Athletes and Administrators, as well as nearby residents of the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium, woke up to a surprise gift from the Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki on Wednesday as the newly reconstructed Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin-City received a power boost from the Ossiomo Power Plant to guarantee uninterrupted power supply to the gigantic sports edifice just as the stadium is expected to come alive in a few days as the Super Eagles of Nigeria play host to the Leone Stars of Sierra Leone in a 2022 AFCON qualifiers.
The Samuel Ogbemudia stadium which has just recently been upgraded to international standards apart from hosting the matches of the Super Eagles going forward, is also expected to play host to the National Sports Festival in a few months time but surprisingly, the sporting arena has been without electricity for a long time except the power from the generating set recently installed but that itself comes with its attendant noise pollution.
Speaking to newsmen as he led officials of the Ossiomo Power & Infrastructure Limited and CCETC Clean Energy to inspect the stadium after the power supply, the Edo state Commissioner for Energy and Electricity, honorable Akinola Agbaje disclosed that the project was a part of the vision by the Governor of the state in providing steady power supply in promoting businesses, driving industrialization and productivity.
“The plan of the governor is to provide 24-hour power supply to all government offices and identifiable projects. Having invested so much in this stadium edifice, the governor cannot allow a decline in productivity and output due to the unavailability of electricity. This arrangement as you know is a public-private partnership and this is just the beginning of good things to come from this administration”.
The Managing Director of Solwin Engineering Nigeria Limited in charge of the Ossiomo Power Plant project, Dr. Uwa Igiehon on his part, revealed that the project is a collaboration with the Edo State Government and having worked round the clock since the inauguration of the transmission line from Ologbo what we are seeing now at the stadium is a product of hard work and dedication on the part of the present administration in Edo State.
The last words came from the Edo State Sports Commission Chairman who was full of praise for the Godwin Obaseki led Government of Edo State.
“This is another landmark achievement by the wake and see Governor of Edo State. For long the stadium has been in darkness only for everyone to wake and see power everywhere. Everyone is surprised because they had been expecting the generating set to roar to life but this one is a shocker. I believe sportspeople should brace themselves for more surprises coming from Mr Governor”, the Sports Commission chairman affirmed.
