Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Edo State Government yesterday disagreed on the spending style of Governor Monday Okpebholo.
Spokesman for Edo PDP, Chris Nehikhare, in a statement had accused Governor Okpebholo of planning to spend N4.2billion to buy official vehicles for commissioners.
Nehikhare said Governor Okpebholo would have the most bloated Executive Council in the history of the state, following request to the House of Assembly for confirmation of 28 commissioner-nominees.
He accused the governor and his deputy, Dennis Idahosa, of abandoning the state for foreign trips without any direction or handover arrangement.
Nehikhare said political appointments by Okpebholo drove the cost of governance in Edo to an all-time high in the state’s 34-year history.
According to him, “this wasteful spending spree is especially offensive at a time Edo hospitals are collapsing, schools lack teachers, roads have become death traps, and communities are left at the mercy of bandits and kidnappers.
“Reports abound of delayed payment of workers’ entitlements, abandoned development projects, and worsening insecurity—yet the governor and his deputy prefer endless foreign junkets and reckless extravagance.
“We urge Governor Okpebholo and his deputy to end their reckless junketing abroad and return home to confront the urgent task of governance—restoring security, fixing schools and hospitals, paying workers, repairing roads and giving Edo people the dignity they deserve.”
Governor Okpebholo’s Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, said Nehikhare’s statement was a product of mischief and deliberate falsehood.
He said there was no time the state was left without a leadership.