Edo APC Chair Baselessly Labels Ighodalo a Thief While Defending Gov’s Budget Blunder

By Matilda Omonaiye

Edo State APC Chairman, Jarrett Tenebe, has sparked controversy with unsubstantiated claims against renowned lawyer and former Sterling Bank chairman, Asue Ighodalo, accusing him of stealing billions of naira despite never holding political office.

Tenebe made the incendiary remarks while defending Governor Monday Okpebholo, who faced public ridicule after repeatedly fumbling over budget figures during his 2025 Appropriation Bill presentation to the State House of Assembly yesterday.

In a viral video, Okpebholo struggled to articulate the budget’s total, stammering through several incorrect figures before finally saying, “It’s confusing me.” The proposed N605 billion budget marks a 25% increase from 2024’s.

Tenebe dismissed the backlash as trivial, calling the governor’s slip a “normal human error” and claiming it reflected Okpebholo’s integrity compared to predecessors like Godwin Obaseki and political figures like Ighodalo.

“Monday is not a thief, so he’s not familiar with figures,” Tenebe asserted. “Obaseki won’t make such mistakes because he has stolen billions. Asue Ighodalo won’t make such mistakes because he has stolen billions.”

Public records, however, show Ighodalo, a respected corporate lawyer and director at the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, has never held public office, raising questions about Tenebe’s allegations.

Doubling down, Tenebe dismissed criticism of the governor, saying, “He’s performing, and anyone who doesn’t like his face should go to hell and burn to ashes.”

Observers note the libellous undertones in Tenebe’s statements, which lacked any evidence to support his claims.