Why my subjects petitioned EFCC against me – Edo Monarch

By Jethro Ibileke

The Okuokpellagbe of Okpella Kingdom in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, His Royal Majesty Mike Sado, has attributed a recent petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against him to his stance against the misuse of community funds.

Speaking in Benin City on Tuesday, the monarch said the petition, allegedly written by the Ukhomunyio Council of Village Heads of Afokpella, was orchestrated by disgruntled elements opposed to his insistence on transparency and development.

He described the petition as a case of impersonation, noting that the council had distanced itself from the document and denied authoring or endorsing it.

According to the monarch, the move was aimed at tarnishing his image following his directive that funds meant for community development must no longer be diverted for personal gain.

“On assumption of office, I met with the council of chiefs and appealed to them that my major concern is to bring development to our people,” he said, adding that “Funds meant for the community will no longer be diverted into private pockets.”

Sado lamented that despite substantial revenues generated over the years from multinational firms operating in the mineral-rich area, the community had witnessed little development.

He listed projects initiated within his first year in office to include the construction of a police station, a divisional police headquarters, a police area command, a magistrate’s court, judges’ quarters, and a computer-based test centre to end students’ trips to Igarra for examinations such as WAEC and NECO.

“You can imagine that our students have to travel to Igarra just to write WAEC or NECO. There was no ICT centre and other basic facilities, but we have begun to change that narrative,” he added.

Meanwhile, elders of the community, at an enlarged emergency meeting convened by the most senior village head, Chief Joseph Omoake, denied any involvement in the petition.

They described the development as shocking and a clear case of impersonation, stressing that the community’s priority remains infrastructure development rather than sharing of funds.

Those present at the meeting included Chiefs Peter Afiabor, Lawrence Adejumoh, Segun Balogun, Michael Bello, Okumagbe Ogene and Matthew Okpetu, among others.