Rejoinder to Edo in safe hands advertorial published on Friday 2nd March 2012

By Benin Youth Council Nigeria

Re: Edo in safe Hands- a conjuncture of unemployed professionals; and a set of diabolic propagandists on the prowl to reap-off Governor Adams Oshiomhole. Being a rejoinder by the Amalgamated Congress for Edo Students Welfare (ACESW) on matters arising in Edo State politics.

One of the ominous symptom of desperation and intent of misrule by a dictator (even in a civilian rule) is the recruitment of negative propagandists, like the brutish reign of Germany's unceremonious Emperor- Adolph Hitler, recruited the heinous services of Joseph Goebbels whose sole portfolio was the machination of lies and the scarification of truth at the altar of devious cum political expediency. One of the signatories of the 2nd of March 2012 advertorial at page 12 of Vanguard Newspaper is one Barr. Osa-Osifo who in all honesty, should be on the vanguard to ensure the democratic sack of the Oshiomhole led administration, for its cluelessness in tackling security challenges with regards to the kidnap of his wife few weeks ago by men of the 'under-world' who have been terrorizing Edo South senatorial district since 2008. Ordinarily, the paid advertorial would not had been worthy of any intellectual exercise of this nature, unless that there was an expedient need to demystify the self-acclaimed professional clout that they wore over their head in the course of doing their master's short-sighted aspiration- the concoction of newspaper attacks at Gen. Charles Ehigie Airhiavbere (Rtd) by jobless Binis, in order to distract him from ensuring democratic sack of 'a Come-raid-Hitler' from Government House, Benin, come 14th July.

In the third paragraph of the worthless piece of article, the signatories claimed that “if popularity is anything to go by in political contest, Gen. Charles Airhiavbere (rtd) has no business being in the contest” to the extent that the Peoples Democratic Party candidate for the July 14th election did not secure 100% victory in the February 25th Gubernatorial primaries from his native Edo South region. Unfortunately, for the authors, they forgot that Airhiavbere cannot be said to be unpopular in the South because he bagged the highest votes of 127 in the seven Local Government Councils in the South against the 100 polled by his closest rival Ken Imasuagbon. So who is saying that he was rejected by his people? Besides, the authors displayed a warp sense of history for failing to recollect that prior to the 2007 election, the good people of Edo North senatorial district denounced the pedigree of Oshiomhole hence they gave a scanty vote in his favor while voting massively for the PDP. They knew their son better than other Edo people, particularly his chameleon-'quality'. The PDP gubernatorial primary result also portrayed Gen. Charles as a democratically-minded aspirant who was not interested in deploring an Osakpamwan-no-molest or a Major Oloye to manipulate delegates' votes in his favor, unlike the ACN Governor who militantly and cruelly deprived potential Governorship aspirants in ACN from contesting against him in a never-to-be gubernatorial primaries. Of a fact, Charley Temple who was mentioned in the piece as one of the patrons to the unemployed professionals was diabolically schemed-out from the gubernatorial primaries in favor of Oshiomhole in 2007; and in protest he emerged as DPP gubernatorial candidate, although he un-cautionably became the chief-agent and caretaker of Come-raid's election result in Uhumwonde Local Government Area during the 2007 Governorship election. He has since been rewarded as a spokesman for his short-sighted boss and a UBE contractor.

No doubt, the script of the paid advertorial emanated from the state Government House, apparently after the Governor was assured that it was in tandem with his policy of lobotomy (to perpetuate the deception of a handful of undecided market women and students because of his kaki-clothed brainwashing mantra) which is symbolized by Oshiomhole's bill boards littering all his uncompleted projects in Edo State. Expectedly, after the governor unceremoniously sacked the Lawrence Ogieva led Edo State Oil and Gas Communities Development Commission in 2008, Barr. Osa-Osifo who was the unprofessionally appointed Legal Adviser of EDSOPADEC(having regards to his seeming fraudulent transfer/lease of the EDSOPADEC building complex, which prompted his summon before the Oseni Elamah Assets Verification Committee in 2009); and his recent sack by Edo state Government from office as Secretary to Uhumwonde Local Government Council, (following the ungodly sack of elected Local Council administrators without a democratic replacement almost two years now) Barr. Osa-Osifo in a bid to quench his chauvinistic thirst for daily bread hastily secured the Joseph Goebbels's portfolio for the Come-raid. What a conspiracy!!!!

'Omodan gia bie, egia gbe wa' is an epistemic Bini maxim which underlines the tendency for a good parent to give birth to hooligan as child, Osa- Osifo Washington' and his Comrade Governor's political sojourn are comic references.

In the fourth paragraph, the unscrupulous authors asked rhetorically “then, how do the PDP and their cohorts intends to make a success of their unwholesome product come July 14th Governorship election in Edo State ”? this question would had been reasonable if the jobless signatories had explained how the ACN and their cohorts intends to market Oshiomhole after it is clear to a vast population of Edo people that he emerged by the grace of Igbinedion administration, hence he has refused to castigate or probe Igbinedion's administration in all his kaki-clothed attacks at statesmen and politicians of Edo origin. What is the business of the Adamu Campaign Network (ACN) in inquiring into the marketing strategy of the PDP? Is that the task of building viable roads at a non-inflated cost; is that the task of ensuring the elimination of double taxation from the state's civil servants salaries; is that the task of ensuring that state-of-the-art lecture theatres are provided in the state owned Ambrose Ali University and College of Education, Ekiadolor; is that the task of ensuring that Edo State task forces and committees are purged of brigands and arsonists whom are being groomed and empowered for rigging of election; is that the task of organizing a democratic election into the eighteen Local Government Councils which are currently run by some questionable characters for almost two years; is that the task of ensuring that Edo State Tenders Board is not skewed to advance the whims and caprice of Hon. Agba who has become the Enogie of Works and Environment Ministries; is that more cogent than an unreserved apology from the Governor and Government of Edo State for listing non-existing communities in its third year anniversary brochure as some of the communities were huge tax payers monies were expended; is that the task of ensuring that the Oseni Elama led Assets Verification Committee report is made public after an earth-moving revelation of how a legal firm allegedly defrauded Edo State Government of almost one hundred million naira in the EDSOPADEC building complex purchase or lease during its inquiry in 2009? These questions are still begging for answers; yet, some unemployed professionals are talking of Edo in safe hands! May be they wanted to inscribe “Edo is in dire need of safe hands come July 14th”.

The names mentioned as patrons of the unemployed professionals group further justify their pedestrian articulation and watery rationalization. Hon. Shuaibu is a graduate with a questionable University result- as the case is still lingering on in our courts of Law; Mr. Idah Osaro is allegedly the brain behind the dwindling state of affairs of the Bendel Breweries PLC- one of the grouse of Churchgate Conglomerate which compelled them to institute legal actions against Edo State Government, and led to the brief imprisonment of the state's Attorney General; Mr. Odubu Egberamwen is a former House of Representatives parliamentarian without any parliamentary input and output for eight years.

We challenge the pseudo-propaganda machine of the Governor to do a thorough job, and possibly embark on intelligentsia research before ventilating their ignorance and grasp-mediocrity on the pages of Newspapers. Edo State is one of the pace setters of education in Nigeria. The group should stop writing tissues of deceptions for the sake of writing to impress a short-sighted Come-raid.

Mr. Felix Eghianruwa- Secretary General

4th March 2012