Edo: PDP Charges Gov Okpebholo To Make Public Findings On Suspended Officials

By Ayodele Oni

The People’s Democratic Party, (PDP) in Edo State has accused Governor Monday Okpebholo of embarking on suspensions of state officials since assumption of office for offences which borders on corruption, while the governor has failed to make public findings on the affected officials.

First to get suspended by the governor was the state attorney general, Samson Osage who was accused of corruption but was later recalled after being cleared of the allegation.

The latest victim is Executive Secretary of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Caulson Osoikhia Oahimire.

His suspension was announced in a two-paragraph statement Tuesday morning, by the Secretary to the State Government, Umar Musa Ikhilor.

The statement noted that Oahimire was suspended over allegations of grave financial and official infractions.

“It is hereby announced for the information of the General Public that the Executive Govemor of Edo State, His Excellency, Senator Monday Okpebholo has ordered the immediate suspension of the Executive Secretary, Edo State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Caulson Osoikhia Oahimire, over allegations of grave financial and official infractions.

“Consequently, the most senior staff of the Agency will act in a functioning capacity pending the outcome of a special committee to be constituted by Government to investigate the various allegations and submit a report to the Governor.”

Reacting through a statement by the Publicity Secretary of its Caretaker Committee, Chris Nehikhare, the PDP said that since his assumption of office, Governor Okpebholo “has embarked on an unrelenting spree of suspensions, throwing one official after another under the bus—often amid sensational accusations of corruption and misconduct.

“Yet, in all this noise, Edo people have seen no credible investigations, no legal conclusions, no public accountability—only whispers of quiet reinstatements through the backdoor.

“From his own Commissioner for Justice and Chief Law Officer, Samson Osagie, to the Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission, Mr. Damian Lawani; the Head of the Public Safety Response Team, Kelly Okungbowa; the Commander of the State Security Corps, Friday Ibadin; the CEO of FEWMA, Ahmed Momoh; and now Dr. Oahimire—the list reads like a script from a badly managed soap opera.

“What we are witnessing is not governance—it is chaos masquerading as reform.

“Edo people are left asking: Is this simply a case of a workman constantly quarrelling with his tools? Or did Okpebholo knowingly assemble a team riddled with questionable characters—people who see public office not as a platform for service, but as a shortcut to self-enrichment?

“What is clear is that this endless cycle of suspensions has laid bare a troubling reality: either the Governor is completely out of his depth and incapable of managing his own appointees, or he is overseeing an administration deeply compromised by rot, failure, and corruption.”