By Kassim Afegbua
Governor Monday Okpebholo has sincerely delivered positive service to Edo people to the consternation of many who had underrated him during the elections. His quiet approach, driven by humility and accountability has continued to elicit a lot of interest from Edo people, who readily see a Governor that is not carried away by the paraphernalia of office, displaying a down-to-earth approach as he fulfils one promise after another. The discussion around Edo presently is no longer about whether Governor Monday is performing, but about where he’s getting money to carry out the humongous constructions that are presently ongoing in the state. From Edo South through Edo Central to Edo North, Edo state has become a huge construction site with several projects in the area of roads infrastructure, Primary Health Care centers, schools renovation and reconstruction projects, water reticulation, security and agricultural interventions.
The Governor’s intervention in the area of education has received commendations from a wide spectrum of the Edo collective, wondering what was the motive of the moribund EdoBest program that delivered rots and decay to Edo people. Under the previous administration, EdoBest Consultants were coasting home N160m monthly, such a drain pipe, that left schools in quandary. Under the same arrangement, Ambrose Alli University (AAU) were being paid N41m as subvention, while the consultants were drawing N57m from the state government. Governor Okpebholo has not only increased the subvention to N500m monthly, he has also extended the generosity to Edo University, Uzairue that now receives N250m monthly from the initial zero allocation of the previous administration. Schools are being stocked with brand new chairs and tables for students, school environments are being fenced to provide additional security, water system toilet facilities are being provided also to make school life more attractive to the average Edo child, as well as more teachers being recruited to reduce the shortfall. The school infrastructural projects have elicited a lot of attention from stakeholders who continue to shower encomium on a Governor that is making real his practical governance promise.
The Governor Okpebholo administration has also constructed sixty brand new Primary Health Care centers across the three senatorial districts, the initial numbers from a total of 146 PHCs it intends to complete across the Local Government Areas. It is not just a matter of building those Primary Health Care centres, he has also equipped them with facilities that will make their operation functional. Added to this is the Governor’s deliberate plan to commence work in the abandoned Stella Obasanjo Hospital, for which over N7b was being owed by the previous administration. The Okpebholo administration inherited a pattern of uncompleted projects across board, often over-prized with huge unpaid debts. The Governor has taken the bull by the horn in trying to defray the debts and create opportunity for the completion of those projects. While all these projects and interventions are ongoing, the Governor has not taken a single loan, especially at a time that his inherited debts stand at N705b.
Governor Okpebholo’s intervention on Edo roads has also yielded fruits. From flyover at Ramat Park and Adesuwa Junction in Benin City, to Temboga Road project linking Upper Mission through to the Benin Bye-pass, to Uromi-Udomi Roads, Kakumo completed road project, Auchi to Igarra ongoing road project, Iruekpen to Sabongida Road project, and several other ongoing roads projects, Edo’s poor infrastructural projects are getting serious attention under Governor Monday Okpebholo. The oncoming dry season will provide another opportunity to drive the projects to greater extent towards completion. While the opposition will naturally criticize the laudable efforts of the government for want of relevance, they cannot fault the extent and quality of projects being embarked upon by this administration. As the Governor continues to clean the Augean Stable he inherited from his predecessor, the coming weeks of the yuletide and new year will signpost fresh opportunities for Edo people home and abroad. We will continue to appreciate the overwhelming support which Edo people have been showing this performer and promise keeper of a “home-boy” Governor.
Prince Kassim Afegbua is the Honourable Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Edo State
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