How Adeleke Mismanaged Over N630bn In Two Years – Osun APC

 

The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has expressed grave concerns over the gross mismanagement of resources by Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday at the Ilerioluwa Campaign Office in Osogbo, the APC State Chairman, Alhaji Tajudeen Lawal, did not hold back in his criticism of the governor’s two-year tenure, describing it as a colossal failure that has set Osun State back significantly.

Lawal, represented by the APC Director of Media and Information, Chief Kola Olabisi, accused Governor Adeleke of misappropriating over N630 billion accrued to the state and its 30 local government areas within 24 months.

According to him, the current administration has displayed an alarming lack of accountability, transparency, and focus, leading to a deterioration in governance across all sectors.

He said, “the government of the day has proven that it despises accountability and transparency as each time it is confronted with fact that the increased revenue has not reflected on the mass of the people, it is always quick to romanticize payment of half-salary owed by the government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as what is drawing down the humongous allocation.

“Given the N630 billion revenue ( both states and 30 LGAs) that has come the way of the current administration, the government should not have got any excuse not to have fully settled the modulated arrears.

“Specifically, the state government received from January 2023 to September 2024, a sum of N385 billion from federal allocation, grants, IGR, etc. This include N4.3 billion UBEC and N1.3 billion TETFUND grants received from the federal government in 2023 to uplift infrastructure in our primary and tertiary institutions.

“All these FG grants do not form part of the federation allocation which has doubled since 2023 when subsidies on fuel and forex were removed by the federal government.

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“By all estimates, Osun has been lucky with revenue, particularly with the federal revenue which has recorded 100% rise in the last 12 months. The federal allocation in 2022, before the inauguration of the current government, was N73 billion ( before debt deductions).

“Meanwhile, as of end of third quarter of 2024 ( September), the state had already received N153 billion federal allocation, N50 billion above the N99 billion projected for the whole year.

“The APC berated Governor Adeleke for his deliberate refusal to fund the key sectors of the economy inspite of financial windfall, accusing him of spending over N38 billion on personal comfort.

“The opposition party lambasted Governor Adeleke for wasting the state resources for the procurement of “audio tractor” in which only 31 out of 114 claimed to have bought with a whooping sum of N8 billion were ridiculously unveiled as the whereabouts of the said machines are unknown to the people of the state.

“The APC Chairman, who wondered the unchecked impropriety in governance and naked nepotism, noted that it is unfortunate that the ongoing Ido-Osun Airport which is a collective heritage and patrimony of the state had been wickedly relocated to Ede, Adeleke’s country home.

“He equally said that the government had been deceiving the public regarding its commitment to the welfare of the workers.

“Of the N82 billion earmarked for Personnel this year, only N39 billion, representing 47% of the projection for the year, was released as at September. This is according to the budget performance report for the third quarter of 2024. It is strange to note also that out of N20.5 billion earmarked for pension and gratuity in 2024, only N4.8 billion, representing less than 20%, had been released as of September. In fact, out of N11.4 billion budgeted for pension and gratuity arrears, no Kobo was released as at end of third quarter.

“The picture here is that the claim of Governor Adeleke of offsetting backlog of pension and gratuity is all fat lie from the pit of hell. There is nothing to justify the claim in the official document of the state government.

“Some days ago, as part of his efforts to glorify his hopeless government, Governor Adeleke made futile effort to defame the administration of his predecessors. In the speech, the governor beautified how his administration in 24 months released N22.6 billion to settle pension and gratuity, an amount he claimed represented 70% of what the ‘two previous administrations under a 12 year period’ paid for the same purpose.

“It is ungratifying that a state governor would lie openly about figures and details contained in the audited accounts of the state. Nothing could be that demeaning. In actual fact, the N17.2 billion quoted by Governor Adeleke as what was paid in the entire four years of the former governor Oyetola to settle pension and gratuity was what the previous government in just two years of existence paid. This is a testament that the government of Adeleke can not be trusted.

“Addressing the sectoral abysmal performance of the Adeleke’s government in two years, Lawal said “on Education, Adeleke’s government has proven to be an irredeemable failure. Ranging from the sack of 1,500 teachers employed by its predecessor without replacement yet, to satanic fees in public schools, it is obvious the government does not mean well for the people of the state.

“In the whole of Atakumosa East, for instance, there exists just one Physics teacher. The implication of this lack of teachers to teach core subjects is that medical doctors, engineers, scientists can’t be produced from this local government. The situation is the same in other local governments as many of the parents are decrying the ugly development.

“Gentlemen of the Press, are you aware that law students are charged N1.5 million in the newly established University of Ilesa? The nursing students are charged N1.2 million per session. Whereas their counterparts in Osun State University are charged N300,000- N500,000 for the same courses. Why should UNILESA students pay a cut-throat fee if the government truly and adequately funds the Institution? Universities all of over the world are funded through government subventions, private endowments and corporate sponsorship, not through arbitrary school fees as it has become order of the day in UNILESA. From January -September 2024, the state government only supported the university with measly N60 million as the whole funding for the period came from students’ school fees.

“The government has also been a fantastic failure in health in the last two years. Rather than devoting resources to rehabilitate health centres in dire need, the government continues to pour huge fund to paint and decorate health facilities previously revitalized by the Oyetola government. Just of recent, gory pictures of dilapidated health centres in Ayedaade and other local government areas in the state surfaced on the internet, confirming the poor state of the health sector under Adeleke’s watch.

“Another question mark on the administration of Senator Adeleke in health sector is lack of adequate personnel having sacked, without replacement, about 2000 health workers, comprising nurses, medical doctors and pharmacists employed by his predecessor. In a particular health centre in Ayedaade, two nurses work three shifts in a week. In fact, when women give birth, they need to leave the centres immediately because of lack of needed professionals to support their conditions.

“The performance of the administration in Agriculture and Food Security is also nothing to write home about. There is acute food shortage in the state because of lack of political will on the part of the leadership in the state to formulate the right strategy in Agriculture.

“In Summary, the two years of Governor Ademola Adeleke has been a motion without movement. No impactful effort to drive the people out of poverty to financial prosperity. The only sector that has been adequately funded is the Office of the Governor where one computer laptop was bought for N2.1 million, N3 billion was allocated to buy 20 Landcruiser Jeep for unproductive politicians.”

The Press Conference had in attendance, the State APC Treasurer, Hon. Femi Kujembola; former Special Adviser on Education, Alhaji Jamiu Olawumi; APC Chieftains, Akin Adeyi, Adebayo Adedeji, Comrade Kehinde Ayantunji, among others.