Nigerian rapper Eedris Abdulkareem has lauded the Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, for what he described as “great work and visible development efforts” across the state.
He made this known during a tour of the state with the governor on Monday.
PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the tour with Mr Okpebholo took place five days after the state government sealed a Mega Hub hosting an event tagged “Mega Rave: A Night with the Legends”, during which Eedris had described President Bola Tinubu as the “worst president ever”.
The 52-year-old, during a performance in the state, maintained that anyone supporting Mr Tinubu and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), would suffer for their “wrong choice”.
U-turn
However, speaking during the tour with Mr Okpebholo, which was posted on the governor’s X page on Monday night, the “Jaga Jaga” crooner said he was in the state to assess ongoing developments.
He added that he was in the state to confirm whether the governor was truly delivering on his mandate.
Eedris, a native of Osun State, said, “I must say sincerely that his excellency has truly done a lot. So I’m here to tell everybody that, truly, his excellency is working; there are works in progress. I’ve gone around south, I’ve gone around central, and I’ve been able to see some of the work that his excellency is doing. In the next one or two years, you’ll see all the achievements.
“Most times when you are not on the ground, you won’t know exactly what is going on. If you are from Edo State and in diaspora, I would advise you to travel down and see what his excellency is doing here. At least I’m here to see, because you are doing a great job. I mean, I’ve seen it, I’ve gone around, and I’ve seen all the beautiful things that you are doing, and I want to appreciate you and thank you for that.”
Declined interview
The singer further appreciated Mr Okpebholo for reopening the Mega Hub.
“Secondly, to plead with the governor to reopen the event centre that was locked down last week after my event, and his excellency has done that. Thank you so much, I appreciate you.”
This newspaper contacted the “Emi Lokan” crooner to get his reaction to the online narratives that trailed the video, in which netizens alleged that he might be working for the APC, but he declined to comment.
“Sorry, I’m not granting any interviews at the moment. I’m very busy,” he said.
This reporter, however, contacted Eedris again. He picked up the call but hung up immediately.
Subsequent calls to his line returned a “user busy” response.
Furthermore, in response to a message sent to his WhatsApp by this reporter, Eedris said he’d addressed the political narrative that trailed his tour of Edo State at the appropriate time.
“Thank you for reaching out, but I am pretty busy now for interviews. I will address the issue appropriately in due course”, he said.
2.5 million votes
However, the governor maintained that Eedris saw the ongoing works during the tour and could no longer doubt his vow to deliver 2.5 million votes for Mr Tinubu in the forthcoming presidential election.
He added that his priority was to ensure that he left the state better than he met it by effectively utilising the allocation provided by Mr Tinubu.
The governor noted that his administration would continue to work for the people and make Edo shine.
“Any time I say President Tinubu, we are giving him 2.5 million votes in Edo, I know people think, even you, I know you doubt whether it’s possible. But today you have seen for yourself. You see how we go out to places to just look at projects, how people are tripping out from their houses. I am not the one telling them to come out. I never tell them you are coming before. So this is because of what we are doing practically for the Edo people to see.
“I keep telling people, the money we are spending is not from my father’s house. It’s the President who is giving us this assignment. You can see both the federal and state roads; we are doing all of them. These roads are in Edo State. If Edo is beautiful, it’s beautiful for the Edo people. You have seen for yourself. So these are the things that matter to our people”, said Mr Okpebholo.
He stated that massive projects were what citizens wanted to see, adding, “That is exactly what we are doing with the Federal Government allocation given to us by Bola Tinubu.”
Mega Hub
Meanwhile, a member of Mr Okpebholo’s team, who spoke during the tour, denied that the Mega Hub was shut down because the singer criticised Mr Tinubu.
According to him, the governor ordered the centre’s closure after a security report was presented to him.
The official maintained that the governor had the people’s interests at heart.
He said, “Before you came to town, his excellency, once he heard that the event centre was locked, immediately opened it within 24 hours. And that is to tell you that he has listening ears. Initially, he wasn’t even aware that that was the whole story.
“It was a different security report they gave him. By the time he got fully briefed on what happened, he said, no, they should go and open it. So he has since done that, you know, since five or six days ago.”
Backstory
This newspaper reported in June 2024 that the rapper released a song titled “Emilokan”, in which he criticised Enoch Adeboye, founder of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG).
READ ALSO: Recruitment: Okpebholo urges Edo youths to join Nigerian Army
He challenged the cleric to remain “critical” of Mr Tinubu’s government, as he was during Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
In April 2025, Eedris released another track titled “Tell Your Papa”, in which he criticised Seyi Tinubu and urged him to convey Nigerians’ hardship to his father.
The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) later banned the song for allegedly violating Section 3.1.8 of the Nigerian Broadcasting Code.
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