By Osahon Osahon
Edo State government has refuted claims that Governor Godwin Obaseki demolished properties of three close aides of former Governor Adams Oshiomhole, to avenge his vengeance.
It would be recalled that operatives of the state government on Tuesday evening demolished buildings belonging to three close allies of his predecessor and benefactor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.
The victims include former Deputy Governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, a member of the House of Representatives, and Mr. Mike Etemuagbon.
The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Osarodion Ogie, in a statement on Thursday, noted that the said properties were allotted to former political office holders, companies and private individuals as parting gifts on the eve of the exit of former Governor Adams Oshiomhole from office.
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It added that the governor acted in good faith, in the best interest of Edo people when he revoked the certificates of occupancy of the properties on December 21, 2020, even though he himself was a beneficiary of the parting largesse.
The statement reads:
“On December 21, 2020, the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, revoked the Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) of 11 government properties within the Government Reserved Area (GRA) which were allotted to former political office holders, companies and private individuals as parting gifts on the eve of the exit of former Governor Adams Oshiomhole from office.
“One of the properties was allocated to Governor Obaseki and was also revoked.
“The properties have been revoked and recovered and therefore automatically belong to the original owner, which is the Government of Edo State. Therefore, the persons occupying the said properties are doing so illegally and are trespassers.
“The action taken by the Edo State Government on Tuesday, March 23, 2021, was to evict the trespassers and squatters from these properties and effectively take possession of the assets. Therefore, the claims by the affected persons that their personal properties were demolished are false and baseless.
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“It is instructive to note that one of the properties in question to which a former Deputy Governor of the state, Dr. Pius Odubu, lays claim is actually the official Lodge of the Secretary to the State Government of Edo State (SSG).
“The implication of this is that all SSGs after Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s administration will not have an official residence.
“Some of those affected, including a former governor, have now resorted to media blackmail when in fact they forcefully ejected senior academic staff of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) from these government properties, only to convert them to their own private use.
“Contrary to insinuations that government embarked on the recovery of the properties out of vendetta, the truth is that these are the only remaining properties in the GRA that belong to the state government.
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“If they are allowed to be taken over by these private individuals, it means that when government wants to embark on any project within the GRA, it will have to resort to purchasing from the open market.”
The statement noted that the governor has a fiduciary responsibility to protect and act in the best interest of the people of Edo State and will never betray the public trust they have reposed in him.
