Edo gov-elect Okpebholo denies planning $45m Chinese loan

Edo State Governor-Elect, Monday Okpebholo, has dismissed rumours that he intends to secure a $45m loan from a Chinese agency to fund the construction of three flyovers in Benin City, following Governor Godwin Obaseki’s handover.

The rebuttal was articulated in a statement released to journalists in Abuja on Sunday by Okpebholo’s media aide, Godspower Inegbe.

In the statement, Okpebholo alleged that those spreading the rumour were affiliates of the outgoing administration.

He added that viral photos from his recent visit to the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Yu Dunhai, made at the ambassador’s invitation, might have prompted rumour mongers to circulate the unfounded claims.

The statement clarified that, while Okpebholo has no official capacity to procure loans on behalf of the state government, he is “focused on addressing the numerous debts accumulated by the outgoing administration without any visible development to show for it.”

It added, “We wish to alert the public to the misleading publication alleging that Senator Monday Okpebholo, the winner of the September 21 governorship election, is negotiating a $45.21m loan with a Chinese agency to construct three flyovers in Benin City.

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“We are compelled to set the record straight. The governor-elect, Senator Monday Okpebholo, was photographed at the office of the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria in Abuja, where he had been invited.

“Contrary to claims in the publication, he was not there to sign any Memorandum of Understanding with the China Exim Bank for a loan, rather, he is dedicated to finding ways to address the multiple loans amassed by the outgoing administration without corresponding development.”

Reacting to the allegations, the Edo State Commissioner for Information, Chris Nehikhare, denounced the speculation, stating that those peddling it were not from Obaseki’s camp.

He said, “It is not true. We have nothing to say about that. We don’t even know where the original statement they are reacting to came from. All we know is that the new government is coming in on November 12.”