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OPINION: Oshiomhole’s Toxic Advice To Okpebholo

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By Suyi Ayodele

It was meant to be a joyous occasion. Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State has just been affirmed as the governor of the state by the Supreme Court. Okpebholo’s election was challenged by Asue Ighodalo, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the September 22, 2024, governorship election. The soft-spoken former senator had won all the litigations from the petition tribunal, through the Appeal Court and up to the Supreme Court. Such a feat calls for celebration.

The governor’s party’s stalwarts from the All Progressives Congress (APC) gathered somewhere in Abuja to savour the victory; the last of any litigation that could come his way on the account of the election. The mood was peaceful. Leaders, one after the other, took time to appraise the situation. All of them gave glory to God for seeing their candidate and party through the tedious court proceedings. They were united that it was time for Governor Okpebholo to hit the ground running and bring good governance to the people of Edo State.

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Then it was time for Comrade Adams Oshiomhole to talk. Penultimate Saturday in Benin City at the APC South-South stakeholders meeting, Oshiomhole was reduced to a mere seconder of the motion to adopt President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and all the four APC governors from the zone for a second term. Senate President Godswill Akpabio presided over that engagement. Oshiomhole, a former governor of Edo State, former National Chairman of the APC and former President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) was reduced to a mere spectator at the Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub, the venue of the APC meeting. Why did that happen?

I hate to speculate. Methinks that the leadership of the meeting knew that Oshiomhole might pollute the atmosphere if allowed to talk. He had at the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) meeting held in the same Benin City days earlier made some unguarded statements! One may, therefore, conclude that shutting him out was to avoid another verbal disaster. You don’t have to believe this claim, especially if you are not familiar with the politics of the Senate Presidency playing out in the South-South.

Now back to the Abuja celebration of Okpebholo’s victory at the Apex Court. Immediately Oshiomhole held the microphone, all attention shifted to him. And he answered his name that day. Ogun, the Yoruba god of iron, is praised as Okùnrin kúkúrú abìjà kankan (The short man with a tenacious fighting spirit). Oshiomhole shares that praise name with Ogun. This is what the septuagenarian politician cum labour leader said:

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“You now have the time to look into that hotel about which they say Edo money, in tens of billions of naira, was spent, and now they claim it’s just a minority shareholding. You have time to revisit all those roads that were built at the worst costs compared to the ones I built and that are still there. Governor Obaseki must come out of hiding to answer these questions.”

From those statements, it is clear that the only thing that is paramount in the mind of Oshiomhole is the probe of former Governor Godwin Obaseki, the immediate past governor of the state. Obaseki, as we know, is Oshiomhole’s successor as governor. But a long-articulated vehicle has since passed between the once-two-jolly-good-fellows! How Obaseki, who at a time was Oshiomhole’s best man at his wedding, turned to be an archenemy of the senator representing Edo North Senatorial District is what should interest political scientists and anyone desirous of studying ‘how friends become enemies’ as a research proposition.

My immediate reaction to Oshiomhole’s call for the Obaseki probe is to quickly look at how convenient it is for Oshiomhole to speak from the two sides of his mouth without qualms! What sort of human being can have two or more opinions about an individual within a short space of time? Again, how come that of all the lofty ideas anyone could give to Governor Okpebholo, the only one that easily came to Oshiomhole is the idea of a probe and its attendant distractions? Why do our leaders don’t consider the consequences of their utterances first?

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Dr. John L. Gustavson is a Neuropsychologist in Grand Junction, Colorado, USA. He is reputed to have “special training and skill in evaluating and treating nervous system disorders, and determining how illnesses, injuries, and diseases of the brain and nervous system influence the way a patient feels, thinks, and behaves.” When asked to define why people talk first before thinking, Gustavson named such a condition as “Verbal Disinhibition” or simply “Disinhibition.” Here is his definition of the neuropsychological term, Verbal Disinhibition:

“Verbal disinhibition” or simply “disinhibition.” is saying or acting impulsively without considering the potentially damaging or embarrassing consequences of the words or deeds. Disinhibition may result from a brain injury, intoxication, mental illness, or MERE STUPIDITY (emphasis mine).”

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How fitting is this definition? While the 2024 Edo governorship electioneering lasted, all the statements that could have caused the APC the election were made by Oshiomhole. He, for instance, almost ruined the APC campaign then with his allusion to a couple married for many years without a child between them! Yet, he is an elder statesman, going by his age, experience and political outings.

The elders of my place reason that when there is an elder in the marketplace, a child strapped to her mother’s back is not likely to have his neck twisted (Àgbà ki wà l’ójà kí orí omo tuntun wó). But shouldn’t we rethink the axiom, given that we have elders in the mould of Oshiomhole around us? Or which is more dignifying to ask the governor: to give the best to the people and to ask him to go witch-hunting for an imaginary frenemy? Why do Oshiomhole’s friends always turn to his enemies?

For instance, when in 2016, Oshiomhole was selling the same Obaseki to the Edo people, he called him the compressor of the air-conditioning of his government’s economic car. That was at a time Oshiomhole appointed Obaseki as the head of the economic team of the government for eight years. Oshiomhole told the entire Edo people that his administration would not have achieved anything but for Obaseki who generated the funds and managed the state’s economy, prudently!

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At another time, specifically on January 18, 2018, when the then Governor Obaseki bought a fleet of buses for intra-city transportation, Oshiomhole enthused: “I am humbled by your accomplishments, and I am proud that we made promises on your behalf during the 2016 electioneering period and you have accomplished a lot of the promises. You are working tirelessly to industrialise the state and make life easy for the people. Many governors are complaining that there is no money, and they are unable to pay salaries, but you have developed your creativity to attract resources to the state.” Today, the same Obaseki, in Oshiomhole’s judgement, is the lead character in the Arabic folk tale, ‘Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves’, and he must be probed!

Obaseki is not the first to suffer from Oshiomhole’s “verbal disinhibition.”. On July 16, 2012, after Oshiomhole was declared winner of his second term governorship bid election, he described the then President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan as, “…Indeed a statesman, a man of honour because there were adequate and effective presence of security agents on ground. I am impressed because the army actually played a neutral role in the election.”

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Move forward to June 14, 2017, when Oshiomhole was assessing the same President Jonathan, hear his magisterial conclusion: “Nigeria was in danger if Jonathan continued in office.” The same “statesman and man of honour” suddenly became the one of whom Oshiomhole would later say: “Once I concluded that Nigeria was not in good hands, I also had to do everything possible to ensure that he (Jonathan) was not re-elected…”

The Edo-born politician did not spare his own too. On November 7, 2019, as the National Chairman of the APC, Oshiomhole’s verdict on the performance of the late President Muhammadu Buhari was a president that “has done well”. He eulogised Buhari, who passed on, on Sunday, in a London hospital, and said: “President Buhari can beat his chest to say I have started well; I have started fast. You cannot call him Baba Go Slow now. This time, he is Baba Fast,”

Fast forward again to Saturday, June 28, 2025, and listen to Oshiomhole describe Buhari’s administration as the ruiner of the nation’s economy. Speaking at the PGF meeting in Benin City, Oshiomhole said the Buhari administration, by using the Ways and Means policy, “printed over N31 trillion”, adding that the “excessive printing of money” crippled the naira.

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“This is what the immediate past CBN governor was doing. In the Senate, we have the record that they printed over N31 trillion which they called Ways and Means. You know when the government wants to deceive people they use jargon. They called it Ways and Means but I can tell you what it means: it means a situation in which the government prints banknotes, not based on what we have earned or any resources, just print banknotes to go and share with the people to meet their money illusion. It is the result of that excessive printing of banknotes that led to the collapse of the naira,” Oshiomhole ruled of the same administration he once said was the best ever!

So, when he counselled Okpebholo to probe Obaseki, I wondered how the voluble politician would explain how he transformed from a khaki-wearing labour man to a man of stupendous wealth that he is today! Is Oshiomhole ready to answer questions such as: What was his worth as a labour leader? What is his worth today? How did he acquire his Iyamoh countryside village-within-village home? How about the property in Abuja, the vehicles in his convoy and many more luxuries?

Please get me right. Okpebholo should by all means probe Obaseki. No past leaders suspected to have helped himself to our patrimony should keep and enjoy the proceeds of such heists. But, please, let us extend the probe to Oshiomhole. Let us see how clean he was as a governor. If he turns out to be a saint at the end of the exercise, let us raise a fund-me-account to sponsor his beatification!

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Thankfully, Governor Okpebholo appears to have heeded Oshiomhole’s prompting. The governor has said that he would probe Obaseki. He even mentioned some outrageous figures he alleged Obaseki misappropriated. I think in the interest of the public, Obaseki should be made to account for what he did or failed to do while in the office.

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I also hope that Okpebholo himself will begin to keep a clean slate of events while in the saddle because no matter how long he spends in office, he will vacate it one day, and he will be summoned to account for all his actions and inactions. I think Nigeria is on the path to good governance with this call to accountability.

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The only advice here is that Okpebholo should not allow those with low emotional control to dictate the pace to him. The governor should know that his primary duty is good governance to make life more abundant for the Edo people, home and in the diaspora.

I don’t know the governor’s mental aptitude to cope with distractions. He should do a self-assessment to determine if he can combine governance with political distractions of probes and what have you. More importantly, he should know the Obaseki camp will not sit back; and that it is not going to be an amala and ewedu exercise.

More importantly, Governor Okpebholo, I think, should begin to change the narrative that he is a man without his mind. Now that the distraction of litigation over his governorship is over, he should begin to demonstrate that he has the capabilities in all ramifications, to direct the affairs of the state according to his personal convictions and judgment of what is good for the state and its people. He must show that he doesn’t need a human prompter like Oshiomhole before he can take the right step as the governor of the state.

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The governor should not allow any individual to use him to settle any personal score. If probing Obaseki is the best for his administration and the people of Edo State, Okpebholo should go ahead and do that. But if that exercise is just to satisfy the bruised ego of some megalomaniacs somewhere, the governor should think twice.

Oshiomhole brought Obaseki to Edo State and made him the head of his economic team for eight years. Against all protestations, he went ahead and made Obaseki governor, deploying all the state’s machinery to back him up. Whatever went sour between him and his godson after 12 years of romance remains personal to the two of them. Nobody has the illusion that Oshiomhole fought Obaseki because the latter was not doing the right thing. We can only hope that one day, the duo will have the moral courage to tell the whole world what went wrong between the groom and his best man!

I hate to dwell on the reality that if Oshiomhole were to have his way, Okpebholo would not have been in the saddle today as the governor of Edo State! In fact, Okpebholo’s clan, the entire Esanland, would not have been anywhere near the Dennis Osadebey Avenue known as Edo State Government House! But success, they say, has many relations. If there is equity in the Edo political structure today, the credit goes to Obaseki and his sense of fairness and tenacity of purpose when it mattered. His Esan Agenda proposition and the tenacity with which he prosecuted it, produced a governor of Esan extraction in Okpebholo today! Oshiomhole, the new adviser-in-chief today, had other plans!

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I submit, however, that the fact that Obaseki pushed for a governor of Esan extraction, is never an excuse why he should not be called to account for how he managed Edo affairs and its finances when he was governor. The only plea here is that Governor Okpebholo should look beyond Obaseki and probe how much of Edo money was committed to, for instance, the Airport Road project and the Benin Water Storm project. The probe should be holistic!

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Oba of Benin Renews Bond With Ancestral Relations, Nigerians During Emorhọ Feast

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The palace of the Oba of Benin was agog with activities during the 2025 Emorhọ fest, declared by Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku, Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, Oba of Benin as part of activities to mark the ancient Emorhọ, otherwise known as the ‘New Yam Festival’.

Oba of Benin, who reenacted the age-long festival, renewed the bond that exist between him and his ancestral relations from Issele-Uku in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State at the event, which attracted dignitaries, including Benin people, indigenes and non-indigenes across Edo State.

Members of the Benin Royal family, Edionwere (village heads), youth leaders across the various communities in Benin, market women group, palace chiefs, traditional priests and priestesses in Benin, were also in attendance.

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A special prayer offered on behalf of the palace by Chief Enorense Ozigbo-Esere, the Osuma of Benin, paved the way for the commencement of the feast, where Secretary to the Benin Traditional Council, Frank Irabor, welcomed guests and highlighted the essence of the gathering.

Speaking in an interview, Oba Ewuare younger ancestral relations from Issele-Uku led by Chief Michael Odiakosa, expressed delight for the privilege to be part of the historic celebration.

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He explained the relationship between Benin and Issele-Uku, reaffirming that, “Issele-Uku is an extension of Benin Kingdom. We are all descendants of Benin. So, we are at home”.

READ ALSO:Oba Of Benin Ushers In ‘Emorọ’

We are in a safe place. We came to celebrate the festival with our father, the Omo N’ Oba, and we are happy to be here”, Odiakosa said.

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On his part, 99-year-old Pa. Paul Osarumwense Oyemwen, the Odionwere of Orior-Ozolua community in Uhunmwode LGA who thanked the Oba for the gesture, said the festival is not new in Benin and it’s devoid of sacrifices.

Expressing her appreciation to the Oba of Benin, the ‘Edo markets leader’, Pastor (Mrs) Josephine Ibhaguezejele, noted that members of the group have been waiting anxiously for the opportunity to partake in the yearly festival, while praying God that the blessings of the festival to transform lives.

Also speaking, Pa. Daniel Osunde, the Odionwere of Idumwun-owina, N’ Iyeke-orhiomwon, also prayed for the Oba and thanked the first Class traditional ruler for his foresight.

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Excited guests in their numbers were fed with African delicacy, amid dancing and jubilation, while members of Isikhian women group who gave a good account of their stewardship, were not left out in the celebration by the Oba who rewarded them with cash gift and other items in acknowledgement their duties in Benin.

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Okpebholo Poised To Surpassing People’s Expectations — Edo Deputy Gov

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Edo deputy governor, Hon Dennis Idahosa has assured that the Governor Monday Okpebholo-led administration is poised to surpass the expectations of the people of the state in terms of campaign promises fulfilment.

Idahosa said that the administration had hit the grand running right from the day of inauguration by identifying and prioritising the key areas of the SHINE agenda for implementation.

A statement by Mr Friday Aghedo, Chief Press Secretary to the deputy governor, said Idahosa spoke when he received the prestigious Peace Ambassador Award from the International Association of World Peace Advocates (IAWPA).

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The award ceremony held at the deputy governor’s office during a courtesy visit by the leadership of the IAWPA led by the President, Amb. Per Stafsen, the South-South Coordinator/Edo state Director, Amb. Amos Areloegbe, and other zonal representatives.

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“We pray, by the grace of God, Edo State will surpass the expectations of the people when we are through with our tenure,” he declared.

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Idahosa described the recognition as a source of pride, not just for him, but for the Governor Monday Okpebholo-led administration.

Governor Okpebholo is a man of peace, and his government stands firmly for peace. This award is a validation of his unwavering commitment to building a safe and harmonious Edo State,” he said.

The Deputy Governor emphasized that peace and security remain central pillars of the government’s five-point SHINE agenda, noting that collaboration with traditional institutions, religious leaders, and civil society organizations has been vital in sustaining stability across the state.

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Peace is extremely important in any society. Where there is peace, there is security; where insecurity prevails, peace cannot exist.

“This recognition today strengthens our resolve to continue being ambassadors of peace,” Idahosa stated.

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On his part, Amb. Amos Areloegbe noted that IAWPA, a United Nations–certified body aligned with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), deliberately chose Edo State to commemorate the International Day of Non-Violence on October 2.

According to him, “Edo State remains one of the most peaceful states in the federation, hence our choice to celebrate here.”

The investiture was hailed by observers as not only an honour to Idahosa but also as an acknowledgment of Edo’s growing reputation as a bastion of peace under Governor Okpebholo’s leadership.

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Ogoni Women Protest Resumption Of Oil Production, Demand Accountability In $1Bn Cleanup Funds

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Ogoni women drawn from all works of life have come out to protest against the resumption of oil production in the area without proper negotiation.

The women expressed anger over the non-transparent nature of the entire oil resumption exercise, accusing the government of attempting to manipulate them into giving up on their demands as expressed in the Ogoni Bill of Rights (OBR).

The women further demanded that the Nigerian government account for $300million Ogoni infrastructure development fund which is alleged to have been diverted by some key government personalities in alliance with some Ogoni leaders.

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They further demanded accountability for the $1Billion Ogoni cleanup funds which they said is a failed project.

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The women, who marched on the streets of Bori, the traditional headquarters of Ogoni, accused the government of neglecting the core demands of the Ogoni people including the demand for the creation of a Bori State and compensation for livelihood losses due to decades of devastating oil spills in the lands.

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“We lost everything, crops, drinking water sources, food and farming lands and we now live with strange illnesses which ultimately will lead to our death. No one is interested in all that. The only thing the government is interested in is our oil resources. We reject the insensitivity of the government and we want to be heard”; one of the protesters who pleaded anonymity told Ogoninews.

Another speaker, Mrs Helen Huoma said the plot to resume oil production in Ogoni is deceptive.

“The oil industry people are always lying. They will tell us something and do another. When we ask our MOSOP leaders, they tell us they know nothing about what the government and the oil industry are doing. It’s all a bunch of confusion and deceit. We will resist this move because we paid heavily to give Ogoni a name and the pride it has today”

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A woman identified as Janet from Gokana Local Government Area alleged that the Nigerian government has never been interested in the welfare of the Ogoni people.

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She alleged that the government had only been interested in the oil and after that, they appeased political leaders with contracts to suppress local residents.

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“All they do is deceive the Ogoni people and we continue to suffer in the midst of abundant natural resources. If they can divert $300million, then how can we trust them? Before we start, let them account for the $300 million and the cleanup program which, at least, should have solved some basic problems.”

The Nigerian President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu had recently directed the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu to engage the NNPC Limited and work out modalities for the resumption of oil production in Ogoni. This directive followed a meeting with some Ogoni leaders in Aso Rock, Presidential Villa.

The president had also recently granted pardon to the Ogoni nine including Ken Saro-Wiwa and to four Ogoni leaders who were murdered on May 21, 1995. The Abacha regime had blamed Ken Saro-Wiwa for the murders and executed him along with 8 others on November 10, 1995 despite global outcry acknowledging their innocence.

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Following the executions, a United Nations fact finding team visited Nigeria. The team acknowledged that the entire trial process was flawed and noted that Nigeria did not even follow the minimal prescription of its own laws in the conduct of the trial.

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