The Edo State Government has issued a formal warning to Mr. Ogbeide Ifaluyi-Isibor over a social media post deemed defamatory against Governor Monday Okpebholo and members of the state executive council.
In a letter dated June 8, 2025, and signed by the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr. Samson Osagie, the government condemned the post which went viral on June 6 as false and malicious.
The post reportedly accused the Okpebholo administration of holding just three Executive Council meetings in eight months, with the Governor allegedly residing primarily in Abuja and manipulating contract awards from the capital.
It also claimed that state funds were being hoarded to settle a pending Supreme Court judgment involving contracts from the previous administration.
Dr. Osagie dismissed the allegations as “completely false,” stating that several Executive Council meetings had been held, leading to key developmental initiatives, including ongoing flyover projects in Benin City.
He described the post as criminal defamation and warned that unless a public retraction and apology were issued within 24 hours, the government would pursue both civil and criminal legal action.
The government demands that the apology be published across all social media platforms and in at least one national daily.
“This publication amounts to criminal defamation,” Dr. Osagie stated. “We intend to proceed against you through the security agencies for you to prove the criminal allegations you have made.”
The warning reflects the government’s hard stance on what it sees as deliberate misinformation and attempts to discredit its leadership, especially as political activities begin to intensify in the lead-up to the 2027 general elections.
