The Edo State Government has taken a swipe at the Bola Tinubu-led administration over its reaction to a statement by Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki.
Speaking with newsmen in Benin City on Wednesday, Obaseki described the federal government’s palliative as deceptive and fraudulent.
Obaseki expressed shock and fear about the Tinubu’s inability to plan and effectively respond to the effects of the fuel subsidy removal policy that has further impoverished Nigerians.
In response to Governor Obaseki, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, banged Edo State Governor over the comment on the performance of President Tinubu’s led government.
Idris stated that he was not surprised by the statement credited to the Edo State Governor.
The new Information minister accused Obaseki of shifting focus to the nation’s economic challenges as cannon fodder to divert attention from his poor performance at the state level since his move to the Peoples Democratic Party.
Governor Obaseki through the Edo State Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Osa Nehikhare, expressed displeasure with the Minister’s statement.
“The Edo State Government wishes to express its displeasure on the recent press statement credited to the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Muhammed Idris, over Governor Godwin Obaseki’s comments regarding the Federal Government’s handling of the resultant effects of the removal of fuel subsidy.
“It is unfortunate and sad that the Federal Government now wants to gag citizens and even a popularly elected governor from speaking truth to power and expressing himself in the light of the perilous times we have fallen into.
Speaking further: “This action of the Minister is reminiscent of what happened in 2021, when Governor Obaseki raised the alarm over the irregular and illegal printing of money by the Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The claim that Governor Godwin Obaseki failed to attend the National Economic Council (NEC) meetings is blatantly false. The governor has attended all NEC meetings since the onset of this administration, and records are there to prove this fact.
