The Edo State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Prince Kassim Afegbua and the National Chairman, Coalition of Registered Political Parties (CRPP), Dr Samson Isibor are in verbal war over the former’s calling for the resignation of Governor Monday Okpebholo for poor governance.
DAILY POST reports that the National Chairman, Coalition of Registered Political Parties (CRPP), Dr Samson Isibor had in a recent statement called for the resignation of Monday Okpebholo as the governor of Edo State over alleged poor governance, insecurity, high cost of living among others.
Isibor, alleged that investors and entrepreneurs have relocated from Edo State due to an unfavourable business environment and an unabated spate of insecurity across the country.
He, however, urged the governor to concentrate on providing good governance to the people of the state rather than being preoccupied with the promise of winning 2.5 million votes for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 general elections as well as the forthcoming state’s local government elections slated for July 11, 2026.
Reacting, Prince Kassim Afegbua, the State Commissioner for Information and Strategy described Dr Isibor as a perpetual National Chairman of an organisation that does not exist.
According to him, “It is an amorphous organisation that could best be described as a “jeun-jeun” organisation or if you like, a chop-chop organisation for the past 18 years.
“Instead of getting serious with political participation in a manner that would define inclusion, he has personalised this organisation for selfish reasons to perpetuate himself till eternity. He’s one of the problems of sit-tight democracy, defined within the labyrinth of parochialism”, he said.
He, however, added that Governor, Okpebholo has been upbeat with development and interventionist initiatives that have placed Edo amongst the best developing states in Nigeria.
He opined that the Governor has turned Edo State into a construction site with critical infrastructure taking the centre stage of developmental effort.
“We are building roads, hospitals, schools, human capital development, and recruiting new civil servants, teachers and helping market women with interest-free loans.
“We have introduced bursary awards, after such a long interregnum. We have revived Ambrose Alli University, injected funds into Edo University, Iyamho, and built road networks around Usen Polytechnic.
“We paid outstanding salaries and arrears of Lecturers of Ekiadolor College of Education, and several other solutions we have provided to the inherited challenges facing the state.
“We have invested hugely in security and supplied over one hundred Hilux vehicles to the Police and security agencies.
“We are investing in the economy of Edo state and Isibor’s decision to try to generate attention is self-serving”, he added.
Afegbua alleged that the National chairman of CRPP, wants the government to reach out to him, but stated that Governor Okpebholo is not used to “chop-chop” politics.
On his part, Dr Isibor, accused Afegbua of trying to explain away the salient points raised in his statement with big grammatical language that neither puts food on the table of the common man nor ensures their security and results in name-calling.
While noting that the CRPP is not disappointed and that it is the trade mark of Afegbua to dodge answering salient points, he posited that as the voice of the common man on the street, the CRPP, has the right to constructive criticism of the government in power.
Isibor added that the criticism is a way of reawakening the government to its responsibilities and reality on the ground.
“It is on record that CRPP campaigned vigorously for Okpebholo during the APC primary election while Afegbua and his former boss were heavily opposed to Okpebholo’s emergence as governorship candidate.
“But now that Okpebholo has jettisoned his primary responsibility of governance and securing the state for campaigning for President Bola Tinubu’s reelection, we owe it a duty to tell him so.
“Governor Okpebholo in his rightful senses cannot call us “chop-chop or jeun jẹun” organisation. We challenge him to tell Nigerians how many times we have come to him cap in hand to beg for food or appointments at Government House.
“Afegbua is the real culprit without any known stable job for livelihood but keeps jumping from one political party to another begging for appointments”, he stated.
Isibor maintained that the CRPP stood by its words that Governor Okpebholo has not performed despite the huge funds received from the federation account, billions of naira in security votes and increased Internally Generated Revenue IGR.
He stated that it was an undeniable fact that Edo people are being kidnapped like chickens across the three senatorial districts daily.
“Prices of staple foods are beyond the common man, the unemployment rate has hit the roof, and the entire state is in total darkness. Good and motorable roads are fast disappearing, the functional health care system is no more, and affordable house rent is now history.
“These are the teething problems we expected Afegbua to respond to, rather than trying to bamboozle members of the public with unintelligible grammar and resulting in name-calling.
“He should give explanations to these non-assailable facts and also tell us if the hundreds of youths who protested at Ugbowo during the week were seeking government appointments”, he said.
He, however, urged the commissioner to learn to be disciplined in his outbursts and stop using uncouth language.
The CRPP National chairman, posited that what the Edo people need at the moment is an urgent solution to their problems and not rhetoric.
He appealed to the commissioner to also advise his pay master to stop campaigning for 2.5 million votes for President Tinubu and face the real business of governance, adding that”after all, it is only the living, not the dead, that will vote in the coming elections.
Isibor, however, described CRPP as a principled pressure group led by sound-minded people of unblemished character fighting injustice and for the welfare of the downtrodden by putting the government in power that cares to listen on its toes, unlike “our friend Afegbua who always romances any government in power, reaping where he did not sow.
He further urged Governor Okpebholo to sit up or resign to face President Tinubu’s reelection campaign if that is his major priority.
Kassim Afegbua, CRPP in verbal war over calls for Okpebholo’s resignation, poor governance