Encomium
‘I will reverse them when I assume power’ – FAYOSE
‘IT IS MY PROMISE TO THE PEOPLE’ – Fayemi
Ahead October 2014 handing over of power in Ekiti state, the incumbent governor Dr. Kayode Fayemi and the governor, elect Mr. Ayo Fayose are presently locked in a war of words over issues bordering on the state affairs.
Since the governorship elections of June 21, 2014, which Ayo Fayose won on a landslide, the two (Fayose and Fayemi) have come out to disagree on some issues of the state, the conspicuous one being Fayose’s objection to Fayemi’s creation of more local council development areas in the state.
Mr. Fayose believes the creation of new LCDAs is one of the ways by which the outgoing governor Fayemi wants to create problems for him when he (Fayose) takes the reins of leadership of the state.
On Thursday, July 31, 2014, Governor Kayode Fayemi signed the bill creating additional 19 LCDAs from the existing 16 local government areas into law. The state PDP had gone to court to challenge the creation of the new LCDAs. Those who are kicking against the creation reckoned Fayemi should have done all that before now and not when his tenure was coming to an end.
Observers believe the development will create problems for the incoming governor Ayo Fayose in terms of funding and payment of salaries for the council staff out of the meagre allocations coming into the state.
The incoming governor Ayo Fayose has however vowed to reverse the creation of the new LCDAs insisting it is illegal. His Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi spoke with ENCOMIUM Weekly on Saturday, August 2, 2014, claiming that “The creation of LCDAs by the outgoing governor Fayemi will be revisited and reversed because the creation is illegal, presently, Ekiti state has no electoral commission since the SIEC which Fayemi used to conduct a referendum had since been disbanded by the court and is yet to be reconstituted. Since the law does not recognise the present SIEC, anything done by it is null and void.”
During the week, shortly after the bill creating the new LCDAs was signed, Ekiti state People’s Democratic Party (PDP) alleged that governor Fayemi is plotting to use the 19 new local council development areas as conduit to siphon about N10 billion out of the state’s treasury. The party in a statement by its State Publicity Secretary, Kola Oluwawole, in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday, July 31, 2014, alleged that the money would be taken out of the treasury before the October 15 expiration time of the administration.
The party alleged that the APC government had been operating an account in one of the first generation banks since 2010, where the money had been kept. “The money has been moved from the bank after an all night meeting where the governor informed his aides that the leadership of the APC has asked him to go ahead and sign the LGDAs bill, while caretaker committees will be inaugurated to manage the affairs and sign for the money as their take-off grants.”
According to PDP, federal allocations due to the recognised 16 local government councils for the months of August, September and October this year have also been slated for sharing with the council caretaker chairmen billed to be coerced into the arrangements for cover-up.
The party also alleged that the shares of the state from the crude oil surplus which were not spent because of the N25 billion bond obtained by the state government were being tampered with.
The state Commissioner for Information, Tayo Ekundayo, in his reaction refuted the allegation insisting that, “Such money is not available in the first place.” If what they are saying is true which I know is not true they should wait till October 16, 2014, when this government will leave and have access to the financial records of the state. “I am not aware of any N10billion the new LCDAs will have access to. These people are stark illiterates who don’t know the financial records of the state and know nothing about governance. It is a total lie and it is meant to cause confusion in the polity.”
In his defence of creating the new LCDAs, Governor Kayode Fayemi said he initiated the policy as part of the fulfillment of his administration’s electioneering promises to the people.
“This is a promise fulfilled, following the yearnings of the people. These yearnings predated my coming into government in 2010.”
“The first executive governor of this state, Chief Niyi Adebayo, attempted this policy before the end of his tenure but it never came to pass. Despite this, our people never stopped requesting for additional local governments for rapid development and for political independence.
With this policy, we are not just making history but we are part of history. We have written our names in the book of history for taking this bold step. And I will do everything within the confines of the constitution for effective functioning of these councils before this administration effectively come to an end. Soon, we will appoint transitional political functionaries that would begin the process of the existence of these councils for rapid development at the grassroots where the bulk of our people live.”
– FOLUSO SAMUEL
