The Edo State Government has leveled serious allegations of financial misconduct against the previous administration of former Governor Godwin Obaseki over the Radisson Hotel project in Benin City, threatening to petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission once investigations are completed.
Prince Kassim Afegbua, the state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, made the accusations in a statement responding to criticism from the Peoples Democratic Party, which had accused Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration of lacking vision and being driven by vendetta rather than purposeful governance.
Afegbua alleged that the Obaseki-led government obtained N25 billion from the stock market in the name of Edo State and invested it in the Radisson Hotel project, but subsequently transferred 80 percent equity to a private investor while the state retained only 20 percent.
According to the commissioner, Edo State continues to service the N25 billion loan through an Irrevocable Standing Payment Order of approximately N385 million monthly, despite the alleged lack of public records showing that the private investor contributed any funds to justify its majority ownership.
He further claimed that the investor was a newly registered company incorporated in May 2024 with no proven experience in the hospitality sector, and that the acquisition of the majority equity stake was not conducted through a competitive bidding process.
“Till date, no record of this investor ploughing money into the project to warrant his 80% equity ab initio. The ₦25b sourced from the Stock Market is still being paid through an Irrevocable Standing Payment Order of ₦385m monthly by the Edo state Government,” Afegbua stated.
He questioned the legitimacy of the arrangement, saying, “Yet, your so-called investor registered a brand new company in May 2024, with no antecedents to support any involvement or success in the hospitality business or any other. They did not go through any competitive bidding to acquire a whopping 80% of that hotel pronto. Hmm, what manner of financial wizardry is that? This is only possible in Godwin Obaseki’s school of economics and public finance. And we have elected never to enrol in such a dubious college of fraud.”
The commissioner insisted that the Radisson Hotel remains the property of the Edo State Government and vowed that every naira of taxpayers’ money invested in the project would be accounted for. “You cannot use the Edo state government as a collateral entity to source ₦25billion from the stock market and invest the money for the benefit of your friends and cronies,” he declared.
Addressing separate allegations about the Ossiomo Power Plant, Afegbua clarified that the current administration has not abandoned the facility but has chosen to reduce its dependence on it by exploring alternative power sources, including solar energy and services from the Benin Electricity Distribution Company, as part of cost-saving measures.
The commissioner emphasized that Governor Okpebholo’s administration is committed to transparency and responsible management of public resources, contrasting this with what he characterized as “opaque financial transactions” that took place under the previous government.
The accusations come amid heightened political tensions between the current All Progressives Congress-led administration and the opposition PDP, which governed the state until Okpebholo’s inauguration following his victory in the 2024 gubernatorial election.
