by Ike Willie-Nwobu

Folly calls unto folly in Edo State, with far-reaching consequences for the people of one of Nigeria’s most politically aware states.

Nigeria’s bazaar of budgets has continued at par with states proposing huge budgets for next year despite stark warning from economists that they are far from implementable.

When newly elected Edo State governor, Monday Okpebholo, went to the Edo State House of Assembly to present the 2025 budget of N605 billion titled ‘Budget of Renewed Hope’, he ended up bungling what was his first major task since assumption of office.

The gaffe which was renewed again and again came when the governor struggled to pronounce the budget figures. After several struggles, he finally got it in part but not before declaring that ‘it is confusing me’ which has become a major meme.

If the gaffes were jarring because one would have expected series of in-depth meetings convened by the governor to discuss the most important document in the state and familiarize himself with its contents, there was more to come.

When video of the governor’s epic struggles with figures went viral, Jarret Tenebe, the Edo State chairman of the APC where the governor belongs, resolutely defended the governor. According to the chairman, the governor struggled mightily with the figures because he is not a thief. The chairman made sure to state that the immediate past governor of Edo State and the PDP candidate during the last election would not have struggled as much, having stolen billions. One of the mentioned parties has written to Mr. Tenebe through his lawyers.

Twenty-five years into its hardwon and hard-nosed experiment with democracy, Nigeria deserves some sanity in its political space. While Nigerian politicians have a history of fighting dirty, it is always cautioned that there should be a method to the madness. As such, those who occupy public office and those who busy themselves with public affairs must be seen to be competent and above board. There is no chance that this is negotiable.

For many years now, public office has been bastardized, turned into the playground of people who are ordinarily unable to provide balanced leadership for their immediate families.

Consequently, many people who have neither character nor courage of conviction have been able to sneak into public office, jeopardizing what is necessary for the wellbeing of other people with their stupidity.

For each politician who fails in office in Nigeria, there is often a motley of sycophants, bootlickers and praise singers, urging and edging them on, defending them, telling them they are the best. In Jarret Tenebe, Governor Monday Okpebholo seems to have a cheerleader. It would be extremely unfair to say that the governor has failed less than three months in office, but with supporters like Tenebe, failure may be stalking him.

Competence in public office is as much a matter of impression as it is of action. How will a governor who struggles with basic numeracy be able to comb through and comprehend the thousands of figures and proposals which will be brought to his table as governor, many of them from scammers who want to defraud the state?

Tenebe and his ilk should be worried about all that may fall through the cracks if the governor is easily overwhelmed rather than taking cheap and classless potshots at people who have painstakingly equipped themselves with the tools to navigate public office.

If the Edo State governor wishes to succeed, he must beware of people like Tenebe. The best course of action for him will be to keep them at arm’s length. Counsel from people like that is best heard from afar.

*Willie-Nwobu can be reached at ikewilly9@gmail.com