Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
The Edo State governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo in less than three weeks in office as the governor of the state is facing a policy somersault by making a u-turn on his earlier directive approving free bus services across the three senatorial districts of the state,
Okpebholo’s Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, had earlier issued a statement to journalists in Benin City, announcing that the governor had approved the free bus services for residents as part of his administration’s initiative.
However, in a subsequent statement on Wednesday, Itua urged the public to set aside the earlier announcement.
He said that the suspension was due to a briefing the governor received regarding issues surrounding the operation of the state-owned Edo City Transport Service (ECTS), which manages the free bus services.
The statement read: “The earlier statement announcing the approval of free bus services by the Executive Governor of Edo State, His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo, should be disregarded. The governor is being briefed on issues surrounding the operation of the State-owned Edo City Transport Service (ECTS), operators of the free bus services. For now, the free bus services have been placed on hold. A new decision by the governor will be communicated to the general public.