… ‘APC working aggressively to keep Edo underdeveloped’
Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Media Projects, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, has described as laughable and incredibly ridiculous, comments by Col. David Imuse rtd., the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State, that there was no Nigeria or Edo State 75 years ago, noting that the comment betrays the rank Colonel Imuse parades from the Nigerian Army.
In a statement, Osagie noted that opposition politics does not automatically translate to cynicism, urging the Edo APC chairman and his cohort to desist from scheming to undermine efforts by the Obaseki-led state government to transform the State and place it on the path of economic prosperity.
He said, “We are quite perplexed to learn of the laughable and incredibly ridiculous comment by the APC Chairman in Edo State, Colonel David Imuse that there was no Nigeria or Edo State 75 years ago, in a desperate attempt to undermine the remarkable achievements of the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration on the progress made with the Benin Port Project.
“Colonel Imuse’s comment betrays the rank he parades from the Nigerian Army, leaving many to wonder if he really earned it.
“His claim that Nigeria and Edo did not exist 75 years ago leaves even elementary school pupils to wonder and ask in what country their grandparents who are 75 years and above were born. The fact of the pre-independence and post-independence Nigeria is lost on Imuse whose only vocation these days is reactive opposition politics.”
Osagie continued: “Going by Col. Imuse’s line of thought, the great and then sovereign Benin Kingdom which traded with the Portuguese in the 14th century using the location of the Benin Port must have carried out the well-documented transactions in space.
“Someone should draw Imuse’s attention to the Western House of Assembly and enlighten him about the over seven-decade-old documentation of efforts to get the Benin Port on stream.
“Imuse should be told that opposition politics does not automatically translate to cynicism.”
He added, “The humongous victory of the Obaseki administration in making the Benin Port vision come to pass is a win for Imuse even though his present politics of self-service does seem to becloud his sense of good judgment.”
The governor’s aide noted that the bitterness displayed upon hearing the news of the progress with the Benin Port Project clearly shows that Edo APC and its leaders have been working aggressively to keep Edo under-developed.
According to Osagie, “Imuse’s tirade and baseless attacks on the governor and the progress with the Benin Port Project show that he and his paymasters in the APC do not understand the workings of governance and complexities involved in large-scale infrastructure projects, further exposing him as one who is backward, illiterate and uninformed. He should be ignored by Edo people, alongside his ilk as they offer no constructive input to the development and growth of Edo State.”
