Former governor Adams Oshiomhole has called for a full investigation into the administration of the current governor, Godwin Obaseki. The demand comes as the tenure of Governor Obaseki is set to end on November 11, 2024, following the election of Senator Monday Okpebholo, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the recent governorship elections.
On Thursday, Oshiomhole made his call during the ceremony in which Okpebholo and his running mate, Dennis Idahosa, received their Certificates of Return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The event took place in Abuja, where INEC’s National Commissioner for Edo State, Rhoda Gumus, presented the certificates to the new leaders.
Oshiomhole expressed concerns over how Governor Obaseki managed funds, particularly a $75 million World Bank loan that was intended for the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (EdoBEST) project. According to him, there is a need for the World Bank to investigate how these funds were utilized, as many schools in Edo State reportedly still face issues such as a shortage of teachers, despite the substantial investment in the education sector.
“God has brought him (Okpebholo) to rescue Edo people, restore integrity, rebuild our schools, employ teachers so that parents don’t need to contribute money to pay teachers.
“All the fraud that Obaseki was doing with so-called World Bank money, and I think the World Bank will want even to investigate what he did with that money when you have schools without teachers, and you are doing EdoBEST. He left Edo worse.
“Senator Monday Okpebholo’s job is well cut out for him. Edo people cannot wait to see a new approach to governance: government of the people, by the people and for Edo people. Incidentally, his name, translated in English, means the rescuer,” said Oshiomhole.
The election that brought Okpebholo into power was highly competitive, with Okpebholo emerging victorious after securing 291,667 votes, defeating his closest rival, Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who received 247,274 votes. The Labour Party candidate, Olumide Akpata, finished in third place with 22,761 votes.
Despite the APC’s win, the PDP and other opposition parties have rejected the election results. They claim that the process was marred by irregularities, including vote-buying and manipulation of results. PDP candidate Asue Ighodalo labeled the outcome a “brazen theft” and vowed to challenge the results through legal avenues.
Meanwhile, Okpebholo, after receiving his certificate, assured the people of Edo that he is ready to work for their benefit. He also extended an olive branch to opposition parties, inviting them to collaborate with his government if they have valuable ideas. “If they have a beautiful idea that is acceptable to the people, then why not? My door is open to everybody,” Okpebholo stated during a meeting with President Bola Tinubu.
