News View Digest

Okpebholo Welcomes New Okumagbe of Uwanno, Urges Peace and Grassroots Growth By SSA on Public Affairs, Razak Zekeri Saturday was a historic day in Uwanno Kingdom as Senator Francis Asekhame Alimikhena was officially installed as the Okumagbe of Uwanno Kingdom. Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, who attended the colourful ceremony, described the coronation as a turning point for the kingdom. He called on the new monarch to use his long years in public service to promote peace, unity and sustainable development. The Governor noted that Alimikhena’s rise to the throne comes with a strong pedigree. Having served two terms as a Senator of the Federal Republic, he brings experience, contacts and governance knowledge that can attract growth to Uwanno. “Your coming to this sacred throne is timely,” Okpebholo said. “The wealth of experience you gathered in the Senate will help in mobilising development and opening new opportunities for your people.” He urged the Okumagbe to make unit...

2 Years of Asphalt -: How Okpebholo’s Road Revolution Is Connecting Edo Central, North & South By Festus Alenkhe Two years ago, Edo people asked for action, not speeches. Today, the answer is written in tar, concrete, and kilometres of new roads. Under  Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo, the hum of graders and the smell of fresh asphalt have become the soundtrack of governance. From Edo South to Edo Central and Edo North, the administration has turned infrastructure from a campaign promise into daily reality. The roads that once swallowed vehicles, cut off farms, and trapped communities in erosion are now being opened up. And with them, markets, schools, and livelihoods are opening up too. Edo South: Benin and Environs Getting a New Look   In the heart of Benin City, history is being made. The Ramat Park Flyover, Edo’s first, is 99% ready and slated for commissioning in November 2026. The 949-metre bridge, with 350m and 214m link roads, is designed to ease the gridloc...

Edo:​‌‌‍​‌‌‍⁠⁠‌‌‍‍‍⁠‌​​‌​VGN commends Okpebholo’s choice of Ecological Commission Chairman  By Imelda Osayande  Mr. Nosa Imadiyi, Coordinator,  (VGN)-  Manchester Chapter in Edo.             Mr. Terry Igiebor-Chairman Ecological  Funding and Management Commission. The Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN), Manchester Chapter in Edo, has commended Gov. Monday Okpebholo for appointing Mr Terry Igiebor as Chairman of the state’s Ecological Funding and Management Commission. In a statement signed by its Coordinator, Mr Nosa Imadiyi, on Friday in Benin, the group pledged its support for the commission’s mandate to tackle flooding, erosion and environmental degradation across the state. Imadiyi said the appointment reflected the governor’s commitment to environmental sustainability and disaster prevention in the state. He said the choice of Igiebor demonstrated that Okpebholo was a leader who listened and acted, describing the appointment...

Closer to the People: How Governor Monday Okpebholo Is Quietly Rebuilding Primary Health Care in Edo’s Villages By Festus Alenkhe Development should not be judged only by the flyovers in Benin or the big hospitals in the city. True progress shows up where it matters most — in the village square, at the ward clinic, in the small PHC that a mother walks to at 2am with a sick child. That is where Governor Senator Monday Okpebholo’s story is unfolding in Edo State. From day one, his administration decided to put Primary Health Care, PHC, at the center of its agenda. Not as a side project. Not as a press statement. But as the first line of defense for every Edo family. Six months later, the changes are no longer on paper. They are on the ground. 1. The Buildings Are Coming Back to Life. Drive through the 18 Local Government Areas today and you will see it.  In Uromi, the PHC that once had broken windows and leaking roofs now has a fresh coat of paint. In Auchi, the abandoned cen...

Edo @ 35: SSA Pubic Affairs, Razak Zekeri Urges Okpebholo  To Immortalise Founding  Fathers As Part Of SHINE AGENDA As Edo State marks its 35th Creation Anniversary on August 27, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Public Affairs, Comrade Razak Zekeri, has called on the working Governor of Edo State, Senator Monday Okpebholo, to use the occasion to honor and immortalize the founding fathers and past leaders of Edo and the old Bendel State. A Look Back: How Edo State Was Created Comrade Zekeri recalled that August 27, 1991 was the day the then military government of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida split the old Bendel State into two Edo and Delta States. Bendel State, with Benin City as capital, was itself created in 1976 from the defunct Mid-Western Region which was carved out of the Western Region in 1963 through a historic referendum. The Mid-West was Nigeria’s first and only region created by plebiscite, and it gave the country some of its earliest self-governing ins...

2026 IYD: WANEP Urges Increased Investment in Youth Leadership for Peace and Sustainable Development  Habiba Aniekan Sam  The West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, WANEP-Nigeria, has called on government, development partners and other stakeholders to commit more resources to youth leadership, education, innovation and civic engagement as a pathway to lasting peace and national development. The appeal was contained in a statement released to mark the " 2026 International Youth Day" , with the global theme: Different Contexts, Common Aspirations. According to WANEP-Nigeria, although young people across Nigeria grow up in diverse social, economic and political realities, they share the same hopes: peace, dignity, access to quality education, decent jobs, meaningful inclusion in governance, and a sustainable future. The organization noted that young Nigerians between the ages of 18 and 35 make up more than half of the country’s population. Over the years, they have played ac...