Emancipate yourself from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds
~~Bob Marley
One of the duties of any sitting government is to prepare an annual budget for the running of government. The budget encompasses all aspects of governance from payment of staff wages to maintenance and development of infrastructure. It is the duty of Mr. Governor to present the budget to the State House of Assembly for consideration and passage.
The budget for Edo State for the year 2025 was a few days ago presented to the Edo State House of Assembly by the state governor, Monday Okpebholo. What ordinarily is a routine function of a sitting governor that does not attract much attention from the average citizen has become a source of ridicule for the entire state.
As expected, Governor Monday Okpebholo goofed. I was not disappointed because we all know Monday Okpebholo’s limitations when it comes to formal education. Was his WAEC exam result not in the open during election campaigns? An exam he wrote at more than thirty years of age and still made woeful grades? How can such a person read complex figures or read a prepared speech with confidence? I can bet that any public outing where he dares to open his mouth to make a speech, whether extemporarily or written, will add to our embarrassment before the world.
I am baffled that some Edolites can defend Okpebholo’s lack of requisite qualities for the office he today holds. I do not want to go into how he got into office as what we all know is in the courts for interpretation. I am utterly shocked hearing university graduates argue that the English language is not Okpebholo’s mother tongue and that he will learn with time. My questions for this group of people are: Why did you go to school at all if education is unimportant? Why did you study using the English language as the only means of communication? Is a governor coming to work for the growth and development of his state, or is he coming to spend precious time learning how to read, speak, and write English language?
My only advice to all who promote mediocrity, whose only role is to drag our state back in terms of growth and development, is to emancipate themselves from mental slavery. Party politics that blinds one to the extent of jeopardizing growth and development of a state for the common good of citizens is mental slavery. It is an exhibition of mental slavery, when for peanuts, we sacrifice the future of our generations unborn. Other Nigerians will not emancipate us. They will only deride us, as is being done today. We used to proudly say: “Edo nor dey carry last.” The word out there from the rest of Nigeria is: “with Gov Okpebholo, Edo don carry last”. Edolites, only us can free our minds from mental slavery. We have the opportunity to speak up at the governorship election tribunal. Speak the truth and free ourselves from this monumental embarrassment.
All of them who are blinded by envy and Party affiliation should spare a thought for our beautiful Edo. Our state can not grow with the likes of Okpebholo as governor. Reading dire statements from his party men and supporters, we really have vagabonds in power (VIP) in Edo State. This observation is further amplified by the tirade from Edo State APC chairman, an uneducated man, who was dismissed from the Nigerian Army as a recruit. If Edo APC chairman and Gov Okpebholo are the best, APC can give Edo State, then we really have VIP masquerading as our leaders in the State.
Dr. Osagie Izevbogun writes from Benin City
Edo State.