Obaseki misused Edo stadium for Rema Homecoming Concert – Shaibu

The reinstated Edo State Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, has expressed concern over the dilapidated condition of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium following the misuse of the facility during the hosting of the Rema Homecoming Concert organised by the state government.

The deputy governor, who spoke at the end of a tour of the facilities at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin, which he undertook on Wednesday, raised concerns that the governor, Godwin Obaseki, didn’t give adequate attention to the stadium and its facilities during their political impasse.

He said: “We have a government policy not to allow concerts in the stadium. And I drew his (unnamed government official) attention to the warranty we have on the stadium. The person told me that the governor insisted that the concert (Rema Homecoming) would be held there.

“I told him that the concert could be held at the Garrick Memorial field or at the UNIBEN Ekenwan Campus, not in the stadium because of the warranty. Now you can see that the concert has caused serious damage to the stadium and the equipment therein.

“This hall that we are presently in is the dedicated gymnastics hall. This is the best gymnastics hall in Nigeria with a suspended pit. You can see for yourself the dilapidation within one year.

“You put up a structure that was doing very well for five years. The only way that you can sustain maintenance in a facility like this is to bring activities there. If there’s no life in a facility, it will definitely dilapidate. That’s what you’re seeing here.

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“I am not happy at all. This is supposed to be one of our flagship projects. I was fully in charge of the facility for close to six years with no cost to the government. It was state-of-the-art. International and national events were taking place here. The international gymnastics federation brought an international meet and training here.

“I just think we have a problem here. It’s not a government problem, it’s an individual problem. To bring the facility back to shape, we need to use Edo taxpayers’ money to do that. You don’t bring your personal interest into government. This is what you get. It is wrong.

“Take a look at the Tennis Central Court. And we want to produce athletes for the next Olympics when we cannot even maintain our facility that they will use to get prepared.”