Ekiti Assembly summons Fayose, LG chairmen over local government funds

Former governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose has been summoned to appear before the state assembly’s Committee on Public Account over alleged misappropriation of local government funds while in office.

It also summoned the former chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, Mr Dapo Olagunju, former Commissioner for Local Government Affairs, Mr Kola Kolade and the 16 local government chairmen elected during Fayose’s tenure.

The assembly, at its plenary on Thursday, also summoned a former speaker of the house, Kola Oluwawole, some suspended members of the immediate past assembly over the passage of N10bn revised Appropriation Law towards the end of Fayose’s tenure.

Also, Fayose’s media aide, Lere Olayinka, was directed to appear before the assembly “for alleged unremittance of commercial revenue of above N13m  while serving as supervisor at the state-owned Broadcasting Service of Ekiti State.”

The motion for the summon of Fayose, the former speaker and suspended former lawmakers were moved by the Leader of Government Business, Gboyega Aribisogan, on the recommendation of the report of an ad hoc committee set up to probe the passage of the N10bn revised 2018 Appropriation Law.

Aribisogan said the summon was based on the need “to probe the hurried passage of the 2018 revised Appropriation Law.”

He said the former ALGON chairman, former commissioner and council chairmen were summoned following the adoption of the recommendations of the Joint committee of the House on Public Petition and Local Governments recently directed to look into a petition submitted to the assembly by eight suspended council chairmen in the state.

The assembly had in December 2018 suspended the 16 council chairmen, but reinstated eight of them in July this year.

The Chairman of the Public Petition Committee, Olajide Adegoke, said while presenting the report that “the remaining eight chairmen on suspension made a plea to the house for the review of their indictment and possible reinstatement.

“The chairmen, during an appearance before the committee, confessed to have diverted funds of their councils on monthly basis to an account, but said the action was in compliance with the directive of the immediate past governor.

“The council chairmen who provided documents to back up their allegations, claimed that the instruction to withdraw the council fund was often passed to them through the former ALGON chairman and the commissioner for local government,” Adegoke said.

The Chairman, House Committee on Media, Yemisi Ayokunle, who moved the motion for summon, had called for the implementation of the White Paper on the Fact-Finding Committee in respect of the government-owned broadcasting outfit.