ordia’s hypocrisy shattered credibility; and Azingbeni’s silence killed conscience.

A night before the last senatorial bye-election, the same men who broke the party came together again to crown Joseph Okojie — proof that they had learned nothing and forgotten everything.

Today, Edo’s PDP is leaderless, its members scattered, and its followers disillusioned. Esanland, once the heartbeat of PDP politics, now wanders without direction.

If there is to be redemption, it must start with justice, humility, and truth. Until then, the words of Chief Anenih still echo: “Without discipline and fairness, politics will destroy itself.”

Edo PDP has learned this lesson the hard way. The umbrella did not just tear — it was set on fire by those sworn to protect it.

Ehia Olu. Akhabue, Uromi, Edo State