Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has explained why he issued a stern warning to the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, not to enter Edo State again without obtaining security clearance from his office.
Speaking in Uromi, Esan North-East Local Government Area, the governor alleged that Obi’s last visit to the state ended in tragedy, claiming that three people died shortly after the former Anambra governor visited a nursing school in Benin and donated N15 million.
Governor Okpebholo, who was addressing a crowd during the defection of PDP lawmaker Hon. Marcus Onobun to the APC, said:
“The man wey say e no get ‘shishi’, I am sending a direct message to him — he cannot come to Edo without telling me. A new Sheriff is in town. He came the other day, donated N15 million, and after he left, there was crisis — three people died in Benin. Tell Obi he should not come to Edo without telling me.”
The governor questioned the source of the donation, mocking Obi’s popular slogan of financial prudence.
“Someone who said he doesn’t give ‘shishi,’ where did he get N15 million to donate? That’s hypocrisy,” he said.
Okpebholo emphasized that his warning was not just political but rooted in concerns over security, peace, and protocol. He declared that under his leadership, Edo will not be a playground for politicians trying to score cheap points or cause unrest.
He also took shots at opposition leaders across various parties, accusing them of corruption and playing a part in Nigeria’s insecurity and infrastructural collapse.
“Some of them stole railway funds. Some were Senate Presidents and couldn’t build roads to their villages. These same people are now jumping from one party to another — SDP today, ADC tomorrow, ADA next. We do not need insecurity merchants,” he said.
In reaction, Labour Party chieftain and National Secretary of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), Chief Peter Ameh, condemned the governor’s comments as unconstitutional and disgraceful. He said every Nigerian, including Peter Obi, has the right to move freely across the country.
Meanwhile, the governor used the occasion to welcome Hon. Marcus Onobun into the APC, celebrating the lawmaker’s return to what he called the party of “visible progress.”
