Okpebholo Takes Over As Edo Governor Today

Senator Monday Okpebhole is taking over today as the Governor of Edo State following his recent election.

This is just as the Edo APC Transition Committee has recommended the institution of an enquiry into the finances of the state under the outgoing administration led by Mr Godwin Obaseki, adding that the outgoing government didn’t provide audited financial statements published or unpublished.

The committee also asked the new administration to review all Memoranda of Understandings (MOUs) signed by the outgoing government regarding the management of the Central Hospital and Stella Obasanjo.

The 25-member committee, led by former deputy governor Dr Pius Odubu, further recommended that all the local and foreign debts incurred under Obaseki be accounted for, pointing out that even the procurement agency, in its report to the transition committee, indicted the government.

It would be recalled that on 14 October 2024, the APC set up a Transition Committee made up of 25 members chaired by the former deputy governor of Edo State, Dr Odubu, to interface with the outgoing government for a seamless transition.

After three weeks of assignments, meetings, interactions, engagements and analyses of the documents presented to the committee, according to Odubu, it came out with the following recommendation viz:

That all employment carried out in the recent past by the outgoing administration be cancelled.

The committee also urged the incoming governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, to investigate the true ownership of the Ossiomo Power Plant and Radisson Blu Hotel as well as the Museum of West Africa Arts- MOWAA with a view to knowing the state’s equity in these companies as the outgoing government went blank on these enquiries.

It further demanded that the new administration carry out a comprehensive review of the World Bank-funded EdoBest programme, adding that a probe be instituted to uncover its rather ‘opaque’ operations.

“All major contracts issued by the state government under the Ministry of Roads and Bridges should be reviewed as they appear not to have followed due process, including the payment advance awarded to the contractors.

“The procurement agency indicted the government in its own report to the Transition Committee; hence, we have advised the new governor to conduct a critical review.

“The ICT ecosystem should be streamlined as there appears to be duplication of duties.

“The outgoing government didn’t provide audited financial statements published or unpublished; hence, the committee is advising the government to institute an enquiry into this.

“The government couldn’t account for the number of teachers in the state hence we demand a proper teacher head count,” the transition committee declared.

Okpeboholo, in a brief remark, thanked the committee for a job well done, and he promised to study the report.