…Used proceeds to buy cars for party members
By Francis Larrymore
In a brazen show of desperation and what can be termed a criminal breach of trust, APC Governorship candidate Monday Okpebholo,has diverted ₦650 million Constituency project funds meant for the Construction of ICT & Skill Acquisition center in Irrua to buy 30 Cars which he is set to share to members of his Party, the APC in a bid to facilitate his Governorship ambition in Edo State.
He had also stockpiled palliatives in the form of bags of rice and fertilisers which he had hoarded since December last year and is now set to share them for vote buying and voter inducement on Tuesday, 6th August 2024.
It will be recalled that as part of steps to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal last year, the Federal Government had distributed bags of rice to Federal Legislators to share to their constituents.
They also allocated the sum of ₦500 Million for Constituency projects and an additional ₦150m for Zonal Intervention Projects (ZIP) for each Senator. In Edo Central, the total sum of ₦650 Million was earmarked for Senator Monday Okpebholo to build an ICT & SKILL ACQUISITION CENTRE and the contract was awarded under the Ministry of Science and Technology but alas! It was never built.
While legislators like Prince Odianosen Okojie, member representing Esan North-East/Esan South-East federal constituency utilized his own effectively and shared the palliatives since December last year, Monday Okpebholo a.k.a Akpakowayo criminally kept his own away from the masses and is set to share it on the 6th of August according to a statement by his legislative aide Godswill Inegbe.
It is the height of cruelty for Okpebholo to deprive the good people of Edo Central of palliatives given by the Federal Government since last December only to deploy the same items for his selfish ends during campaigns.
Diverting public resources for personal gain is a severe form of corruption that undermines trust in public institutions. It is also evil for a Senator to deprive the Youths of Edo Central a proposed ICT & Skill Acquisition center only to buy cars for his party members in APC.
Ikhator Emmanuel wrote from Ekpoma, Citi NewsRoom
