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From Tony Osauzo, Benin
The Edo State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon. Kassim Afegbua, has defended Governor Monday Okpebholo’s pledge to deliver 2.5 million votes for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, describing the figure as a target achievable through massive voter mobilisation and the state government’s development projects.
Afegbua, who spoke on Arise Television’s Sunday morning programme, monitored in Benin City, said the target was based on the state’s growing voter population, noting that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had put Edo’s eligible voters at 2.865 million.
The commissioner said the state government was determined to mobilise, sensitise and persuade voters to support Tinubu’s re-election, arguing that the administration’s infrastructure and social development projects had provided reasons for the people to re-elect the President.
“The context at which we made that statement is the fact that we are setting a target for ourselves. After all, the new voters, as at last week when INEC released the figures, is 2.865 million people. What happens if we get 2.5 million? Is it a crime?
“We are doing so much, we are working so much, we are building infrastructure, we are touching the social development aspect, we are building schools, health sectors, and all of that,” he said.
Afegbua added that the government’s responsibility was to convince Edo voters to support Tinubu for another term, particularly because of the increased federal allocations to states.
“Our responsibility is to woo them, plead with them, appeal to them that they should allow the man who is providing the funding with respect to increase allocation to the state to continue so that they can see more development,” he said.
He also argued that continuity in government was necessary for economic growth, warning against disrupting policy implementation through frequent changes in leadership.
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“It is even dangerous for economic growth of any country for you to disrupt the flow or the process as it were now, when things are getting stabilised,” Afegbua said, adding that Edo was ready to deliver Tinubu in 2027.
The commissioner disclosed that Okpebholo was expected to begin a tour of the state’s 192 polling wards to canvass support for the President, stressing that the government would work to ensure voters were mobilised and their votes counted.
“Edo people are ready. We are going to deliver Edo State to President Tinubu, and we are very proud of it, and we are going to work assiduously,” he said.
Afegbua also defended the Director-General of Tinubu’s Presidential Campaign Council, former Zamfara State Governor Abdulaziz Yari, over his remark that Nigerians could still go to the market and find food to buy, urging a holistic interpretation of the statement.
He said Yari’s position did not mean the country was without economic challenges, but that food remained available in Nigerian markets, unlike in some foreign countries experiencing grocery shortages.
He explained that food availability depended on the markets consumers patronised, noting that direct purchases from farmers and local markets could offer cheaper prices than exclusive stores.
Afegbua said insecurity had also improved in some farming communities, allowing agricultural activities to resume, while acknowledging that Nigerians were still passing through difficult economic conditions as the government pursued reforms.
