The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has accused the state governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, of plans to divert the Paris Club refund of N9.5 billion to the state into the funding of phony projects.
The party also alleged that Mr. Fayose is working on plans to deceive civil servants and traditional rulers with lies about the Paris Club refund in order to short-change the people.
The allegations were made in a statement signed by Mr.Taiwo Olatunbosun, APC Secretary in the state.
According to Mr. Olatunbosun, Mr. Fayose has, in his usual manner, manufactured documents to give an impression that his administration has been transparent in the management of state funds.
"We are aware of a grand plot by Fayose to divert more than half of the Paris Club refund of N9.5b to the flyover and new market projects being executed by companies belonging to his friends and in which the governor allegedly has interest. We challenge Ekiti people to find out who owns the only company handling roads construction so far in the state,” Mr. Olatunbosun stated.
He accused the governor of callousness, saying his commissioners and advisers are always broke and are therefore unable to make their impact felt in their various constituencies.
"Fayose has pushed Ekiti people to the wall in his callous disposition as if he is the only person that must enjoy good life among 2.6 million of Ekiti people,” he said.
Mr. Olatunbosun warned that the APC is ready to let the governor know that he cannot sentence the people to eternal poverty.
“Governor Fayose has applied this fraudulent method successfully for selfish reasons in the past, but this time, it is going to be a different ball game. Enough of Fayose's characterization of Ekiti people as stupid and foolish people, who are always swayed by deceit and lose their sense of reasoning to frivolities such as eating pounded yam with them on the streets and helping them to sell in the markets or drinking locally brewed gin with them at joints, as he derides them among his Ibadan
friend ” stated the APC spokesman.
Earlier in the week, the APC challenged claims made by Mr. Fayose during a media chat that the state’s share of the fund was only N4.4 billion after debt and local government deductions.
The argued that it was the Ekiti State government that borrowed money from the Paris Club and not the local councils, saying refunds cannot be made to the councils.
The APC also argued that only statutory federal allocations are subject to debt deductions and maintained that the Paris Club refund of N9.5 billion is exclusively meant to pay salaries by the
state governments.
It threatened to drag Mr. Fayose to court if he fails to use the Paris Club refund to offset salaries and pensions. The opposition party equally accused Mr. Fayose of awarding road contracts to non-Ekiti contractors, contrary to his campaign promise.
"During his campaign, he said only local contractors would be engaged for government contracts to discourage capital flight and ensure that Ekiti wealth circulates among the indigenes. But today, besides petty jobs worth less than N1million given to Ekiti indigenes who are his cronies, all multi-billion and multi-million jobs go to Fayose's friends from other states, notably Oyo State,” alleged Mr. Olatunbonsun.
He warned that his party is ready to mobilize the people of the state to protest Mr. Fayose’s tyranny and greed.
