Politics
Osun Govt Speaks on Budget 2023
. . . Debunks Sahara Reporters’ Take On Gov Adeleke
The Osun State Government (OSG) has denied news reports that Governor Ademola Adeleke spent N8 billion in three months, clarifying that the Governor’s Office comprises more than seven agencies and departments alongside many government-wide operations and activities.
The OSG’s clarification was conveyed in a statement on Tuesday in Osogbo by Honourable Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Hon Kolapo Alimi.
It described as laughable the presumption that the Governor’s Office stands for Mr. Governor alone.
Hon Alimi explained that the allocation to the Governor’s Office stood for capital, the recurrent and overhead cost of all agencies, departments, and units operating within the Governor’s Office and with several government-wide responsibilities.
While clearing Gov Adeleke of any misdemeanor, the statement noted that the Sahara Reporters’ publication mischievously and falsely attributed expenditure on the refurbishment of government quarters, Imole Medical outreach, salaries and emoluments of staff of several agencies, and other governmental activities as expenses by the Governor.
The statement added that “This is false and mere fabrication arising from deliberate misinterpretation of budget data”, and listed the several departments under the Governor’s Office to include “the Bureau of Social Services, Office of Sustainable Development Goals, Security Department, Osun Investment Promotion Agency, Osun New Towns Development Agency, Osun Signage Agency, Osun Agric and Osun Land Bank, among others.”
Government expenditure across the various departments, according to Hon Alimi includes refurbishment of vandalised government quarters, procurement of official vehicles, replacement of vehicles carted away by the previous government, refurbishment of offices of agencies that make up the Office of the Governor which were left in terrible states by the previous administration; provision of funds for the execution of Imole Medical outreach series; provision of funds for emergencies in the welfare of the citizens as individuals and groups.
He said, “The N6.01 Billion referred to in the publication therefore encompasses the entire expenditures (Personnel, Overhead & Capital) of the Office of the Governor including the agencies and parastatals under it, for the period in question.”
The statement also posited that the personnel cost which was a sum of N209 million was for the 771 staff of 12 Bureau and Offices under the Office of the Governor while the overhead which was a sum of N4 billion represented the amount spent on acquisition/replacement of vehicles and financing of Imole Medical outreach.
“The 1.7Bn on Capital represents the amount spent on the refurbishment of quarters and government offices.
“In the same vein, the N800m naira referred to in the publication represents the entire expenditure of the State House of Assembly for the period.
“It should be noted that the amount quoted for the refreshments and meals, welfare packages, and publicity and advertising was meant for all the Ministries, Departments, and Agencies including all Tertiary Institutions in the State.
“Moreso, the fraction spent by the Office of the Governor from these, includes the amount expended on the second phase of Imole Medical Outreach conducted for the three (3) Senatorial Districts of the state,” Hon Alimi stated.
The OSG maintained that the details provided above confirmed that Gov Adeleke did not spend any money outside his statutory salaries and allowances while the funds in question were mostly the overhead, capital, and personnel costs of agencies and departments under the Governor’s office with government-wide mandate and operations.
The OSG called on citizens to avail themselves of the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act for information on government activities.
Edo State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Kassim Afegbua, has accused the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, of showing “symptoms of desperation” over his promise to restore fuel subsidy if elected president in 2027.
Afegbua made the remarks during an interview while reacting to Atiku’s position on the removal of petrol subsidy and the former vice president’s renewed call for government intervention in fuel pricing.
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According to him, Atiku, Peter Obi and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had all campaigned ahead of the 2023 presidential election on the need to remove fuel subsidy.
“Now, talking about fuel subsidy, I think the ADC candidate is showing symptoms of desperation,” Afegbua said.
He argued that Tinubu, after winning the 2023 election, implemented the removal of the petrol subsidy, adding that anyone seeking its return should be properly scrutinised because, in his view, the previous subsidy regime created opportunities for fraud and contributed to the decline of Nigeria’s refineries.
“Anybody who is planning to bring back subsidy, that person should be examined properly, because that person is trying to bring back subsidy scammers, saboteurs, and buccaneers who held down Nigeria for so long using subsidy and crippled our refineries,” he said.
Afegbua also alleged that the ADC was experiencing financial difficulties and suggested that this was influencing its campaign messaging.
“The ADC, as it were today, is undergoing some financial strain. So they are looking for every opportunity to rake in money and all of that,” he said.
The Edo commissioner, however, acknowledged that Nigerians were still facing the effects of high fuel and transportation costs, pointing to ongoing government interventions, including the planned commissioning of 50 CNG buses in Edo State.
He said the buses, expected to be commissioned on October 15, would be distributed across the three senatorial districts and would provide free transportation for passengers.
Recall that Atiku had on August 20, 2026, pledged to restore petrol subsidy if elected president in the 2027 election.
Speaking during a Facebook Live session, the ADC candidate questioned how the resources previously spent on subsidy had been utilised following its removal.
“I initially did not oppose the removal of the fuel subsidy. But now that it has been removed, where is the money? Where has the subsidy money gone?” Atiku asked.
He subsequently said: “If I win the presidential election, I will restore the subsidy. And anyone who stole Nigeria’s subsidy funds must return the money.”
On August 25, Atiku further reaffirmed that his position had not changed, saying, “When I said I would return to subsidy, I will!”
He later clarified that the proposed intervention would be targeted and focused on supporting domestic production rather than simply returning to the former import-subsidy model.
The Vice Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rotimi Amaechi, has stated clear terms and conditions on which he will quit the party, the presidential race and back its rival, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 elections.
The former Governor of Rivers State challenged Tinubu to bring the price of petrol down to ₦600 per litre and see him withdraw from the ADC ticket and campaign for the President in the 2027 election.
Amaechi made the challenge while reacting to Tinubu’s Independence Day address and the President’s declaration that Nigeria had entered an “age of prosperity” during an interview on Friday with Channels Television’s Politics Today.
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Questioning the believability of Tinubu’s claim, Amaechi said Nigerians should assess whether the economic reforms had translated into lower prices and improved living conditions.
“It is about believability; who do you believe? Go to the 2005 Presidential speech; it is the same: we have turned the page, and we are about to start enjoyment,” Amaechi said.
“Have you asked one of your staff who goes by transport, how much it costs from Yanya to Abuja? Has anything come down?
“Has any price come down, has anything changed?” he asked.
Using the price of petrol as a test of the government’s economic claims, Amaechi said he would personally visit a filling station to establish whether the product had fallen to ₦600 per litre.
“I will go tomorrow morning to the petrol station to buy fuel, I will go myself, if fuel has come down to 600, I will campaign for President Tinubu,” Amaechi said.
The former Minister for Transport, under late President Muhammadu Buhari also challenged those who doubted his pledge to accompany him with a camera, saying he would withdraw from the ticket he is contesting alongside former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and support Tinubu if petrol had fallen to the stated price.
“If you doubt me, come with your camera to my house, and I will go to the filling station and buy fuel, and I, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi will withdraw as a vice presidential candidate of Atiku and campaign for President Tinubu, if it has come down,” he declared.
The Lagos State governorship candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Funso Doherty, has promised to make education, books and examination fees free across the state within his first 100 days in office if elected governor in 2027.
Doherty made the pledge on Thursday during a special town hall meeting hosted by The Platform, a thought leadership initiative of The Covenant Nation, in Lagos.
Speaking on his plans for his first 100 days in office, the governorship candidate said his administration would make education entirely free, including the provision of books and payment of examination fees.
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“We will also provide one nutritious meal for every kid in public school. We will also provide a programme by which kids who are in public schools are transported free to school if they need it,” Doherty said.
He explained that the measures were aimed at ensuring that no child is denied access to education.
“Because the children, given our demographics, are the hope of the future and will be the time bomb of the future,” he said.
Doherty also promised what he described as truly free healthcare, with particular attention to maternal and child healthcare.
On housing, the NDC candidate said his administration would adopt a large-scale approach to addressing the housing deficit in Lagos, rather than delivering only a few hundred housing units.
“Our commitment is to deliver about 150,000 units in our first term because a large part of the problem with housing is the fact that supply has not kept up with the demand,” he said.
The pledges form part of Doherty’s proposed agenda ahead of the 2027 Lagos State governorship election.
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