Edo PDP Vows To Reclaim Mandate Amid Allegations Of APC Financial Mismanagement”
By Trek Africa Newspaper
Outgoing Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki has alleged that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is taking out loans of up to ₦5 billion to fund the inauguration of Senator Monday Okpebholo as the new governor.
Speaking on Friday at the inauguration of a 10-member caretaker committee for the State’s PDP in Benin City, Obaseki expressed disappointment that the outgoing administration had not been invited to the event, which is set for November 12, 2024. Okpebholo, the APC candidate, defeated the PDP’s Asue Ighodalo in the September 2024 election.
Obaseki claimed the incoming administration had already begun using funds—around ₦27 billion—set aside for essential projects and obligations, and he criticized the alleged borrowing for the inauguration as wasteful. “They’re borrowing between ₦2 to ₦5 billion just to fund the inauguration, money they’ll immediately withdraw from the treasury,” he said. “It’s as if they’re establishing a whole new government, in a whole new state.”
Reaffirming his support for the PDP, Obaseki assured members that he would continue to provide guidance to the party and remain active in reclaiming what he termed the PDP’s “stolen mandate.”
Asue Ighodalo, the PDP candidate, also addressed the members, urging them to be prepared for a legal battle to reclaim the mandate, with pre-hearing sessions expected to start later this month.
Meanwhile, the Edo APC recently accused Obaseki’s administration of siphoning ₦14 billion out of ₦24.6 billion in government funds and criticized the approval of multiple supplementary budgets, including a recent ₦450 billion allocation passed just before the September elections.
The APC statement questioned the transparency of these allocations, alleging that Obaseki’s administration had depleted state resources nearing a total of ₦2 trillion and calling on Edo citizens to demand accountability for their future.
