The immediate past administration in Osun State under the leadership of Mr Adegboyega Oyetola has reacted to Governor Ademola Adeleke’s allegations of looting of government properties, describing it as both unfair, laughable and shameful.
This followed videos released in which the new government claimed items were missing in the Government House and quarters of some former political appointees.
In a statement signed by the former Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Funke Egbemode, the immediate past administration described Governor Adeleke’s actions as a futile attempt to soil the name and good governance established by the former helmsman of the state.
According to the statement: “We have seen the very laughable and shameless claims by the government of the day about the Government House being looted by the previous administration. The extent they have gone to peddle their falsehood is so preposterous that discerning minds are beginning to ask how a governor who completely renovated the Governor’s Lodge in June will stoop so low as to empty the First Aid box in the lodge.
“Accusing a man of Oyetola’s pedigree of taking away government house cooker and emptying bottles of methylated spirit takes away a lot from the accuser. It is beyond laughable, really. Perhaps the OSBC should deploy those cameras that Governor Adegboyega Oyetola approved money for them to buy, to show the world the visuals of the Government House that Oyetola inherited and the tastefully renovated and elegantly furnished house it handed over to the Adeleke administration.
“It is also important to note here that the State Commandant of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps, NSCDC, was officially informed of the looting of the official residence of Deputy Governor Gboyega Alabi and other quarters within the Government House by ‘unknown men’ . In a letter , with reference number SEC 43T/352 , dated November 25, 2022, and signed by A.T Komolafe on behalf of the Coordinating Director, Governor’s Office, the NSCDC was notified of the ongoing looting of government properties in different quarters following the vacation of the premises by the then Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. Mr Komolafe, in the letter asked for armed security to stop the looting in the Okefia GRA Government House.”
So, how exactly is Mr Oyetola guilty of this looting by ‘unknown men’ after he had vacated Government House?
“The apparent confusion of this new government keeps deepening with every new step it takes. If it has set up a review committee for stock-taking as claimed, why is it launching a media trial to force its pre-conceived conclusions down the public’s throat?
“The good people of Osun expect that by now, the government would be busy focusing on how to do right by the people instead of this shadow boxing. Governing a state like Osun is serious business and every minute counts. Dissipating energy and precious manpower on looking for pots and pans is totally comic. And what Osun needs now is not comic relief. No driver gets to his destination by focusing on the rear view mirror. We implore the new government to focus on the job it promised to do by using its windscreen and not the rear-view mirror.
And before it embarks on further sanitary inspector (Wolewole) missions, it is our humble advice that these inspectors ask basic questions. It is unfair and ungodly to tarnish the image of a hardworking man who served with all his heart till the last minute of his tenure , just to score political points.
The new government should concentrate on how it will pay salaries unfailingly every month remit at least N750million pension monthly like Oyetola, while still fixing infrastructural deficits.
“A tenure is only four years, not eternity. That is why we implore the government of the moment to quit manipulating the people and fanning unnecessary incitement against the immediate past administration. If it claims it knows the job, it should do the job”, the statement read in part.
