A Dark Christmas in Edo: The Okpebholo Story – By Daniel A. Noah Osa-Ogbegie, Esq.

Traditionally, Christmas is a time of optimism, light, warmth, and rejuvenation. This Christmas has arrived in Edo State, especially in Benin City, shrouded in spiritual and physical darkness. Streets that ought to be sparkling with joy are muted. Public structures that should represent utility and order are drenched in oppressive shadows. Offices that used to run smoothly now stutter through the day in periods of quiet and darkness. This is not a coincidence. It is a direct result of administration motivated by resentment, insecurity, and a destructive fixation on destroying the legacy of a predecessor rather than improving the welfare of the populace.

In a relatively short period of time, Governor Monday Okpebholo has shown how brittle progress can be when leadership is driven more by petty politics than by policy intelligence. His careless attack on and subsequent withdrawal from the power supply agreement with Ossiomo Power is the most glaring and terrible example of this failure.

It wasn’t a cosmetic arrangement. This was not a test. Under the Obaseki administration, the provision of stable, integrated energy to Edo State Government facilities in Benin City was a purposeful, forward-thinking program. Edo opted for innovation over justifications at a time when the national grid has come to be associated with failure, volatility, and national humiliation. An independent power source enhanced efficiency, decreased long-term expenses, decreased downtime, and restored public service’s dignity.

Because the facts are indisputable, progressive sub-national governments in Nigeria are actively seeking embedded power solutions. In recent years, the national grid has failed numerous times. Distribution firms are overworked. Power production is still inconsistent. Edo State was keeping up with the times. They were behind Edo.

Governor Okpebholo, however, made the decision to destroy this useful arrangement. Not due of its failure. It wasn’t because it wasn’t financially viable. Not because it violated the law. However, this is due to an irrational paranoia that views each of his predecessor’s successful initiatives as a political threat rather than a public benefit.

The repercussions are now evident, quantifiable, and extremely degrading.

The Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), a utility already burdened by lean capacity, legacy infrastructure issues, and systemic national limits, is now under tremendous pressure as a result of Okpebholo’s attack on Ossiomo Power. What was once a shared load has turned into an intolerable strain.

On good days, the amount of electricity available in my residential neighborhood and office regions has decreased to about two hours. Previously, we had an average of sixteen hours each day. There are periods of three days or longer without power in my office axis. Darkness is become the norm. Where production once flowed silently, generators now howl. Diesel costs are rising. Companies struggle. Families make lower adjustments. This is a real-time regression.

Under Okpebholo, the state secretariat has come to represent governance in a sad way. I only recently witnessed the restoration of power following a blackout that lasted more than a week. What came next was both bizarre and depressing. There was an unplanned, boisterous celebration among the civil servants. Cheers filled the hallways. There was applause. Laughter erupted.

Under Obaseki, electricity—once taken for granted—had been turned to a show, a unique occasion deserving of celebration. The moral collapse of today’s Edo government was encapsulated in that moment. The state has drastically fallen short of acceptable norms when government servants hail the electricity supply as a miracle.

Stable electricity in government offices was normalized under the Obaseki administration. Competence had made it commonplace, so nobody cheered. Under Okpebholo, light has become extraordinary and darkness has become the standard.

Infrastructure like electricity is not aesthetic. It’s fundamental. It supports economic confidence, transparency, productivity, and service delivery. Long-term darkness raises operating expenses, encourages inefficiency, exacerbates corruption, and depresses morale. Every hour of blackout results in wasted man-hours, postponed paperwork, irate citizens, and unnecessary expenditures for generator and diesel upkeep.

Edo State and its local governments are receiving large monthly allocations totaling several billions of naira at the time of this crash. Therefore, Edo people have the right to inquire, without reservation, what exactly Okpebholo’s administration prioritizes if not the fundamental operations of the state.

Christmas in Edo ought to have been a time of ongoing development rather than its ceremonial deconstruction. Rather, the state is ensnared in a politics of animosity. Projects are dropped due to ancestry rather than merit. Policies are eliminated based on origin rather than proof. The role of governance has been reduced to an erasure theater.

However, darkness cannot be spun. You can’t rebrand Gloom. Official denials and carefully crafted propaganda are not as powerful as the actual reality of the Edo people. Investors are aware. Companies take note. Employees observe. The general public notices.

The future seems bleak if this trajectory continues. a state that is becoming dormant administratively. Both practically and figuratively, a capital city is losing its vibrancy. a workforce that has been taught to enjoy crumbs. People are gradually being trained to accept deterioration as the norm.

Leadership is judged by how well one maintains what works and enhances what doesn’t, not by how ruthlessly one rejects a predecessor. Obaseki is not the owner of Edo State. Okpebholo does not own it. Its people, both alive and dead, own it. Policies that are functional must put aside personal grudges.

Edo is darker this Christmas than it has ever been in history. However, no matter how deep-rooted, darkness is never lasting. It gives way to bravery, humility, and governance based on logic rather than animosity. The sooner this administration recognizes that reality, the sooner light will return to Edo State—not just to its structures, but also to its wounded sense of purpose and optimism.