By Kassim Afegbua.
I arose to Arise’s The Morning Show, where one of their anchors aroused my curiosity about the magnitude of their ignorance about governance; particularly, the prospects and propitious effects of infrastructural development. Their social media segment had one Ojinika Okpe showing a skit on Edo bad roads and gully erosion. There is nothing wrong with showing the state of affairs in any part of a state or the country, but when you run commentaries about such decayed infrastructure in a way and manner that is to say the least, paralytically depressing, especially considering from where it comes, it encourages a diminutive view of the media house’s image. First, Arise TV anchors should know that roads don’t go bad in a day. The current governor is barely nine months in office. Why can’t they apply the matching concept? Or are they just trying to give our governor a bad name? There was a governor there before now and if on assuming office the most pressing need in the entire gangrene gamut, it suggests that roads in and around Edo were already bad during the eight years of Ex-Governor Obaseki, then the blame and narrative should be properly placed. Arise TV was around before now, but we never saw any reportage to expose this rot. If anything, Arise TV, especially The Morning Show, arose to become the official spokesman for Ob-ASUE-ki campaigns when he tried to supplant his friend as a successor. When the APC and Okpebholo called the world’s attention to the rot that Edo’s critical infrastructure was found in, Arise TV looked the other way. Suddenly, they now possess the impetus to interrogate Edo’s bad roads that were inherited from the destructive administration of Godwin Obaseki. That is the height of media hypocrisy.
Arise TV, and The Morning Show were alive when Godwin Obaseki was erecting signposts along major roads in Edo, proffering the pretext that the bad roads in Edo State were federal roads, and his hands were tied; even when the state roads too were abandoned. ARISE TV saw this and didn’t rise to question him. They looked the other way and encouraged, supported and campaigned vociferously for Obaseki and his chosen successor Asue Ighodalo. Now beaten flat at the elections, ARISE TV has suddenly become the chief complainant of Edo’s leadership, a leadership that is cheering news to a lot of reasonable Edo people. These bad roads they speak about were inherited in that state; and Governor Okpebholo is doing everything efficient, economic and effective to recover the roads, and increase the prospects across the state; but for the rains, progress would have been higher on the roads matter. Federal and state roads are in Okpebholo’s plans. He does not discriminate between the roads, because clearly the benefits and or losses rest firmly on Edo people. Nature dictates the pace! There is not much that can be achieved in this regard in the rainy season.
Despite and in spite of the rains albeit, Governor Okpebholo has made significant interventions in several infrastructural projects that were permissible, across the state: Ekehuan to Gele-gele road is being worked on as we speak, Iruekpen to Sabongida road is already earmarked for commencement having been approved by the Council. Uromi to Udomi to Ubiaja road, a 36-kilometer stretch, is nearing completion. The Ramat Park Overhead Bridge is ongoing, Ekpoma reclamation works is also being worked on, ditto for the impassable Iruekpen to Benin road, now passable with free flow of traffic. The Temboga road that was abandoned by Obaseki government has been completed and is now in use. Sapele road is being worked on, Sapele to Benin road repairs is also ongoing, Benin to Asaba road is being worked on, ditto for 14 kilometers Uhunwonde to Ekhe road, the ancestral home of the immediate past Governor, Obaseki. The only snag is the current rainy season; but it is a statement of fact that contractors are on site. All these are indicative of the rot that Governor Okpebholo inherited from his predecessor which ARISE TV would feign ignorance of.
I wish to advise ARISE TV anchors to visit Edo state and do vox populi to ascertain first hand, how the people of the state feel about Governor Okpebholo. Edo state was a story of rot, neglect, remiss and abdication of critical infrastructure in the health, and education sectors, and other responsibilities. The speedy intervention of Governor Okpebholo has reassured the people. The upshot is the constant celebration of Governor Okpebholo by the stakeholders each time he goes on inspection exercises. His reach is wide, and its depth is transformative. He has repaired many schools in the heart of Benin, Edo Central and Edo North. He’s been on his toes trying to recover our dear state that was run aground by a governor who simply went rogue! Beyond infrastructural resuscitation, in the social aspect, Governor Okpebholo is battling cultism, kidnapping and insecurity across the State; he has rejuvenated the Edo State Security Corps, by recruiting and training 2,500 personnel who have been posted to central and remote parts of the state to work.
Across the 18 Local Governments of the state today, their presence is felt. He also recruited additional 2,500 teachers for primary and secondary schools in the state. Environmental surveys are underway to capture gully erosion, and places where drains can be situated across the state. When the weather permits, more appreciable work will commence, immediately, to meet the long term objectives; so rather than sit in their cocoon running uninformed commentaries about the happenings in Edo state, ARISE TV’s “The Morning Show” anchors should go a step further, and come visit us in Edo, where we will first serve them scrumptious meals before conducting them round, to appreciate the works of the current leadership. After all, it is said that a hungry man is a confused man. If Edo state had been the “eldorado” which their Godwin Obaseki parroted, Governor Okpebholo would not be so busy trying to carry out a total overhaul of the state’s infrastructure so soon after.
