•Says past govt. use 10℅ for execution of projects after 50% go to governor, 30% to head of department and 10℅ to FirstLady
From Taiwo Oluwadare, Ibadan
The Oyo State Governor, Engr. Seyi Makinde has warned contractors in the state not attempt in giving him 50 percent kickback of money allotted to roads and other developmental projects in the state, LiveTimesNG reports.
The Governor stated this during a state’s broadcasting corporation in the state where he fielded questions from panellists and residents of the state on the activities of his government in the first 100 days in office.
According to the governor, the past government in state only used 10℅ for execution of projects after 50% go to governor, 30% to head of departments and 10℅ to FirstLady.
These were what the governor said during the media parley:
“When you are in the public space, you should always provide enabling environment for the people that will come after you. But in a situation of a hostile take-over, you follow procedures and processes laid down to conduct government businesses and we have been doing that. But, unfortunately, it has been slow. They come to you to get the final approval to execute and there are things we are looking at dispassionately for us to be able to get some certain things right; to cut that cycle where people can come for one comprehensive approval and once they are able to get the approval, they go ahead and execute.
We are aware that we have to do certain things but I will give an example. I did not declare my assets publicly for fun. I declared them so that I can be held accountable. What we met when we came in was a situation where you have some amount of money voted for someone you appointed as the head of a public department. They came to me and said that whatever project you give to us, 50 per cent of it will go back to the governor. And whoever is heading the agency will also take 30 per cent and out of that, the governor’s wife is entitled to 10 or 15 per cent. So, how much are they really using to execute the job? It is about 10 per cent because there will be some wastage here and there from people that are going out to execute the job. So, we only have value for 10 per cent. We are trying to turn that situation around.
When money is voted, please don’t bring 50 per cent back to me because if you do, I (Seyi Makinde) will probably put you in jail because if I take it from you, it means I am also an accomplice and we are both robbing the people of the state. That is why the second bill that was sent to the Oyo State House of Assembly is the Oyo State Financial Crimes Commission Bill. Once it is passed by the Assembly, I will sign it and all of us that you see in government will operate under the same law. It is something that is quite serious.
If we are able to increase how much we are using to execute the actual roads and public work mandate, you will see appreciable improvement on those internal roads. I have, during the campaign period, gone through Oranyan, Idi-Arere, Molete, Beere and observed that those places are riddled with pot-holes. We can go ahead to resurface all the main roads because there is a project going on right now at that place; the median from Gate all the way to Molete is being replaced and one would wonder what that is meant for. That contract too was awarded by the past administration. But we are left with the option of either losing some money or allowing them do whatever they want to do but try to derive as much value that is practicable under the situation we have found ourselves.
