Edo state governor, Adams Oshiomole, has asked for an unreserved apology from Senator Dino Melaye over his recent comments about him not marrying a Made in Nigeria woman (read story here). During the senate debate on promoting Made in Nigeria goods on Wednesday March 2nd, Dino said that Nigerian men do not like patronizing Made in Nigeria Girls and cited Oshiomole who is married to Iara from Cape Verde as an example. Oshiomole reacted to the comment via a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Peter Okhiria. The statement reads
“Our attention has been drawn to the unprovoked verbal assault launched by one Senator Dino Melaye on the Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, while making a contribution on the floor of the Senate on the need to patronize made-in-Nigeria goods. As a “nephew” of the Governor and members of the same party, we expected Senator Melaye to tender an unreserved public apology to the Comrade Governor, to no avail. It is an open secret that Senator Melaye cannot maintain a decent matrimonial home hence he could descend to this pedestrian level of using the hallowed chambers to “cargorise” women as if they were pieces of items for purchase. Any responsible individual that is truly worth to be called a Senator, a position that convokes respect, decorum and decent public conduct, should know the limits of his verbal diarrhea. The liberty of free speech guaranteed in the hallowed chambers does not impose lunacy on anyone to disparage other Nigerians, let alone pry into their matrimony in a very derisive manner. We had intended to ignore this uncomplimentary comment as one of the several empty displays of the Senator, but the fact that it tends to reduce women to pieces of tissue calls for this response. As we probed into Dino Melaye’s humanity, we were reminded that he is a man known for his vainglorious rodomontade and the childish display of his ostentatious lifestyle complements his love for foreign items. Many of such euro-centric mentality he has persistently displayed on social media, to underscore his materialistic eccentricity, hence his dialectical opposition to made-in-Nigeria goods. But an attempt at making women wear the garb of goods to be picked off the shelves was to take the issue to a ridiculous and irresponsible level. By delving into the private affair and marriage of the Comrade Governor, Senator Melaye has exposed himself as a simpleton and a court jester whose words and tactlessness cannot be taken seriously by matured people. We advise that Melaye should mend his ways with his ex-wife and concubines before coming to the village square to display his crass ignorance and emptiness to the Nigerian people. If he has anything to offer, Dino Melaye should concentrate on making good laws for the people of Nigeria rather than descend to a ridiculous level, thus displaying to the whole world his unworthiness to sit in the hallowed chambers of the Nigerian Senate”.