The Edo State Coordinator of the City Boy Movement, Dr Paddy Iyamu, has dismissed claims that there was low turnout at the group’s empowerment programme held on Friday in Benin City.

Speaking on Monday during the commencement of distribution of empowerment items, Iyamu said only 6,000 beneficiaries were invited, making it impossible to fill the 14,000-capacity Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium.

He described suggestions that the turnout reflected political rejection as false and misleading.

According to him, the organisers deliberately limited attendance to avoid overcrowding and possible stampede.

He said the decision was informed by a previous incident in Owerri, Imo State.

“The sharing of items today is the implementation of what happened last Saturday at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium. We had 6,000 beneficiaries gathered, and because we didn’t want any stampede, we decided to decentralise it all through till Friday, until everybody gets their items.

“There are some speculations that the stadium was not filled because Edo people rejected the APC; that is a big lie. The stadium is a 14,000-seat capacity edifice, and the beneficiaries were 6,000, and there is no way 6,000 people will fill a 14,000-seat capacity,” he said.

Iyamu stated that the empowerment programme covered beneficiaries across the South-South region.

He said about 2,000 beneficiaries came from the 18 local government areas of Edo State, while participants from Delta, Rivers, and Bayelsa states had already received their items.

He added that the initiative, spearheaded by Seyi Tinubu, was designed for genuine economic empowerment and not political patronage.

According to him, beneficiaries were selected across party lines, including persons living with disabilities.

Items distributed included deep freezers, sewing machines, buses, tricycles, laptops, hairdressing kits, and wheelchairs.

One of the beneficiaries, Emmanuel Bawa, expressed appreciation for the support and promised to use the items to improve his livelihood.