The All Progressives Congress, APC, transition committee on Sunday said it did not invite the outgoing Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki to the inauguration of Senator Monday Okpebholo as the new governor of the state because the former had planned to frustrate the inauguration ceremony.
According to report Senator Monday Okpebholo, the APC candidate emerged as the governor-elect, to take over from the outgoing governor Obaseki whose eight years of two tenures as governor would come to an end on November 12, 2024.
Okpebholo defeated his closest rival Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and 15 other political party candidates at the September 21, 2024 governorship election.
Prince Kassim Afegbua, a member of the APC transition committee in a statement made available to newsmen in Benin City, titled, “Obaseki and his lamentations”, noted that rather than sit down to plan the inauguration event as it is done in other climes, the outgoing governor was busy planting landmines on the path to smooth transfer of power.
Afegbua also denied the allegation by Governor Obaseki, that the governor-elect has borrowed between N2 billion and N5 billion from the almost N27 billion his government set aside for the payment of projects and obligations for the inauguration.
According to report Governor Obaseki had last Friday while inaugurating the 10-man caretaker committee of the State’s chapter of PDP stated that he as the governor of the state was not invited to the inauguration.
According to him, during this holiday period, they will want to spend as much money as possible to confuse the people. They are going to struggle to change their perception.
“We have almost N27 billion to pay for projects and obligations, but they have started blowing it, and they have gone to borrow money for the inauguration which is going to cost them N2 to N5 billion. That is the money they will first take from the treasury.
“They are doing an inauguration and the governor is not even invited. It is like they are starting a brand new government and a brand new State”, he said.
In its response, the APC transition committee described Governor Obaseki’s remarks as generously laughable and self-indicting.
“Suddenly, Godwin Obaseki realizes the ephemerality of power and now resorts to lamentations about an ongoing inauguration without extending an invitation to him. We found this to be generously laughable and self-indicting.
“In other climes, an outgoing governor or president organizes the inauguration of the incoming, but for the painful loss of the PDP at the election, Governor Obaseki and his co-travelers are doing everything possible to frustrate the inauguration of the incoming Governor.
“Rather than sit down to plan the inauguration event as it is done in other climes, Governor Obaseki is busy planting landmines on the path to smooth transfer of power.
“From the transition committee to the inauguration committee, despite all the cooperation we have extended to them, what we have received in return is frustration and a deliberate plot to overburden the new administration with all manner of misplaced government decisions.
“We frown at these dubious plots which are clear negations of the standard procedures of power transfer the world over.
“Our inauguration team met with the Secretary to the State Government, who later handed our team over to another Permanent Secretary.
“The said Permanent Secretary had nothing on her table. She asked that our team should present an inauguration budget, and we declined because we wouldn’t want them to accuse us of spending bogus funds for the inauguration”, he added.
Afegbua noted that when the committee reported to the governor-elect that the state government had demanded for inauguration budget and that they declined, he (the governor-elect) took over the responsibility of funding the inauguration from his resources.
“He has also cut down on the activities to make the entire ceremony a bit moderate. He doesn’t believe in an ostentatious display of resources when a lot of Edo people have been impoverished by Governor Obaseki. He’s of the view that the inauguration shouldn’t be an elaborate event.
“We have not borrowed a kobo from anywhere. We are not Governor Obaseki and his profligate self. We are conscious of our responsibilities to make life better for the average Edo person”, he stated.
Afegbua, however, raised the alarm that most government vehicles have been allegedly carted away by government officials.
He also alleged that there was only one functional vehicle in the Edo State Government House.
“Why should we borrow money because of the inauguration? Do you know as we speak that most government vehicles have been carted away by government officials?
“There is only one functional vehicle in Edo state Government House. Every vehicle has been carted away. Is that a government that is interested in inauguration? he queried.
