Since he was pushed out of the Edo State Government House and replaced as the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to Governor Monday Okpebholo by someone more effective and better exposed, Fred Itua has engaged in spinning series of negative narratives using faceless fellows coyly insinuating how his removal will spell doom for his erstwhile principal, Senator Monday Okpebholo.
Lets place the issue in its proper perspective. In the first instance, Itua, if we go by the principle of fair play and giving to everyone his due based on his investment in a project, should not have become the CPS in a state where his investment in the Project Okpebholo for Governor 2024 is completely zero.
He did not participate in the process. Throughout the period of the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial campaign when Senator Okpebholo was on the campaign train moving from the nooks to the crannies of the 18 local government areas of the state nobody ever mentioned Itua’s name in the scheme of things.
All these while his work as an academician took a large chunk of Dr. Ebojele’s time but it didn’t stop him from regularly endorsing the activities of Senator Okpebholo by coming up with well articulated press statements highlighting his good governance efforts. This is apart from the fact that he garned thousands of votes from his area of influence, friends, family members and associates for the aspirations of Governor Okpebholo. Whereas Itua does not have a voters card for elections in Edo State.
On the day of the APC gubernatorial primaries when there was bedlam in the course of the collation of the results and reporters practicing in the state were caught up in the dog fight that erupted from the opposing camps which resulted in many, especially those practicing in electronic media, having their tools damaged even as they suffered bruises before escaping from the scene by divine intervention no mention of Itua’s name was made.
For Itua’s appointment to be announced as soon as Governor Okpebholo came into office must have given him the very wrong impression that he is super human. Just as he came in he commenced an open war with the majority of reporters he met in the State in most cases for unjustifiable reasons.
He ‘sanitized’ the media unit of the Governor’s office by removing any reporter whose face he finds not beautiful according to his assessment. He commenced a divide and rule tactics whereby he cut off many reporters from getting access to major government/governors assignments. It was a common knowledge that he sort of locked the gate of Osadebey Avenue to prevent a majority of his colleagues who operate mostly on the streets from gaining access to the edifice.
He became some sort of gods who must be appeased. The easiest excuse for him to get rid of a reporter is to tag such as a beneficiary of the patronage of the erstwhile occupant of the office in the immediate past administration. Many reporters lost their jobs because Owaen Fred Itua cannot relate with them and as such he recommended their sack by the management of their establishment.
He was changing the template of his assignment as CPS to dabble into so many issues such that those who were not in the know feel he has his principal’s authority to carry out such vindictive assignments.
Itua adopted a system of placing media men where he felt they belonged to. When he came into office he was known simply as Mr. but by the time he had spent like six months in office he added the prefix Owaen to his name to rub it on whoever cares that he is now an elder and thus is no longer in their league. For those who don’t understand the Esan language Owaen is a prefix reserved for elders in the society by the people to show respect for such elderly individuals not you pronouncing yourself as an elder when you’re yet to clock 40!
Governor Okpebholo is a man imbibed with wisdom and the reports of these shortcomings of his CPS was getting to him regularly and he decided to take the action he took when he could no longer bear the heavy weight of the public murmurs.
For the erstwhile CPS to now use some daft chaps who camouflage as concerned individuals to now judge any action of Dr. Patrick Akhere Ebojele, a true son of Edo State, negatively is calling for something else. Let’s take for instance the issue of the molestation of a citizen of the state by some thugs which Itua’s hatchet men are accusing Dr. Ebojele of not issuing a press statement on.
When has it become the duty of a CPS to unilaterally issue statements without the instructions of his principal? Where did the molestation occur? Did it occur within the precinct of Edo State Government property or did anything linked the thugs to the state government?
The state Police Command whose duty is to keep the peace is not been accused of not talking but it’s Dr. Ebojele, the CPS to the Governor that felons are shooting arrows at just to demonize him and score a cheap point.
Also to keep the records straight, Dr. Ebojele for many years practised as a state Correspondent of some national dailies and later he switched to reputable broadcast organisations. His switching over to the academic field as a lecturer and also upgrading his academic background is a positive accomplishment from whatever angle anyone wants to look at it.
Fred Itua should be warned that the slogan around town right now is that Edo is shining thanks to the untiring efforts of Governor Monday Okpebholo. No scaremongering stories peddled by a disgruntled felon of Fred Itua’s calibre using faceless writers will change the narrative.
@ The Conscious Watchmen