Edo PDP Derides Okpebholo’s  Promise to Deliver 2.5 Million Votes in 2027

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described claim by the state governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo to deliver 2.5 million votes to President Bola Tinubu in 2027 election as comical.

The party said the promise coming from someone who could barely manage 300,000 votes for himself in the governorship election that was marred by heavy militarisation and backed by full weight of  All Progressives Congress (APC) governors, the Senate President and members of the National Executive Council among others is not only laughable but an outright insult on the intelligence of Edo people.

Okpebholo had in at a town hall meeting at Irrua, Esan Central LGA of the state while receiving some defectors  from PDP to APC, made the promise.

But in a statement by the Publicity Secretary, Edo PDP Caretaker Committee, Chris Nehikhare,  noted that people of state will not forget in a haste the electoral heist of September 2024—an operation carried out in open connivance with the electoral umpire and the federal security apparatus, where figures were conjured from thin air to fraudulently force Okpebholo into office, adding that that sham of an election still remains a matter of legal contention in the courts today.

“Despite all the rigging, concocted figures, deployment of federal might, and blatant suppression of the people’s will, how many votes did Okpebholo and the APC muster? Just  291,000 votes.

“Now, with a straight face, he wants Nigerians to believe he can mobilise 2.5 million votes for President Tinubu in 2027, just about the entire number of registered voters across all 18 local government areas in the state. Such a claim is not only absurd but reeks of desperation and sycophancy, clearly aimed at pleasing his Abuja benefactors in a bid to legitimise the September 2024 electoral charade,” the PDP declared.

Besides, the party said it is deeply troubling that while Edo people are grappling with growing insecurity as a direct result of lack of leadership, while hunger and economic hardship ravage homes daily, and the state collapses under the burden of decaying infrastructure and poor governance, Okpebholo’s top priority appears to be seeking applause in Abuja through empty posturing and hollow political promises.

The statement further noted: “We are confident that President Tinubu, a seasoned political operator, will not be swayed by the noise and exaggerated claims of political opportunists. We urge Okpebholo to step out of his echo chamber, abandon the obsession with political showmanship, and face the urgent task of governance and delivering real results to the people of Edo State.”