The Oyo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described governor Seyi Makinde as a prudent manager of human and material resources, saying the governor has jerked up the state’s internally generated revenue (IGR) and injects at least N11 billion monthly into the state economy.
The Oyo PDP stated this in a statement released by the party’s publicity secretary, Mr Akeem Olatunji, on Wednesday, in response to Monday’s statement by the Oyo APC, signed by its public relations officer, Mr Olawale Sadare.
The Oyo APC had challenged Makinde to provide detailed account of what he had done with the sum of over N706billion it gathered accrued to the state government coffers, the 33 local government councils as monthly allocations from the Federal Government and the state internally generated revenue in the last 42 months.
The Oyo APC said at an average of N5billion in federal allocation, N3billion in Internally Generated Revenue, the sum of N336billion directly accrued to the state government, N170 billion in local government council funds apart from over N200 billion in loans totalling N706 billion.
The party had said it was imperative for Makinde to show accountability and discipline in the management of the state’s funds, particularly pointing to President Muhammadu Buhari’s allegation that state governors consistently hijacked funds meant for local government areas.
Reacting to the allegation by the APC, the Oyo PDP said Makinde had injected N462 billion in the last 42 months, in salary payment, apart from pension and gratuities to retirees.
The PDP also backed Makinde’s expenditure since inception of the present administration, mentioning the completion of various infrastructure projects, offset of salary arrears, sole ownership of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), among others, which the party said, was done with prudence and value for money.
The Oyo PDP, in the statement, said the APC lacked basic economic management strategy by attempting to discredit Makinde for prompt payments of salaries, pension, and gratuities.
The statement further said the Makinde government was pumping money into the state economy, and by that, was trapping local investments, reducing capital flight, allowing a revolving free flow of cash within the system.
Contradicting the APC on accrual of N200 billion in loans, the PDP said the state’s debt stood at N177 billion of which the party stated was “N127 billion inherited from the last administration of APC in local debt and $138 Million in foreign debt.”
The PDP asked the APC to shun falsehood, malicious media campaigns, deliberate misinformation, and propaganda, saying the electorate of Oyo State had become wiser.
The PDP statement read: “Governor Seyi Makinde has injected N462 billion in the last 42 months apart from pension and gratuities to our senior citizens or retirees while several roads projects both completed and ongoing amounting to 500 km and other developmental projects like light Oyo, construction/ rehabilitation/ renovations of schools, independent power project, 351 primary health centres, remodelling of Adamasingba Stadium, upgrading of state-owned hospitals, ongoing construction of 110 Km Rasheed Ladoja Circular Road free education for our children, infrastructural developments in schools, upgrading of Emmanuel Alayande College of Education to University, sole ownership of LAUTECH and offsetting of salary arrears of her staff and lecturers owed by Ajimobi led APC government which runs to over a billion naira and paying off of Osun State equity on the school and many others have gulped several billions of naira with prudency and value for money as the PDP government’s watchword.
“As at the last count, Oyo state debt was N177 billion of which N127 billion was inherited from the last administration of APC in local debt and $138 million in foreign debt.
“Despite the unprecedented infrastructural development already recorded in the state in less than four years, the present government has offset about $40 Million out of the $138 Million owed by the late Ajimobi-led APC government.”
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