•Why I apologised to Tonie Iredia on behalf of Oshiomhole

BY GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE, BENIN

OROBOSA OMO-OJO, journalist, publisher and member of the All Progressives Congress, APC, served in the Adams Oshiomhole administration first as Commissioner for Oil and Gas, and later, held the Transport portfolio.

In this interview he expresses his disaffection with the way the party has approached next Wednesday’s election and faults the conduct of the party leader and governor of the state, Comrade Oshiomhole.

  Excerpts:

What is your reaction to the postponement of the governorship election?

It is largely a loss to the state and to the country because INEC had come out to say for each day that the election is postponed the nation is losing about N8 million. If I’m correct and in terms of logistics again, we have to spend more money to mobilise everyone back to the state again.

Orobosa

But by and large I think the socio-cultural shock that this created in the land is more important to me because it’s going to take a lot of effort, a lot of marketing for us to convince the international community, international investors, local investors, in neighbouring states to tell them after the exit of Governor Adams Oshiomhole that we are not actually a terrorist state.

Do you agree with those who say that Governor Oshiomhole caused this?

The truth is that it was obvious that the state as at today and I’m very sure that in the near future our state is not in any danger of Boko Haram attack or militant attack, very obvious what was said was an obstruction by my party, the APC and the governor; it is very clear that may be we were not just ready for the election. I was at the stakeholders’ meeting in Ikpoba Hill when the news broke out that one of the TV networks had a scroll on the screen that the election had been postponed.

And about the same time, the governor had a stakeholders’ meeting in Government House and was anticipating that the election would be shifted and he openly castigated the chairman of INEC for not accepting the security advice and went on to say if anything happens in the state, the INEC chairman would be held responsible. For me those were open threats to force the hands of the INEC chairman to submission.

What is your reaction to the face-off between former NTA director-general, Dr. Tony Iredia and the Government House over his claim that the GRA in Benin has been abandoned?

Sadly again I have already apologised in private to our elder statesman, Elder Tony Iredia. He is a PhD holder in two disciplines. When the attacks from Adams Oshiomhole became unbearable I travelled to Abuja and I was at his residence to apologise to him and identify with him and sympathise with him. On what happened to Tony Iredia, I told him I said, sir as much as I will sympathise with you, I will equally blame you and he said why? I said you people left us for too long in the trenches in Edo State.

I said it took you eight years for you to realise that we had a Pharaoh that was in a China Shop    and I said sir, where were you when Oshiomhole took on every leading light in the state who was bold to tell him the truth both the old and the young.

One thing I shared with Tony Iredia which I also share with people, if a governor who assumed office from a tenement building in Benin City can have the courage, lack the fear of God to call another man poor, the man that served the nation and retired as DG of the NTA and to say ‘Tony Iredia is a poor man’ that poverty is what is bothering him, and I said it happens only in our clime.

These are people that have served this nation, that helped to build the state that he came to govern. So it is very appalling, it’s condemnable and every sane man whether Etsako man, Esan man, Benin man, Urhobo man, Igbo man living in Edo State ought to say this is an abomination on our land.

And how do you react to the constant condemnations of Chief Lucky Igbinedion, former governor of Edo state by one of his friends Mr. Charles Idahosa?

When Lucky was sworn in as the governor of the state, Charles Idahosa was the first appointee, first, as Director of Protocol Government House, Protocol and Press. He was replaced by Lucky Wasa as CPS because the media people then said that he was authoritative.

There after we all went on our knees begging Chief Lucky Igbinedion to please reabsorb him, he later came back as Commissioner for Information.

Was this not the same government you were defending and  the same government that gave you roof over your head, was not this the same man you told everybody that he stayed with you in London when the father sent him to London. This is the same man you said two of you grew up together and now because you have a new pay master does that make you to destroy your friendship with this man that has been your benefactor?