The immediate past Commissioner for Finance in Ogun State, Mr Adewale Oshinowo, has taken a swipe at Gov. Dapo Abiodun, over claims that his predecessor, Sen. Ibikunle Amosun, left behind an empty treasury in the state.
Oshinowo, in a statement made available to newsmen on Monday, said the “empty treasury slogan”, was infamous as it was to discredit and denigrate Amosun, saying Abiodun should stop chasing shadows.
Abiodun, few days after his inauguration, said he borrowed N7b from his friends, who he said are Managing Directors of different banks, to pay May salary of Ogun Government workers, as there was no money in the coffers of the state.
But Oshinowo said the Abiodun-led government inherited over N8.218 billion, comprising N5.735 billion from the Federation Account (FAAC/JAAC) and N2.483 billion from the Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
According to him, the N10.6 billion refund for Pay As You Earn (PAYE) due to Ogun State, which he said the Amosun government had laboured three years to obtain had also been paid to Abiodun immediately he took over the reigns of power.
Oshinowo posited that “Abiodun would need to explain to the public the reason and motive behind the N7b loan he claimed to have obtained on May 30, “with undisclosed interest rates.”
The former Commissioner expressed worry that the Gov Abiodun did not follow due process, as the Ogun State House of Assembly did not approve the N7b loan.
“It is the usual practice that for such large sums of money to be borrowed from financial institutions, the Ogun State Executive Council must debate and ratify it and the concurrent approval of the Ogun State House of Assembly must be obtained. At the National level, both the Federal Ministryof Finance and Debt Management Office (DMO) must also give written approval as part of the process for obtaining a loan. Clearly none of these mandatory approvals were complied with before the said suspicious and questionable loans were ‘supposedly’ taken.”
“Indeed this calls to question the compliance level of the Dapo Abiodun led administration with extant laws and financial regulations” Oshinowo added.
The erstwhile Finance Commissioner also cleared the air on the allegations by Abiodun’s Chief Press Secretary, Tunde Somorin, that there was N2.5b difference in the state wage bill, which they said stands at N7b and not N9.5b as it was claimed during Amosun’s regime.
“Gov. Dapo Abiodun’s claim that there were discrepancies and variances on the state monthly payroll is another area of concern that requires clarifications. In a statement on 25 June, 2019, one Kunle Somorin, Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Dapo Abiodun said inter-alia … “They aren’t talking about the inflated wage bill. Amosun claims to be paying N2.5billion higher than what was borrowed to pay in full.”
“What the present Government has clearly failed to comprehend is that in addition to the salary obligations of the Civil Service, the State also pays emoluments and allowances for the other two tiers of Government; the entire Public Service consisting of various Parastatals, Agencies and other auxiliary workers. Also noteworthy is the fact that Government as part of its monthly obligations pays for other essential services.
“Therefore, the current administration should endeavor not to play politics with the State accounting processes as it will have grave consequences and economic implications for stakeholders, such as investors, donor agencies, international and multi-lateral financial agencies, all of whom by the twilight of the Amosun Administration rated Ogun State as the Number One destination for sub-national investments in Nigeria. A house destroyed may be difficult to rebuild.
“We therefore advise the Dapo Abiodun led administration to focus on germane economic fundamentals and strategiesthat will uplift the State and concentrate on building on the solid foundation laid by his predecessor rather than chasing shadows,” the statement read in part.
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