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Edo APC Leaders Deny Oshiomhole’s Involvement In Mock Primary, Challenge Obaseki To Prove Allegation

Published

5 years ago

May 7, 2020

Demand Gov To Account For N350bn

Some leaders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Edo State have denied allegation by governor of the state Mr. Godwin Obaseki that former governor of the state, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, was involved in a purported mock primary that recently held in the state.

A statement signed by the leaders, which was made available to INFO DAILY, also refuted the governor’s claim that, against his government’s directive, over 50 persons attendanded the meeting now misconstrued as mock primary.

Edo State government had accused the national chairman of organising a “mock primary” of the party in the state on April 30, purportedly to pick a candidate for the gubernatorial election in the state.

The statement jointly signed by Engr Chris Ogiemwonyi, Dr Pius Odubu, Gen. Charles Airhiavbere (Rtd), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, among others, the governor was challenged the governor to prove his allegation of a crowded “meeting of more than 50 persons.”

The statement reads in part, “We hereby vehemently deny any involvement of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole in our activities. We also state emphatically that there was no crowded meeting of 20 persons or more by this body of APC Leaders anywhere in Edo State in recent time. We hereby challenge Mr. Godwin Obaseki to prove his allegation of a crowded, “meeting of more than 50 persons” by releasing a video of such event.

“A look at the list of those who issued this statement on behalf of our teeming members will expose the rudeness in describing us as puppets of Oshiomhole by Mr Obaseki in the statement under reference.”

According to the leaders in the statement, the twisted narrative by Mr Obaseki was meant to drag the National Chairman of the party’s name into their activities in order to blackmail him, adding that the blackmail attempt is already ongoing.

While confronting the governor with evidence of bad governance, the leaders noted that no form of intimidation by Obaseki’s “hackneyed bashing” would deter them in the state.

“The twisted narrative by Mr Obaseki, is meant to drag the National Chairman, Comrade Oshiomhole’s name into our activities in order to blackmail him. This is an ongoing, but over used strategy for his ill-fated campaign for second tenure. We state unequivocally that we are not intimidated by Mr. Obaseki’s hackneyed bashing of and disrespect for the former Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, whose excellent performance in government remains the selling points for our party till date.

“Contrary to the resort to personalise attacks by Godwin Obaseki on the National Chairman, who is not contesting any election, we are confronting Mr Obaseki with the evidence of bad governance, mindless embezzlement of state funds, destruction of democratic culture, wicked demonization of those on whose backs he rose to power, and systematic destruction of APC, the platform that brought him to power,” they added.

Speaking on the huge spending by governor of over N300bn, the leaders said there are practically no projects to justify the expenditure of the huge receipts, lamenting that “it has all promises, celebrated signing of MoUs, deceptive adverts inviting tenders, etc”

They continued, “As at April 2020, Edo State Government under Godwin Obaseki has netted about N350bn (Three hundred and fifty billion Naira). The bulk is made up of Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) disbursements and Internally Generated Revenue, all amounting to about N300bn, Bail Out fund N17.5bn and Paris Club Excess deductions Refund, enhanced by exchange rate differentials, making up the balance.

“Against this huge funds, never seen before in Edo State, there are practically no projects to justify the expenditure of the huge receipts. All promises, celebrated signing of MOUs, deceptive adverts inviting tenders, and even inviting the Vice President on state visit to flag off construction of INDUSTRIAL PARK, came to nothing. There is not a single project worthy of commissioning as Mr Obaseki moves towards the end of his tenure.”

Reacting to the governor’s claim that he had spent N1bn on the fight against COVID-19, they, and the entire state was shock when the governor announced he has spent such huge amount, stressing that none of the claimed projects by the governor on COVID-19 has been executed in the state.

“Even in the current fight against Covid-19, he does not care about the sufferings of the people, but he is busy converting the opportunity for embezzlement, embarking on political campaign in the 192 wards under the guise of personal sensitization campaign against coronavirus. The state was shocked when he announced they had already spent over One billion Naira on the pandemic within two weeks. Till today there is no lockdown in Edo state in order to avoid spending on palliatives. Yet he moved markets to school premises in the entire state with a promise to fumigate the markets statewide.

“No fumigation has been carried out and the school premises are fast becoming Refuse dumps. Huge crowds are crammed into whatever space in the schools without social distancing. He ordered people to wear face-masks but his government did not provide any for the poor masses. The number of infected people is growing exponentially, he doesn’t care”, they lamented.

While ago alleging that thugs are deployed at will and agencies of government are sent as hounds to make life miserable for persons, the said anyone who disagrees with Obaseki in the state is being endangered.

“Anyone who disagrees with Obaseki in Edo State is endangered. Thugs are deployed at will and agencies of government are sent as hounds to make life miserable for such persons. Bombs have been thrown into people’s homes resulting in massive destructions, but curiously no arrests were made”, they said.

Efforts to speak to Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Mr. Cruseo Osagie proved abortive as calls put across to him were not through, and SMS sent to him was not replied.

News

Bumper Harvest: Foundation Distributes 6,000 Fertilizers To Farmers In Bauchi

Published

20 hours ago

August 14, 2025

Editor

A group, Wunti Al-Khair Foundation has donated 6,000 50kg bags of fertilizer to farmers in Bauchi state in order to have a bumper harvest.

Speaking during the flag off ceremony of the distribution of the fertilizers on Thursday, Mr Abubakar Mohammed, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Wunti Al-Khair Foundation, said the distribution was only for the indigent farmers in the state.

He said the fertilizers would be distributed to farmers in underserved communities across the three Senatorial Districts of the state.

“We are gathered here to flag off the free distribution of fertilizers to farmers, especially the indigent farmers that don’t have the means to buy fertilizer for their farms.

“That is the reason why the founder of this foundation bought the fertilizers and distributed them to the low income farmers in the state.

“We have gone round the nooks and crannies of the state to identify the underserved communities and those that deserve this particular gesture.

“We planned to distribute about 6,000 bags of fertilizer and due to the populous nature of the Bauchi LGA, they have the largest share but some other local governments too have hundreds of beneficiaries which we divided into Senatorial zones,” he said.

According to him, today was the flagging off of the Bauchi South Senatorial District, adding that the extension of the gesture would commence in Bauchi North and Bauchi Central Senatorial Districts tomorrow.

Mohammed explained that the only criteria used in selecting the beneficiaries were underserved communities and low income farmers, adding that “we know that a large number of the farmers in Bauchi state are low income farmers.

“Those are the people that we identified, verified and they are our beneficiaries and we have warned the general public about the activities of some unscrupulous elements that go round to impersonate our foundation.

“Wunti Al-Khair Foundation is not charging a kobo for every part of its activities, be it education, healthcare, economic empowerment and community development”.

Responding, one of the beneficiaries, Emmanuel Samson, described the support as a timely intervention that would greatly enhance his farming activities and appreciated the foundation for the intervention.

Another beneficiary, Salisu Maidawa, who was short of words for the gesture, said the gesture came at a time when he was in dire need of it.

News

IYC Urges Tinubu To Sack NCDMB Boss

Published

21 hours ago

August 14, 2025

Editor

Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Western Zone, has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately sack Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, the Executive Secretary of Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) for allegedly not “keeping up to the fundamental mandate,” upon which the agency was established.

This was contained in a statement jointly signed by Comrade Nicholas Igarama, Comrade Ebi Joshua Olowolayemo, and Comrade Tare Magbei, Western Zone
Chairman, Secretary, and Information Officer respectively, and made available to newsmen in Warri on Thursday, August 14, 2015.

According to the IYC, the call for Ogbe’s sack becomes necessary following his incompetence and ethnic bias, adding that Ogbe has turned the agency meant for the whole Niger Delta to his Itsekiri ethnic group alone.

The IYC, while noting that efforts to meet the NCDMB Executive Secretary to discuss critical issues as they affect the region and its people have proved abortive, said it can no longer fold it arms and watch while things go from bad to worse.

“As Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Ogbe has consistently failed to input his supposed industry track record in the advancement of the mandate upon which the agency was founded.

“He has continually had a sectional engagement with his fellow Itsekiri Kits and Kin, thereby shutting all other ethnic nationalites in the Niger Delta region out.

“Repeatedly, he avoided critical youth engagement in the region while sponsoring that of his Itsekiri ethnicity through different human capacity development initiatives, while other ethnic nationalites are left unattended.

“As Ijaw, mostly from the western flank where Engr. Ogbe also hails from, we will not sit and watch others benefit from the resources that we produce without our practical involvement to better the lives of our people as well.

“It is on record that the leadership of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Western Zone has tried to establish communication with Engr. Ogbe, for the last ten months, but every medium of communication to get his attention has fundamentally proven to be abortive.

“As youths, we can no longer have leaders in office who have now equated themselves to demi-god and have refused to attend to most significantly youthful issues in the Niger Delta Region.

“To this end, we therefore call on President Bola Ahmed Tinibu to immediately sack Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, who has consistently displayed disregard for critical actors in the Niger Delta and has also exhibited the highest level of gross inefficiency by not keeping up to the fundamental mandate upon which NCDMB was founded,” the statement reads.

The IYC also called for the probe Ogbe as Executive Secretary after his sack.

Efforts to reach Dr. Obinna Ezeobi, the General Manager, Corporate Communications, NCDMB, for reaction proved abortive.

News

I’m Being Impersonated – Goodluck Jonathan Disowns Social Media Account

Published

23 hours ago

August 14, 2025

Editor

Former President Goodluck Jonathan, on Thursday said he is being impersonated by fraudsters.

Jonathan alleged that a fraudulent Instagram handle has been impersonating him.

In a statement by his Media Aide,
Ikechukwu Eze, the former President insisted that he does not operate any Instagram handle.

The statement is titled ‘Beware of fake Instagram account impersonating H.E. Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’.

“Our attention has been drawn to a fraudulent Instagram account operating under the handle goodluck_ebelejonathan, which is falsely impersonating former President Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

“This impostor account has been deceitfully posting content, some copied from Dr. Jonathan’s Facebook page, while pretending to represent the former President.

“We wish to emphasise that Dr. Jonathan does not operate any Instagram account.

“The media and members of the public are strongly advised to disregard, avoid sharing, or promoting any content originating from this fake profile,” the statement read.