Clash In Edo: Obaseki Decries ‘Lavish’ N5B Inauguration As Okpebholo Fires Back

Clash In Edo: Obaseki Decries ‘Lavish’ N5B Inauguration As Okpebholo Fires Back

Benin City – Just a day before the gubernatorial handover from Governor Godwin Obaseki to Governor-elect Sen. Monday Okpebholo, tensions continue as Obaseki’s team, led by Special Adviser on Media Crusoe Osagie, accuses the incoming administration of budgeting N5 billion for the inauguration—a figure he says signals a wasteful future.…….CONTINUE READING 

Osagie also called the decision to exclude Obaseki from Tuesday’s event at Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium “petty.” In response, APC Transition Committee member Prince Kassim Afegbua claimed Obaseki neglected his responsibility to fund the ceremony, forcing Okpebholo to personally finance it. Afegbua criticized Obaseki’s complaint about the lack of invitation, calling it self-inflicted.

Afegbua argued that, traditionally, outgoing governors handle inauguration costs, but Obaseki, he alleged, has attempted to sabotage the event due to PDP’s recent election loss. He stated that Okpebholo, opting for moderation over excess, reduced the scale of activities for a more restrained celebration, mindful of Edo residents’ economic struggles under Obaseki’s administration.

Osagie, in his statement, urged the incoming government to focus on what he described as their “extravagant N5 billion inauguration plan” and avoid dragging Obaseki into “petty politics.” He noted that a large amount of funding has already been committed to vendors, suggesting that lavish spending may characterize the new administration’s approach.