Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has been nominated for the Leadership Newspaper Governor of the Year 2026 award.
The award ceremony is scheduled for December 1, 2026, at the Bola Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja.
The nomination was announced during a visit by a delegation from Leadership Newspaper to the governor at the Edo State Government House in Benin City.
The delegation included the newspaper’s Vice-Chairman, Michael Okpere; Director of Conferences and Awards, Abraham Nda-Isaiah; Director of Special Projects, Paul Agbo; and its Benin correspondent and Chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel, Patrick Ochoga.
Speaking during the visit, Okpere said the newspaper’s annual awards featured 21 categories, including Person of the Year, Governor of the Year, Civil Servant of the Year and Banker of the Year.
He said a panel of 54 people assessed public officials and their performances before selecting nominees for the awards.
According to him, the panel reviewed the performances of state governors for 2026, as it did in 2025, but settled on five nominees this year, compared with six in the previous edition.
“We’ve come to inform you of your nomination as Leadership Governor of the Year 2026. In the last 18 to 19 years, Leadership Newspaper sits down every year with about 54 persons to examine policies, happenings in Nigeria with the intention to reward society and deserving people,” Okpere said.
“In the process of the nomination, we examined the governorship performance for 2026 as was done in 2025. We had six nominees, but in 2026, we were able to come up with five nominees.
“We couldn’t get the six governors because we didn’t find it. You are one of those we found worthy of the award. This event is planned to take place on the 1st of December 2026 at the Bola Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja.
“Our mission here is to invite you to the event and kindly ask that you make yourself available to receive the award. On the podium that day, you will have four brother governors from other states.”
Also speaking, Isaiah said Okpebholo’s nomination was based on his administration’s reported interventions in security, education, healthcare and other sectors.
He said security was essential to effective governance, adding that the governor’s interventions in the education sector, particularly at Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, and Edo State University, Uzairue, were among the factors considered.
Isaiah cited the increase in the subvention to Ambrose Alli University from N41 million to over N500 million and the allocation of N250 million to Edo State University.
He also highlighted road construction projects across the state’s three senatorial districts, the flyover bridge at Ramat Park and interventions in healthcare, including the state health insurance scheme.
“Over 500 roads are being constructed, completed and ongoing across the three senatorial districts in the state, alongside the flyover bridge at Ramat Park and healthcare interventions, especially the health insurance scheme,” he said.
He added that the administration’s interventions across different sectors of the state’s economy contributed to the nomination.
“Your performance is protecting the future of the state and giving it a better future. These and many more qualified you for the award as you fitted in amongst the governors to receive the award,” Isaiah said.
Responding, Okpebholo expressed appreciation for the nomination, saying his administration’s efforts to develop Edo State were part of his commitment to public service.
“Welcome to Edo State. I am happy to see you, and thank you for bringing me good news. I see what I do as a way of life, and I am not doing something special,” the governor said.
“This is how I have been behaving before I contested. I am happy to continue to develop the state.
“I am delighted with the award and so grateful, and pray for more strength to continue to work and do more for Edo people. I will be physically present on that day,” he added.
