Francis Ogbuagu 
…Urges him to Probe Obaseki’s Administration
Edo APC Transition Committee on Monday recommended the probe of Mr Godwin Obaseki’s administration and to ensure that all contracts, MoUs and financial transactions within the last eight years be properly investigated.
The Committee said that the Obaseki administration didn’t provide audited financial statements published or unpublished.
The 25-member committee led by former deputy governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, further recommended that all the local and foreign debts incurred under Obaseki must be accounted for, pointing out that even the procurement agency in its report to the transition committee, indicted the government.
It would be recalled that on the 14th of October 2024, the APC set up a Transition Committee made up of 25 members chaired by former deputy governor of Edo State, Dr Pius Odubu, to interface with the outgoing government for a seamless transition.
After three weeks of assignments, meetings, interactions, engagements and analyses of the documents presented to the committee, according to Odubu, it came out with the following recommendation :
The Committee said all employment carried out in the recent past by the outgoing administration be cancelled.
The committee also urged the incoming governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo to investigate the true ownership of the Ossiomo Power Plant and Radisson Blu Hotel as well as the Museum of West Africa Arts- MOWAA with a view to knowing the state’s equity in these companies as the outgoing government went blank on these inquiries.
It further demanded that the new administration should carry out a comprehensive review of the World Bank-funded EdoBest programme, adding that a probe be instituted to uncover its rather ‘opaque’ operations.
“All major contracts issued by the state government under the Ministry of Roads and Bridges should be reviewed as they appear not to have followed due process including the payment advance awarded to the contractors.
“The procurement agency indicted the government in its own report to the Transition Committee hence we have advised the new Governor to take a critical review.
“The ICT ecosystem should be streamlined as there appears to be duplication of duties.
“The outgoing government didn’t provide audited financial statements published or unpublished hence the committee is advising the government to institute an enquiry into this.
“The government couldn’t account for the number of teachers in the state hence we demand a proper teacher head count”, the transition committee declared.
