.Lead APC supporters in massive rally
Cyril Mbah, Abuja
The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign train stormed Benin City on Thursday for a massive rally that doubled as the second anniversary celebration of Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration, with party leaders declaring that Edo State is already secured for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the January 16, 2027 election.
Leading the delegation on behalf of the President, Vice President Kashim Shettima told the crowd that by Wednesday, one can already tell what Friday will bring, noting that two years ago Edo elected Okpebholo, and today the people have gathered to assure Tinubu that he can count on them.
Shettima said the administration has not abandoned its pledge to bridge Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit with Edo at the centre, citing the dualisation of the Ekpoma-Auchi-Okene road and emergency repairs on the Benin-Asaba and Benin-Sapele roads, and urging the people to hold the government to its word until they can travel in comfort.
He said the government has heard Edo’s calls for revival of industries, noting that industry cannot thrive without reliable energy, and he announced that gas now flows through the completed Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben pipeline, new transmission lines can carry an additional 600 megawatts onto the national grid, and the Amukpe substation and solar mini-grids at Ologbo and Sulekamp have been commissioned.
The Vice President expressed delight that Edo now regulates its own electricity market while a proposed condensate refinery has entered an advanced stage, and the government remains committed to seeing the investment approved.
On health, Shettima said the University of Benin Teaching Hospital now offers radiotherapy to cancer patients and subsidised dialysis, while improvements are ongoing at the Stella Obasanjo Specialist Hospital and the National Obstetric Fistula Centre, in addition to support for 158 public health facilities across Edo.
He also listed subsidised fertilisers and training for farmers and increased entrepreneurs, vocational programmes through the National Directorate of Employment, business grants for vulnerable citizens, improved remuneration for the armed forces, and support for children to remain in school.
Shettima said the administration has listened to demands for the return of Benin historical treasures, noting progress with Cambridge and Sweden transferring ownership to Nigeria, and honouring Oba Ewuare II and all those who sustained the demand across generations.
Governor Monday Okpebholo, in his address, told the Vice President to take a clear message back to the President: He said Edo is ready, and January 16, 2027 is settled.
Okpebholo said the President has done so much for Edo, citing about 15,000 Edo beneficiaries of NELFUND, regular payment of salaries and pensions, and construction going on everywhere, declaring that Edo has been turned into a construction site because of the courage of one man who removed fuel subsidy and reformed tax laws.
Former Governor and Senator representing Edo North, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, described Okpebholo nicknamed Akpakomiza, as the people’s governor, and now Akpako Rescue, and said if the governor was not performing, he would be afraid to come to Edo.
Oshiomhole said in 24 months, Okpebholo has built roads and schools, increased subvention to universities, ensured market women get loans, rebuilt damaged markets, concentrated on youths and brought fresh air to primary healthcare administration.
He thanked Tinubu for behaving like a statesman, not a politician, and for laying the foundation for sustainable growth, and announced that Tinubu has decided to locate one of the new divisions of the Nigerian Army in Benin, in addition to the state’s decision to execute anyone convicted of kidnapping.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio said Edo has not surprised him by the turnout, revealing that the Vice President whispered to him on arrival that Edo is over and the 2027 election is over.
Akpabio said Edo was the pioneer ACN/APC state in the South-South, and today all states in the South-South are APC, and the zone has resolved that no other zone will beat it in voting massively for the President.
He thanked Tinubu for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, with an additional 100 kilometres to cover Edo, for security improvements including a new MOPOL 82 Squadron, recruitment of over 500 forest guards, and the establishment of a new Army Division, and for true federalism that has ensured no state now owes salaries.
The Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, said the President has Edo in his heart, and reminded the crowd that the first item in the party’s manifesto, From Reforms to Prosperity, is saving lives and communities, with insecurity to be fought seriously in the next four years.
Yari said oil production has risen from 1.2 to 1.3 million barrels per day to about 1.8 million barrels per day because of peace in the South-South, and expressed confidence in Okpebholo’s promise of over 2 million votes from Edo.
Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, urged Edo youths and voters to go to INEC offices and collect their Permanent Voter Cards, warning that without PVCs on January 16, they cannot vote even if they love the President’s performance.
Uzodimma said the weapon needed on as the people’s governor, is the PVC, noting that Okpebholo has promised 2.5 million votes from Edo, and reminded voters that what they will see on the ballot is the APC symbol, the broom.
He concluded by stating that APC is the only party going round the country to talk to Nigerians and explain why Tinubu must continue, while other parties are campaigning on social media where there is no polling units.
For a better society
_______________________________
Follow us across our platforms:
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/championnewsonline/
Facebook – https://web.facebook.com/championnewsonline
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/champion-newspapers-limited/
https://x.com/championnewsng/
You can also like and comment on our YouTube videos.
https://youtu.be/QIBfD1tT80w?si=R4Qf3so2LxYu3GC2
