By Jethro Ibileke
The Chairman of the Special Committee on the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA), and former Edo State Governor, Senator Adams Aliu Oshiomhole, on Thursday submitted the committee’s report on the ownership status of MOWAA.
Presenting the report, Oshiomhole said the Edo State Government under former Governor Godwin Obaseki spent a total of ₦3.8 billion of taxpayers’ money on the project, with repeated changes to the museum’s name for “personal reasons.”
The committee chairman said the sustained campaign by the Oba of Benin for the return of stolen Benin artifacts led to an agreement to build a Royal Museum to house them.
“The Edo State government under Obaseki agreed to provide the funding to build the Benin Royal Museum at the space provided by the Oba of Benin. It was well announced to the delight of all Edo people,” he said.
Oshiomhole added that the Obaseki administration later demolished the Central Hospital and changed the original name from Benin Royal Museum to Edo Museum of West African Art (EMOWAA), and later to Museum of West African Art (MOWAA).
According to him, the State government raised ₦800 million as seed money, while donations continued to come in.
“The German government donated €4 million, Leventis $1.5 million, and more,” he said.
Oshiomhole further disclosed that five days before the expiration of the Obaseki administration, the Governor approved and released ₦1 billion, bringing the state government’s total contribution to ₦3.8 billion.
He said the multiple name changes effectively turned the project into a private enterprise, as MOWAA management claimed to have received over $18 million which was allegedly used to acquire land and conduct archaeological excavations.
“Investigation revealed that all the claims are false,” he said.
The committee recommended that:
1. The facility should not be demolished* but should be given a proper name that reflects true ownership.
2. The name be changed to “Benin Royal Museum of African Art.” The governor can use the same instrument of government to effect the change, which he said would attract artifacts from across the globe.
3. The museum be returned to the Oba of Benin to manage, “as governments come and go but the Benin Monarch remains, and the artifacts can be better protected by the institution that owns them.”
Receiving the report, Governor Monday Okpebholo thanked the committee for a thorough job.
“I thank the committee for an excellent job and a comprehensive report submitted today. The quality of the job shows fairness and seriousness,” he said.
The Governor announced that another committee would be set up to produce a white paper on the issue, in liaison with the Ministry of Justice.
“I watched in a video clip where Obaseki promised to build a Royal Museum to celebrate our Royal father but dramatically changed it to MOWAA. You have done a great job and our ancestors will bless you all,” he added.
