7 months ago
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The All Progressives Congress (APC), Osun State chapter, has reacted to the move by Governor Ademola Adeleke to prosecute those awarded contracts by his predecessor, Adegboyega Oyetola.
Shortly after taking over the reins of government, Adeleke had alleged huge contract corruption by the previous administration.
He then set up a contract review committee through an executive order.
The eight-man panel as part of its mandate, will “ensure the prosecution of culprits through relevant agencies and implementing all institutional recommendations to prevent reoccurrence of distortions in contract award.”
The committee has as members the Commissioner for Information, Kolapo Alimi; Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice; Oluwole Jimi-Bada; Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Dosu Babatunde; Commissioner for Health, Jola Akintola; the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Bashiru Bello; and the Senior Special Assistant on Bureau of Social Services, Bello Sheriff.
A statement by the the governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Thursday, said the new panel was charged with enforcing the recommendations of that original review committee and the subsequent white paper approved by the State Executive Council.
“The terms of reference of the panel include enforcing the recommendations in the committee report and white paper, ensuring prosecution of culprits through relevant agencies and implementing all institutional recommendations to prevent recurrence of distortions in contract award and management.
“The committee is expected to commence operations immediately by giving effect to each of the committee recommendations as approved by the State Executive Council.”
Speaking to Punch on the development, the Osun State Chairman of the APC, Tajudeen Lawal, wondered why the governor had set up an implementation committee a day after they accused him of giving fraudulent contracts to Davido and his father.
Tajudeen insisted that Adeleke was trying to victimize the opposition because they had the effrontery to catalogue his fraudulent acts.
The APC claimed that the move by the governor is a ploy to cover up his alleged mismanagement of state resources.
Lawal said it was “funny that an administration that awarded road/flyover contract to the serving deputy speaker of the state House of Assembly without following the due process would now suddenly consider the setting up of an implementation panel of the White Paper on the Contract Review Committee?”
“We wondered why was it a day after our party accused Governor Adeleke of awarding state road/flyover contracts to his brother and nephew that he(Adeleke) suddenly considered it expedient to set up an implementation committee.
“Adeleke should tread softly as Osun people are now wiser and knowledgeable enough to read the true motive of his action meant to unjustifiably victimise the opposition for having the effrontery to catalogue the series of frauds his government is perpetrating against the state in the name of prosecution of legacy projects.”
