Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole yesterday said the residents will stone the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, as well as his son and former Governor Lucky Igbinedion, if they knew how they converted the state’s resources to their personal use.
Lucky was governor between 1999 and 2007.
The seeming cordial relations between the former governor and Oshiomhole turned sour, following the governor’s alleged discovery of the mismanagement of the state’s resources by the Igbinedion administration.
Oshiomhole spoke about the former governor’s “official misdeeds” when he addressed youths who held a rally to support his administration’s policies.
He told the crowd of youths why Chief Igbinedion was not happy with his administration.
Oshiomhole said he revoked the reclamation of 200,000 hectares of land in Ovia Northeast Local Government Area, which was given to the Benin high chief by his son, when the latter was governor.
Other reasons, he said, included the N180 million demanded from the Esama for the six-year usage of the Central Hospital facilities by medical students of the Igbinedion University, Okada (IUO), and the $31 million “illegally” withdrawn from the state government’s coffers to set up a cement factory.
He said his administration also stopped students of the Igbinedion School of Nursing from using the Stella Obasanjo Hospital without paying for the facilities for several years.
Oshiomhole accused Lucky of giving the 200,000 hectares to his father for mechanised farming, adding that the high chief gave same to cocoa farmers, who paid him royalties.
The governor said he revoked the land and asked the farmer to pay taxes to the government.
He added that the people would weep for the state when they learnt the truth about Igbinedion’s stewardship.
Oshiomhole said he would love to be remembered not only for fixing the roads, hospitals and schools but as a man who brought an end to “exemption” in Edo State.
Chief Igbinedion is also popularly called “the Exemption”.
Oshiomhole said it took an eagle-eyed auditor to uncover what he called the former governor’s illegal withdrawal of $31 million to establish a cement factory at Ikpeshi.
The governor said Patrick Ebogboidin, who was jailed for 20 years in a N25 billion money laundering case under the Igbinedion administration, was among the directors in the Avant Cement company.
He said: “I did not promise to make everybody happy. I promise to make majority happy, and to make majority happy, we must make some people cry. If we did not make them to cry, you cannot smile.
“I will publish the records and Edo people will cry when they know how they have been robbed by the grandmaster of original 419.
“I use my powers to revoke the land and return it to government. I told the farmers to use the land and pay taxes to government, not to an individual. He must obey the laws or go to prison.
“You need to hear how Igbinedion wrecked the resources of the state. When Lucky was governor, medical students of the Ambrose Alli University (AAU) were denied usage of the Central Hospital for their clinical studies. Igbinedion and his father decided to reserve the Central Hospital for medical students of the Igbinedion University at Okada.
“AAU Medical students had to go to the University of Jos Teaching Hospital (JUTH) at the students’ expense. When the University of Jos (UNIJOS) could no longer take them, it took them to the University of Benin (UNIBEN). When UNIBEN rejected them, the students were stranded. The students later went to Irrua Specialist Hospital.
“Igbinedion, the son, entered into an agreement with Igbinedion, the father, that the Central Hospital should be reserved for students from the IUO, whereas students of the state-owned university were denied the use of the hospital. The father and son agreed that Igbinedion University would pay some fees to the Central Hospital but the amount was not stated. It was the tax you pay that was used to teach students of IUO at no cost.
“I was not aware until two years ago. I called for the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and directed the Commissioner of Health to let them know that for six years, they did not pay. AAU students could not use Edo State hospital. I asked the varsity to pay N60,000 per student but they wrote back and offered to pay N60,00 for all the students.
“I directed that Chief Igbinedion pay N30 million per year for the students and that he should be charged to court. We will prosecute. If we convict him, he will go to jail. They were able to cover it until President Muhammadu Buhari came in.”
