•Governor Obaseki and ex-Governor Oshiomhole
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) today said the Edo State Government was yet to receive any rice from the federal government or Dangote Foundation, contrary to Senator Adams Oshiomhole’s claim on Channel TV, accusing the former governor of incitement.
Olu Martins, Deputy Director-General, Media and Publicity, PDP governorship campaign council for the state, made the accusations and denial at a news conference in Benin in response to the claim by Senator Adams Oshiomhole, a former governor in the state that the state government received 20 trucks of rice from the Federal Government as well as another 30,000 bags from Dangote Foundation.
According to Oshiomhole, who is representing Edo North Senatorial District at the National Assembly, these bags of rice were looted during the nationwide protest that started in Aug. 1.
Olu Martins said, “We listened to Oshiomhole where he made several allegations about distribution and redistribution of rice by the federal government in Edo state.
“As a former governor, we believe he should understand how the wheel of government runs.
“Mind you, when the president issued his statement yesterday, there was no mention of palliatives as per rice going into any of the states.
“Perhaps, the president missed it or it was still in the offing because if you sent 20 trailers of rice to Edo as they have always shouted, it should come from which ministry? Perhaps, from the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
“And because it is the government, there is a bureaucracy. Somebody should deliver it from Abuja; somebody should deliver it to somebody in Edo; and somebody should sign for it,” he said.
Olu Martins described Oshiomhole’s claim of 30,000 bags of rice from Dangote Foundation as “heart-breaking” and accused him of “crying wolf” and trying to incite the looting of private warehouses.
Edo Government, he said, has released N1 billion to the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to buy and distribute bags of rice, which was managed by church and mosque leaders.
“Edo State Government had a food support programme, set up three months ago, and any report of food coming from elsewhere was mere speculation.
“We have our food support programme, that is well known and understood and any other report of food coming from another place is a mere speculation. There were no 20 trucks of rice received. There is no rice anywhere from the federal government or foundation,” he said.
“Sen. Oshiomhole is a former governor who should know the protocol, have information, as a former governor, you are an elder statesman. And it is expected that when you say something, you are able to prove it. That is what it takes to say that you are a leader at that level. Otherwise, we begin to question the kind of leadership that you offer.
“What the government has done is to release in the first tranche N1bn and we saw the CAN chairman saying on television that the money was released to them, that they bought the bags of rice and they redistributed it.
“Edo people would not be hoodwinked into lies, alarming tendencies, inciting the people against a legitimate government.
“Obaseki is not in the ballots the way they also say Adams Oshiomhole is not on the ballots”, he said.
The PDP campaign council boss however challenged the APC to a debate, saying, “We are challenging them to a debate, and we are seriously waiting for the one the NUJ is organising”
