From Tony Osauzo, Benin
The Edo State Government, yesterday, asked Monday Okpebholo and his self-appointed aides to focus on organising their exorbitant N5 billion inauguration ceremony and leave the highly-fulfilled Governor Obaseki out of their petty politics.
In a statement, Special Adviser to Obaseki on Media Projects, Crusoe Osagie, in a reaction to a statement by Prince Kassim Afegbua, member of the APC Transition Committee, said it was regrettable that the new government is starting on the sorry note of lavishing the state’s resources on the November 12 inauguration instead of thinking of how to hit the ground running.
“It is quite telling that we are back to the era where unconscionable spending sprees, jamborees and parties are the preoccupation of the government in Edo State.
“It is unheard of that the governor was not invited to the inauguration ceremony, which reveals the level of pettiness that would prevail in this new dispensation.
“The incoming government has made commitments to vendors to the tune of N5 billion in official capacity with many more expenses expected to be incurred on November 12, the day of the inauguration. It would, indeed, be a very sad day for Edo people who have hitherto witnessed prudent and judicious use of public funds to drive economic development in the state, to have their resources frittered in this manner,” said.
It alleged that the incoming government was throwing tantrums about the professional manner the government had wound down as against the old practice where there would be wanton vandalisation of government’s property and assets.
“We have maintained decorum in the handing over process and the incoming government is having none of it because they also intended to stage a heist of government’s assets with the intention to point fingers at the outgoing government. Today, they’ve been disappointed and they’re now seeking out Obaseki for blame. We are not surprised. In fact, we would only have been perplexed if they didn’t go this route in attempting to malign the government,” the statement noted.
Meanwhile, it was revealed yesterday that Okpebholo is personally funding the cost of the inauguration from his personal pocket, following alleged refusal of the outgoing Obaseki’s administration to cooperate with the All Progressives Congress (APC) Transition Committee.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by a member of the Transition Committee, Prince Kassim Afegbua, to react to Obaseki’s lamentations that as sitting governor who should organise the inauguration, the committee has excluded him by not inviting him to attend the event.
Contrary to claims by the government that huge sums of money had been borrowed for the inauguration ceremony, the Committee stated that it did not borrow a dime because the Governor-elect was not interested in an elaborate inauguration ceremony.
“Suddenly, Godwin Obaseki realises 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 organises the inauguration of the incoming, but for the painful loss of the PDP at the election, Governor Obaseki and his co-travellers 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 deliberate plot to overburden the new administration with all manner of misplaced government decisions. We totally 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.”