There Is Alternative To Oshiomhole.

| IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN

Let me start this piece by sharing this story concerning my local government area with you. I was at the headquarters of Orhionmwon local government council, Abudu, recently. My mission was to have a chat with the chairman of the council’s caretaker committee appointed by Comrade Governor Adams Oshiomhole about three years ago over issues bordering on the sorry state of the LGA. I am an indigene of Urhonigbe town, the largest community in the local government area. Even though I knew the acting landlord was in the office, an aide to the LGA boss told me he had travelled to Benin City for a meeting when I visited his office. However, despite efforts made to frustrate my mission, I eventually met with one of the key account staff members of the council who should know the inner working of the council.
 Although I introduced myself as a journalist, I told him from the beginning that my discussion with him would be off the record. I requested to know from my source why the impact of the council in the administration of the local government is not being felt in the council — even in the common area of sanitation and community roads — in spite of the millions of naira the council receives monthly as revenue allocation from the federation account.  Expectedly, it was tough getting my source to talk. However, hesitantly, the senior account officer later explained the monthly frustration of the council.
Hear him: “In almost four years, Orhionmwon local government council has received over N162 billion from the federation account —with an average monthly allocation of N130 million. But, every month, the state government only gives us a fraction of it to pay salary and we do not know how the rest is shared or deployed. The state government usually tells us that the money will be used on behalf of the council.”
As I was able to understand from my source, my local government is not alone in this attitude of the state government under the leadership of the self-styled comrade governor. The criminal looting of the LGs’ funds is the same in all the local government councils monthly. From the Ministry of Finance’s record, Orhionmwon is one of the LGAs that receive the lowest allocation in the state, while Oredo LGA, which is the highest, receives an average of N158 million monthly. Yet, it is shocking to hear that the councils have little or nothing to show for the huge allocation they receive monthly.
Perhaps, that explains why Oshiomhole has refused to allow a democratic government in the councils in the last three years. For him, it appears the councils have become a conduit pipe to loot LGs’ funds for personal use.
Check the Ministry of Finance’s record also: Edo State has received well over N550 billion from the federation account since Oshiomhole came to power; this is outside the LGs’ monthly allocation and the internally generated revenue that runs into billions of naira monthly. Yet, we are told that the state had borrowed billions of naira from commercial banks for a few capital projects being executed in the state.

Like I have earlier stated in this column, what many outsiders are celebrating in Edo State today is massive fraud that has been perpetrated in the state in most of the four years of Oshiomhole’s regime. And these are the real issues that will determine how the good people of the state will vote on Saturday. In spite of several threats and intimidation that I have received from Oshiomhole’s aides, let me restate my position that I am one of many indigenes of Edo State who strongly believe that the comrade governor has failed to live up to the huge expectation of the people, especially taking into consideration the quantum of financial resources that have been made available to him since he assumed power almost four years ago. His so-called achievements are more of the media’s making. The people of Edo State know better. I admit that his media aides have done excellent job of manipulating the public in favour of their master. And, if people outside Edo State were to decide the Saturday governorship election in the state, Oshiomhole would surely score 99.9 per cent of the total votes. Apparently overwhelmed by the dirty propaganda of the governor’s spin doctors, most naive people outside the state wrongly believe that Oshiomhole is unbeatable in the election. They believe he has performed excellently to deserve a second term. But, unfortunately, the reality on ground in the state is far from what these people are saying; and, for sure, this group of people will not vote on Saturday; they will not be there when the good people of Edo State will come out in large numbers to decide who will govern them in the next four years.

But, give it to the propaganda unit of the Oshiomhole Campaign Organisation peopled by information management experts: while they have so far been able to deceive and manipulate most people, especially those outside the state, about the pseudo monumental achievements of Oshiomhole in the last four years, their limitation is that the impact of their activities is not being felt in Edo State, because the people of the state cannot see the so-called achievements which the outsiders are celebrating. If there is a monumental achievement of Oshiomhole’s regime – as some naive people are compelled to believe -- why is the self-styled comrade governor allegedly bribing the electorate in the state today to allow him to repeat his class? I thought his achievements today would have been campaigning for him.
The people of Edo State are very educated, enlightened and very patriotic; they reward excellence when they see it. The fact that Oshiomhole has, in the last few weeks allegedly opened the state’s treasury for his campaign organisation for all kinds of inducement is a pointer to the popular belief among the people of the state that their governor has refused or failed to meet their expectations in the last four years. Today, the people of Edo South are worst hit: they have been dehumanised and impoverished by Oshiomhole’s government, which is why it is very easy for the governor and his aides to bribe some of our people today with peanuts for vote. That is why the governor even thinks that by bringing Aki and Pawpaw, the diminutive Nigerian actors, or 2-Face for them to see at rallies, our people will vote for him.
The facts are there: In the last few days, Oshiomhole has been going about with a chopper in Esanland— at the expense of taxpayers — campaigning. This action, to me, gives credence to the fact that the governor is afraid of his people; it questions his claim that he has rehabilitated all roads in the area and brought succour to the people. And, like somebody asked, if he had done so well for the people, why did he choose to travel in a chopper rather than on the roads he claimed to have rehabilitated?
 We should challenge the governor to account between now and Saturday for public funds expended on chartering the chopper; otherwise, they should punish him by denying him their votes during the election on Saturday.
True, the people of Edo State have a rare opportunity to make a point this Saturday and send a clear but decisive message to Oshiomhole: they are not ready to continue with a governor that serves his people more on the pages of newspapers rather than increasing their well-being. It is an opportunity for them to free themselves from the punitive and exploitative tax policy of Oshiomhole and say enough is enough to the criminal pillaging of their common wealth. If we miss it, we shall be doomed.