APC, Fayose tango over inflated debts, projects, non-payment of workers’ salaries

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has accused Governor Ayodele Fayose of deceit over claims on the projects he commissioned last week as well as reasons for non-payment of workers salaries.

Besides, the party claimed that there is no truth in the governor’s claims during his monthly media chat on the projects he commissioned, including claims on non-receipt of refunds on federal roads and debts owed by former Governor Kayode Fayemi.

It also berated the governor over insistence to poison Ekiti waters to kill herdsmen cows if they reared their cattle in Ekiti State.

In a statement, Publicity Secretary of the party in the state, Taiwo Olatunbosun, faulted Fayose’s figures on state debts and salary figures, including claims on some projects, saying the governor was allegedly on “a familiar terrain to con Ekiti people”.

“Contrary to Fayose’s claim in his media chat that he built Funmilayo Olayinka Women Centre, the truth is that Ekiti State Government did not spend one kobo on that project, as it is a TETFUND’s project planned for Ekiti State University campus, but which Fayose forced its relocation to Ado-Ekiti town to achieve the purpose of deceiving the people.

“The same is Ikere road dualisation project, which was financed by a bank as its social responsibility project for the community’s development, but which Fayose is claiming credit for,” he explained.

Accusing the governor of reckless conduct in his insistence to poison state’s waters to stop herdsmen from grazing in Ekiti State, Olatunbosun described Fayose as “a man of violence with uncanny appetite”.

He also accused the governor of lying in his claims on the state debts and salary figures, saying that there was no truth in the governor’s claim of N1.5b monthly debt deduction in the state allocation.

“Fayemi paid N13b out of N25b he borrowed before leaving office. The Federal Government has rescheduled debts payments among the indebted states to ease their debts burdens, making Ekiti State to now pay less than the N480m debt repayment that Fayemi was making monthly, but which Fayose has been deceiving Ekiti people that he pays N1.5b as debt monthly.

“During his media chat, Fayose cleverly avoided declaring to Ekiti people that he had, in collaboration with the members of the House of Assembly obtained another N20 billion loan.

“Even with the new loan he took, monthly deduction on the state debt cannot be up to N1.5b, yet Fayose keeps lying to Ekiti workers that after deduction of debt, there is no money to pay salaries.

“It should be noted that Fayemi appointed 708 board members, but Fayose has 80. While Fayemi had 429 SAs/SSAs, Fayose has 11 and while the former governor had 735 appointees in local governments and local council development areas, Fayose has only 80.

“Exco members in Fayemi’s cabinet numbered 43 while Fayose has 21, and in his social security schemes, Fayemi had 800 peace corps members, each taking N20,000 monthly while Fayose has none.

“Under road management scheme, Fayemi hired 535 men each taking N25,000.00 per month but Fayose has 35, while in paramedics, Fayemi hired 160 hands but Fayose has none, even as Fayose has cancelled Fayemi’s social security for the elderly scheme that took care of 19,627 elderly people, each taking N5,000.00 monthly,” he added.

He queried Fayose’s claim of paying the same salary figures as Fayemi after he had cancelled Fayemi’s Youth Volunteers Scheme involving 5,000 youths, each taking N10,000.00 monthly while Fayose also announced to Ekiti people that he had discovered 500 ghost workers during staff auditing he carried out last year.

“If with all these appointments by Fayemi, the former governor still paid a monthly wage bill of N2.6b, where does Fayose get the same N2.6b figure he claims to be paying as a monthly wage bill after cancelling all Fayemi’s programmes?” he queried.

Olatunbosun also accused the governor of frustrating a lawyer’s request through FOI Law to examine state accounts on allocations and expenditures while at the same time “deceitfully” asking Ekiti people during his media chat to approach the office of the Accountant General for information on the state finances.

He asked Fayose to explain how he spent the N9.6b bailout he took at the time he was owing one month salary and urged workers to insist on payment of their four months salary arrears.