The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) assessed Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration in the past three months, saying that the sufferings that Edo people have had to undergo have been multidimensional across all sectors and, in many cases, avoidable.
The Chairman of the party’s Caretaker Committee, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, in an address titled “Edo PDP-State-of-the-State Address”, said the State has experienced alarming retrogression in the past three months under the Okpebholo administration, with setbacks across multiple sectors.
“From education, where Edo has taken a notorious back seat, ranking least on the list of States with top priority and budgetary allocations for the sector, to the health sector, where even the most basic medical consumables are unavailable, to security, economy infrastructure, power, and technology, among others.
“These setbacks are even more disheartening given the unprecedented progress the State witnessed over the last eight years under the immediate past government of His Excellency, Mr. Godwin Obaseki.
“Having a leader with no depth, no vision, and no clear plan, one who has effectively put the State in reverse gear, is most unfortunate and deeply disappointing, and we express our sympathy to the people of Edo State, who have had to endure the harsh realities of the clueless governance, economic stagnation, chaos, and regression under the Okpebholo administration“.
On security, Dr Aziegbemi noted that any government‘s primary responsibility is protecting citizens‘ lives and property, adding that „in this regard, we can categorically say that the Okpebolo government has failed woefully.“
He said that in the past two weeks, at least 35 innocent Edo citizens have been brutally killed by militant groups and killer herdsmen, while several others have sustained various degrees of injuries, and properties worth millions of naira have been destroyed.
Aziegbemi further alleged that the people of Edo State are under siege, saying that „From Edo South to Edo Central to Edo North, killings and violent attacks have become rampant. The State, which was repositioned as one of Nigeria’s safest places to live and do business during the Godwin Obaseki-led administration, has now become so unsafe, gaining a notorious reputation as the capital of kidnapping and violent crimes, as kidnappers and other criminals now see it as a haven, the weakest link in the country’s security framework. Meanwhile, the supposed Chief Security Officer of the State stands dazed, overwhelmed, clueless, and utterly incapable of managing the worsening insecurity that has continued to claim the lives of innocent citizens almost daily“.
He accused Governor Okpebholo of making Edo the country‘s new gangland by empowering thugs and non-state actors to intimidate and harass his people while demanding unlawful levies under the veiled protection of the Okpebholo administration.
However, reacting to the allegations, the state Commissioner for Information and Communication, Hon Paul Ohonbamu, described them as false.
Specifically, he said the state government commenced payment of a N500 million monthly subvention to Ambrose Alli University (AAU) from November when it made the announcement, just as he debunked the PDP claim that Governor Okpebholo paid Commissioners one million naira at every Executive Council meeting.
On the alleged decline in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), Hon. Ohonbamu stated that rather than declining, it has been increasing under the Okpebholo administration.
“In January, the Internally Generated Revenue rose to N10.4 billion and is increasing. Under Obaseki, the highest they got was N7.8“, he said.
The Commissioner also debunked the claim of worsening insecurity in the state, saying that when Okpebholo came, killings were rampant. Still, he ended the bloodshed by amending the anti-Cultism Law and making it more stringent, just as the Government has commenced demolition of houses of persons linked with kidnapping in the state.
He alleged that once the PDP lost the last governorship election, officials of the Obaseki government vandalised the Control and Command Centre in Government House, carting away Cameras and vehicles meant for the centre‘s operation.
“Under Obaseki, members of the Edo Security Network were not being paid salaries. They only gave them guns, which some of them used to perpetrate crimes, as most of them were cultists.
“The Okpebholo administration mopped up over 5000 guns and has re-organised the Security Corps and provided over 60 vehicles and hundreds of motorbikes for security agencies in the State to fight crimes“. Ohonbamu said.
He described the PDP press conference as vexatious and antithetical to a good conscience, saying, „It is organised to keep the remnants of the PDP. PDP is like a matchbox without matches“.
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