I came across a most distorted and embarrassing statement released yesterday by some supporters of former Governor Godwin Obaseki and the so-called MOWAA advocates, and I must confess — I was deeply ashamed. It is unfortunate that people who once paraded themselves as enlightened and intellectually sound have now reduced themselves to defending falsehoods with the enthusiasm of the uninformed.
Their argument, in summary, is that MOWAA — the Museum of West African Art — is a charity project, not a profit-making venture; that neither the Edo State Government nor the promoters derive any financial benefit from it; and that no tax revenue is expected to accrue to the state.
In the same breath, however, they openly admitted that the land on which MOWAA stands belongs to the Edo State Government — and that the Obaseki administration invested about ₦3.8 billion of Edo people’s money into the project. Yet, they still insist that neither the government nor the people have any stake or profit interest in it. This, to me, is the height of contradiction and deceit.
How can a sitting governor destroy a functional public hospital, hand over government land, commit nearly four billion naira of public funds into a project, and still claim it is a “foreign charity” completely independent of the state and the palace? If it truly were a charity for the benefit of the people, why exclude the two most important stakeholders — the Edo State Government and the revered Benin Palace?
For the record, the land in question was never originally reserved for MOWAA. The Oba of Benin, in his wisdom, had only discussed the vision of the Benin Royal Museum with then-Governor Obaseki as part of royal efforts to repatriate and preserve Benin artefacts. That conversation was rooted in trust — a noble vision meant to protect and celebrate the cultural heritage of the Benin Kingdom. But what followed was a calculated act of betrayal.
Obaseki craftily deceived both the Oba of Benin and the international donors, presenting the project as the Benin Royal Museum — a state-supported and palace-endorsed cultural landmark — only to later twist and hijack it into what we now know as MOWAA, a structure operating under his private and foreign-aligned control.
The same people who today defend MOWAA conveniently ignore that this entire project was conceived under the state government, executed on state land, and financed with state funds — all in the name of promoting Edo heritage. Yet they now turn around to tell us that the project belongs neither to the government nor to the palace, as though it simply materialized out of thin air.
But let us ask the hard questions that every honest Edo person should be asking:
1. If Obaseki and his associates have no stake in MOWAA, why are his supporters still fighting tooth and nail to defend it as though their survival depends on it?
2. If MOWAA is truly a state project, why are international donors still relating directly with a former governor who no longer holds constitutional authority to represent Edo State?
3. If it is purely a private or foreign-led charity, why was public land seized, public structures demolished, and billions of state funds expended to accommodate it?
4. What is the true ownership and control structure of MOWAA, and who ultimately benefits from its operation — financially, politically, or otherwise?
Until these questions are answered with total honesty, Edo people will continue to view MOWAA not as a noble cultural initiative but as a cleverly disguised private enterprise — a project conceived under the pretense of heritage preservation but executed with motives that appear selfish, deceptive, and opaque.
The contradictions in the defenders’ narrative are glaring. A project that was birthed under the auspices of government, built on government land, and financed with billions of Edo people’s money cannot suddenly transform into a “foreign charity” exempt from scrutiny. If it walks like a government project, occupies government land, and was executed by a sitting governor using public funds, then it remains a state project — and the people deserve to know who truly owns and controls it.
Edo people are not fools. The era of political deceit and intellectual manipulation is over. Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration must now take a firm, transparent, and public position on the ownership, management, and governance of MOWAA. The truth must be laid bare — not for political witch-hunting, but for historical clarity, public accountability, and the protection of Edo heritage.
Because no matter how beautifully a lie is packaged, time will always uncover it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Comrade Ikhuenbor Felix Igbinevbo (Mr Figo)
A proud son of Edo, descendant of the Ezomo Dynasty
+2348063085664
