During the last Workers Day celebration, the Edo State government called on the Federal Government, FG, to stop what he called a ‘palliative fraud’ by distributing palliatives to Nigerians to ameliorate the effect of the fuel price hike.
The governor urged the NLC to continue its protests until the federal government reverses its decision to remove fuel subsidies.
The governor’s populist stand on the matter took many with surprise. As a self acclaimed economist and investment banker, pundits thought he would have been in the best position to know that the Federal Government was borrowing to subsidize fuel and it was not substainable to continue to borrow trillion for the subsidy while other critical sectors of the economy like health, education and infrastructural development suffered neglect.
The governor promised in another instant what he was going to do concerning cushioning the effect of the effect.
He said, “We, in Edo State, are going to do our own bit. I have decided that every month, going forward, we will take N500m from our own money to give to the poorest of the poor in Edo State. We are not waiting for anybody.
“We, in Edo state, will support your action that your wages must reflect the current realities. I also want to alert you that you should reject the so-called palliatives they want to give you. The so-called money for the palliatives should be given to the local government areas to take care of people.
“…let them give the local government areas the money to give the people because the government that is closest to the people is the local government.”
Since his attack on the Federal Government concerning the palliatives, other state governments has told their citizens they have recieved 2 billion from the Federal Government, Governor Obaseki has not aknowledged the receipt nor has he started the destribution of the said #500 million to the poor.
Did he reject the said palliative from the FG? Why has the state been silent about it?
While some states like Lagos, Bauchi, Adamawa, Oyo, Imo, Osun, Kano, Nasarawa, Kwara and others have since on the 31st according to Channels TV started distribution of palliatives to their citizens, nothing of such have been heard from Edo State.
The most shocking, which citizens of Edo State has expressed on social media, was the commissioning of old ‘Comrade Buses’ that were bought for inter state transport during the Senator Oshiomole’s era by the Commissioner for Information, Chris Nehikhare. And it was said that the buses will start running from 6:30 am and close 7 am daily.
The question before every lip is how many people will be awake at that time? Meanwhile, other states have precurred new CNG buses for the same purposes where the Edo State has gone to invoke dead buses. It is also shocking to note that the government advertised with new red buses in the issue of transportation palliatives but commissioned old green buses.
Some of the citizens were curious about the palliatives being given to the state government directly: they argued that if the state government is given the palliatives, there will be no transparency on it owing ti the fact that the palliative given to it during the Covid-19 era was not totally distributed to the people until the warehouse was broken into by the citizens.