By Suleiman Yusuf
The Edo State All Progressive Congress, APC, and the Okpebholo/Denco campaign organization is said to be broke and in need of funds from the president, Bola Tinubu, a source close to Senator Monday Okpebholo disclosed.
According to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, “they are in dire need of cash as their unplanned budget for the campaigns have dried up. This cash shortage is occasioned by unnecessary spending by members of the campaign organization such as travelling abroad in the name of graduation ceremony attendance and diaspora meetings, planless extra-budgetary spending, and basically embezzlement by those charged with the authority to dispense funds on behalf of the campaign organization.
“One of the major reasons why the party and the campaign organization is short of funds and broke is that all funds so far have come from only Senator Monday Okpebholo, which are basically monies for constituency projects. He has saved what he was supposed to use for constituency projects running into hundreds of millions, and has diverted the same to fund his campaigns. Apart from him, no one has made significant donations. His deputy, Hon. Dennis Idahosa is not forthcoming with donations as he is still not happy about how he was cheated off the ticket he clearly won. Senator Oshiomole too, who would have supported is strict with funds because of the humiliation he was given by the never-have Pastor Ize-Iyamu, who now doubles as the spokesman of the ‘unspeakable’ Monday. You will never get a dime from POI, rather, he will collect and go to America to buy a house, win or lose.
The source disclosed that last week, there was a top stakeholder’s meeting held in Benin after the reception of Bar Nosa Adams into APC to brainstorm on how to approach the president concerning funding of the campaign which is fledgling.
“They have decided to reach out to Tinubu for funding. You can see they were not able to mobilize their members across the state for the Continuous Voters Registration, CVR, because of lack of funds. The only people you see registering in their thousands are being aided by the ruling party in the state. You do not expect voters to leave their business centres freely to go and spend time at the CVR centres without being assisted at least by their party”
From the look of things, like the only-Akpata led Labour Party, LP, that has since fizzled out amid unending crisis in the state exco, APC might also go into oblivion before the campaign proper starts that will be inevitably capital intensive.