• Collect his money, kick him out, Edo gov tells electorate
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has launched a blistering attack on Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, mocking his penchant for dancing and accusing him of neglecting governance.
Campaigning for the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Osun, Bola Oyebamiji (Ambo) in a viral video, Okpebholo also urged voters to collect money allegedly being distributed by political opponents but vote for the APC at the polls.
The Edo governor repeatedly derided Adeleke over his public dancing, arguing that it had become a distraction from the business of governance.
“Before somebody sign (sic) paper, he will dance. Are you not tired? For four years, this man has been dancing. Before he take (sic) breakfast, before he drink (sic) tea, he will dance,” Okpebholo told supporters at the campaign rally.
He also claimed that Adeleke rarely attended meetings with other governors in Abuja because of his late arrival.
“I was asking my friend and I said, I can’t even remember when I saw this man in our general meeting in Abuja. Before he even enter (sic) the plane, he will dance. Before he get (sic) there, we are closed. So, he won’t know what we are saying. He doesn’t know the reality of today,” he said.
Okpebholo urged the electorate to reject the Accord Party (AP) administration in the state, insisting that the best way to deal with what he described as a non-performing government was to vote it out of office.
“A government that is not working, the best gift for him is to send him out of that state. If he is not working, what business does he have here? Does he have any business? Are you not tired of dancing, dancing, dancing Governor?” he asked.
The governor also advised voters to collect money from rival political parties if offered but not allow it to influence their choice at the ballot box.
“If they bring money, chop (sic) that money from them but don’t vote for them. They said they have money to spend, is that not so? Just collect the money and keep it in your pocket,” he said.
Drawing parallels with the 2024 Edo governorship election, Okpebholo linked Adeleke with former Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, whom he said had already been rejected by Edo voters.
“That man is Obaseki’s friend. You know we kick (sic) Obaseki out of Edo. So, we have to kick his friend out of this place too,” he declared.
Throwing his weight behind the APC candidate, Okpebholo described Oyebamiji as the candidate capable of delivering meaningful development to Osun State.
“This Ambo is the man that stands for development of this state. Your schools, this is the man that will develop your schools. He will build up for you with concrete pavements. A road that will last for 80 years and above.
“The reality of today is somebody that will change it and make development for Osun State. What are you looking for? Is it not development? Somebody that will bring about prosperity to this land. That is the person we need and that person is Ambo,” he said.
The Edo governor also criticised the condition of roads in Osun, using it to reinforce his attack on Adeleke’s administration.
“Let me tell you something. The road I was passing, my tyre was shaking. I said, is it the dancing road or the dancing governor’s road? They said it is the dancing governor’s road.
“But I want you to enjoy a good road. And the man that will give you a (sic) good road is Ambo. Are we ready? Osun, are we ready to make a change? Are we ready to say back to dancing so that it is only when there is ceremony (sic) that people will go and dance. Not when it is business to save the people and save the land?,” he said.
Okpebholo further argued that President Bola Tinubu had provided adequate resources for governors to deliver development in their respective states, questioning how those resources had been utilised in Osun.
“Let me tell you, a governor that is working in a state is (sic) the president that is working in that state. Because every resource that that governor is going to use is already provided by the president.
“So have you asked where is your own resource (sic) in this state? Where are they not using it? Now the good news has come. Let us get serious and make sure that this man is out of that place. There is no time to joke. There is no time to waste. The time for us to call (sic) the progress into this state is now,” he added.