The Bayelsa State Government has expressed disappointment over a recent comment made by a former federal lawmaker from the state, criticizing the administration of Governor Seriake Dickson for non-performance.
A Government House statement, signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Daniel Iworiso-Markson and made available to newsmen Thursday in Yenagoa, said the former lawmaker’s comment was the height of recklessness.
The former member of the House of Representatives was described as being “blinded by political indulgence” to warrant his comments that the incumbent government in the state have nothing to show for the money so far received from the federation accounts.
It would be recalled that the former lawmaker, Wrman Ogoriba, who recently defected from the PDP to the APC, was quoted to have said in a recent interview that Governor Dickson should account for over N660 billion that have accrued to the state coffers during his tenure.
Ogoriba was also quoted as saying that, “there is nothing on the ground to indicate that the state governor had spent the money for the development of the state”.
The state government, in a swift reaction, described Ogoriba’s remarks as “reckless political indulgence, uninformed and lacking in facts” and as such misplaced.
The statement reads in part: The Bayelsa government is extremely disappointed with the former lawmaker for his poor understanding of the workings of government.
“Is he saying that in all these years, the government was not paying salaries or is it that he was blind to the various “laudable and people-oriented” projects across the state,” the statement queried.
“Apart from paying workers salaries, for which Bayelsa State is one of the few states in the country that is not owing salaries, the Gov. Dickson-led administration had been consistent in servicing the state’s debt burden of N330 billion”.
The statement further explained that when Gov. Dickson assumed the mantle of leadership on February 14, 2012, Bayelsa was ranked as one of the states in the federation with the highest debt profile, adding that due to consistency in servicing the N330 billion debt, the debt was reduced to N90 billion due to the Dickson-led government’s prudence and strict discipline in managing the finances of the state.
It noted that presently, Bayelsa is one of the least indebted states in Nigeria, noting that the feat is a credit to Dickson’s ingenuity in sound financial management.
“This clearly contrasts sharply to Ogoriba’s crude remarks, struggling to distort a glaring reality”, the statement stated.
The state government also berated the former legislator for his alleged inability to present a robust leadership while in the House of Representatives, stating that his years in parliament were wasted years.
“It is unfortunate that we operate a system that allows all kinds of characters to emerge through a loose political system.
“But henceforth, we must check this porous system in order to avoid a situation whereby half-baked individuals are made to take up positions that are clearly above their level of reasoning and capabilities”.
The statement said that from the utterances of Hon. Warman Ogoriba, it was clear why his people of Kolokuma/Opokuma Federal Constituency were bemoaning the eight wasted years of his representation.
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