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Account for N50bn Bodija intervention funds now, Oyo ADC tells Makinde
The Oyo State chapter of the African Democratic Congress has called on Governor Seyi Makinde to account for the N50 billion intervention funds reportedly requested from the Federal Government following the January 2024 Bodija explosion.
In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by the State Publicity Secretary, Bimpe Adelowo, the party accused the state government of being “unaccountable, deceptive, divisive, and misleading” in its handling of public resources.
The controversy was sparked by former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, who revealed that the Oyo State Government had requested N50 billion for reconstruction and victim relief.
While Makinde’s media aides have since clarified that only N30 billion was received, the ADC insists the public has been kept in the dark until the whistleblower’s intervention.
The ADC statement highlighted discrepancy between the funds received and the amount declared as spent on the victims, noting that while the governor claimed to have disbursed about N4.5 billion directly to the victims, and failed to account for the remaining N25.5 billion.
“Oyo state governor claimed he had disbursed about N4.5 Billion directly to the victim of Bódìjà explosion but failed to account for the balance of sum of N25.5 Billion,” Adelowo stated.
The party questioned whether the State Assembly was aware of the diverted balance or if it had been appropriated for other projects, adding that “it is safe to say that the entire disbursed N30 Billion was misappropriated and unlawfully diverted to projects which were not the purpose the money was disbursed for in the first place.”
The party emphasised that the document relied upon by Fayose only showed a request, not a disbursement, but noted that the governor’s failure to disclose the request for N50 billion until pressured indicates a lack of transparency.
The ADC urged him Makinde to release a detailed breakdown of the N30 billion intervention funds for public scrutiny.
“He should own up and apologise to the people of Oyo for taking them for a ride. He should release the details of the disbursed N30 Billion intervention funds for public scrutiny; after all, he holds the power in trust for them, and they deserve to know,” Adelowo concluded.
The Bodija explosion, which occurred on January 16, 2024, resulted in multiple fatalities and significant property damage, and the ADC insists that the use of federal intervention funds must be held to the highest standard of accountability.
The Oyo State Government had clarified that it received N30 billion, not N50 billion, from the Federal Government following the January 2024 Ibadan explosion.
The statement was made on Sunday by Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde, Mr Sulaimon Olanrewaju, amid allegations by former Ekiti Governor Ayodele Fayose.
Olanrewaju, in an opinion on Oyo affairs, dismissed the claim as misleading.
“Recent comments attributed to former Governor Ayodele Fayose, alleging that the Federal Government handed N50 billion to Seyi Makinde and that the governor stayed silent to save it for his presidential ambition, are not only misleading, they are deliberately disingenuous.
“The Federal Government did not give Governor Makinde N50 billion. This is why Fayose was unable to provide evidence. In fact, the memo he shared shows what was not disbursed,” he said,
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