By Kassim Afegbua
I tuned into The Morning Show on Arise TV the other day, hoping for balanced reporting. But what I got instead was a disappointing display of one-sided commentary, especially during their social media segment where Ojinika Okpe shared a video showing the poor state of some Edo roads. Now, it’s perfectly fine to highlight problems—that’s part of journalism. But when it’s done with what feels like exaggerated gloom and zero context, it gives the impression that the station is pushing a particular narrative.
Let’s get the facts straight: Governor Okpebholo has only been in office for about nine months. Roads don’t deteriorate overnight. If we’re seeing this level of decay now, it means things have been bad for a while—likely throughout the past eight years under Governor Godwin Obaseki. So why does it suddenly feel like Arise TV is just waking up to these issues now? Where were these fiery reports when Obaseki was in power?
It’s frustrating because many of us watched as Arise TV almost turned into an unofficial campaign arm for Obaseki and his chosen successor, Asue Ighodalo. Back then, they were mostly silent about the infrastructural decline across Edo State. And now that a new governor is taking steps to fix the damage, they’re shouting the loudest about the mess he inherited.
Let’s also talk progress. Despite the rains slowing things down, Governor Okpebholo has launched several projects. The Ekehuan–Gele-Gele road is under construction. The long-abandoned Iruekpen–Sabongida road has been approved. Uromi to Ubiaja is nearing completion. The Ramat Park Overhead Bridge is ongoing. Even the Temboga road Obaseki left undone is now fully repaired and in use. These are not small feats.
And it’s not just about roads. He’s tackling insecurity by recruiting and deploying 2,500 new security personnel across all 18 local government areas. He’s hired another 2,500 teachers for public schools. There are plans to address gully erosion and drainage issues too. Slowly but surely, Edo is rising.
So instead of sitting in their studio painting half-truths, the Arise TV team should take a trip down to Edo. We’d happily welcome them, feed them, and show them around. They’ll see firsthand that this government is not just working—it’s rebuilding what was broken.
