EVERY Edo citizen is happy and proud of Governor Godwin Obaseki for delivering the dividends of democracy to the people.
Only a few individuals who the governor denied access to the people’s common patrimony perceives him as a betrayal. For them, the governor’s commitment to improving the livelihood of the majority of Edo people his unwavering commitment to the welfare of workers and the consequent increment in the minimum wage from N30,000 to #40,000 as well as regular payment of workers and pensioners in the state is considered betrayal.
These enemies of Edo people would have preferred the governor servicing the interests and pockets of the godfathers and sponsoring the political ambition of a few greedy politicians over his huge investment across all sectors of the state that has today translated to sustainable development and economic prosperity for the people of Edo State.
To them, Obaseki has limited experience of the kind of politics played in Nigeria where governors and elected leaders are demigods with the power to arrest and imprison individuals that do not support their personal ambition. Why will a sitting governor allow others to oppose his views or choice of who gets power?, they ask themselves in their feeble and witless minds.
Those whose Governor Obaseki all-round development in Edo signposts betrayal care less about having strong institutions that will ensure elected leaders are accountable for their actions while serving public interests. They cheer, hail and adore strong men who are quick to order their CSOs to arrest ‘noise makers’ at public gatherings.
The most interesting of the narrative is that nobody has accused Obaseki of underperformance. The over 300,000 Edo citizens who came out on September 19, 2020 to reelect governor Obaseki in his second term on the back of his sterling performance across all sectors of Edo in the first term have not accused Obaseki of betrayal. The governor enjoys the unwavering support and loyalty of over 5 million Edo people and is unperturbed about the grievances of these few politicians who are hellbent on stirring crisis and disunity in the state in pursuit of their selfish interests.
