Former Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki, has responded to allegations made by his successor, Monday Okpebholo, concerning the Stella Obasanjo Hospital in Benin City.

Okpebholo had claimed that the hospital was hastily commissioned by Obaseki’s administration while construction was incomplete and essential medical equipment had not been installed. He also labeled the commissioning as a “scam” and promised to address what he described as structural flaws to improve services.

In a swift response, Obaseki, through his media adviser Crusoe Osagie, refuted these allegations, asserting that the hospital is fully completed, equipped, and operational. He further accused Okpebholo of attempting to discredit the project to avoid paying contractors.

According to Obaseki’s team, officials in Okpebholo’s administration are allegedly pressuring contractors for kickbacks, reportedly demanding as much as 30% of the payment owed for their work. Obaseki’s media office also released photos to support their claim, showing the hospital in its finished state.

Obaseki emphasized that the project was completed to improve healthcare services in Edo State, urging the new administration to focus on continuity instead of engaging in unfounded criticisms.

The Stella Obasanjo Hospital stands as a testament to Obaseki’s commitment to enhancing healthcare infrastructure during his tenure, with photos showcasing its modern facilities and readiness to serve the people of Edo State.

His statement reads: “The childish, laughable, and infantile comments by the ‘governor-select’ of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, where he fruitlessly attempted to disparage the excellent work done by the immediate past governor, Godwin Obaseki, at the Stella Obasanjo Hospital on Sapele Road, Benin City, are part of a clandestine plan to dodge the payment of the contractors who executed the project.

“We also gathered that top officials of the Okpebholo-led government are currently playing hardball with the contractors, trying to arm-twist them and demanding as much as 30 percent of the total amount owed to the contractors as kickbacks before payments can be made.

“At the end of the Obaseki-administration, the former governor left about N30 billion in the government’s coffers. These funds are more than sufficient to pay off these contractors and meet all other immediate State obligations but the Okpebholo-led government is dodging the payment of the contractors because they are diverting these funds to settle godfathers and the lions and tigers who played the main role in getting him into office.

“We are therefore drawing the attention of Edo people to the current theatrics being carried out by Okpebholo around the Stella Obasanjo Hospital Project, to let them know that it is all a ploy to divert funds meant for the project to settle political actors.

“The attention of the good people of Edo State and Nigeria is also drawn to the plan of the Okpebholo-led government to deceive the public into believing that there are no equipment in the hospital so that they can appropriate new funds to equip a hospital that is already fully equipped.

“Edo people must rise up against this heist and prevent Okpebholo and his cronies from carting away with our collective patrimony.

“It is therefore important to state without without equivocation that the claim that the Stella Obasanjo Hospital is not completed is a blatant lie that must be challenged by all well-meaning Edo people. It is another gimmick by the clueless and incompetent governor-select, Monday Okpebholo to defraud the good people of Edo State and Nigerians, and again, every effort must be summoned to prevent him from carrying out this daylight robbery.

“Hospitals are often made up of two main sections: the Outpatient Department (OPD) and the Inpatient Department (IPD). For the Stella Obasanjo Hospital, which was commissioned by the immediate past governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, the outpatient and inpatient departments have been completed, fully equipped, and ready for operation.

“In fact, an agreement has been signed between the State Government and a management company to operate the hospital due to the sophistication of the equipment installed. The agreement also involves training civil servants in the health sector and giving them the necessary skills to handle the hospital’s advanced technologies.

“The only buildings that are still under construction within the contiguous areas of the vast  Stella Obasanjo Hospital compound are the mortuary building and the administrative buildings meant to serve as a medical hub that would house everything related to healthcare in Edo, just as we have the creative hub, the education hub, the production hub, the built environment hub, and the agriculture hub, among others.

“But instead of visiting the outpatient and inpatient departments, the governor-select chose to rigmarole around the administrative building which is the only section under construction to score cheap political points. In fact, there were attempts by the hospital staff to take him into the hospital which is fully completed and operational, but he refused to enter.

“We want to remind Okpebholo that telling unintelligent lies won’t earn him the love and support of the people of Edo State whose mandate he stole during the September 21 governorship election. Edo people know the truth and cannot be deceived by his manipulative and deceptive antics and those of the APC government. We urge him to stop peddling lies and falsehoods and advise him, that if he has any plans and agenda for the development of the State, he should focus on them.”

See photos of the hospital below: