PDP tackles Bello over planned sale of Kogi properties

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kogi state on Monday rejected the plan by the state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, to sell some “legacy projects” in the state to finance the 2018 budget.

The party said the move was a selfish one from the governor to enrich his cronies and officials as the edifices would allegedly be sold to them.

The state publicity of the party, Bode Ogunmola, in a statement, said it was wrong and unacceptable for the present administration that had failed to add to the legacies of the people to now decide to sell those put in place by past administrations.

The commissioner for finance in the state, Idris Ashiru, had during the defence of the 2018 appropriation bill before the state house of assembly hinted that plans were on to sell some properties of the state to finance the budget.

The PDP  listed some of the projects to include Kogi liaison offices in Lagos and Kaduna, Kogi Hotels, Confluence beach hotel, confluence millennium park, the 12-storey Kogi house in Abuja and the confluence stadium, Lokoja.

However, while rejecting the proposed sale, the party said, “The Kogi state chapter of PDP rejects the proposal in totality and warns Governor Bello to immediately perish the thought.

” To say the least, we consider the plot to be selfish, devilish and myopic. It is shameful and the peak of rascality that a government which is saddled with its inability to pay workers salaries let alone executing people-oriented projects more than halfway into its tenure will now scheme to mortgage our collective future.

“Our party is not unaware of the grand plan of the government of the day to sell the legacy projects to its officials as a decoy of his possessing the state. We call on the government to beat a retreat and listen to saner counsels”.

But the governor in a reaction by his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Petra Onyegbulem, said the party was criticising the move because it lacked vision and ability to move the state forward.

She said the government decided to sell the non earning assets of the state as was done by the federal government during the regime of President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The CPS said, ” The past administration took a bond to set up white elephant projects, projects that could have been assets to the state but because they were so gigantic without proper projection they became liabilities to us and the state continue to service the debt without making anything from the projects.

“But we have pressing needs that should impact ordinary people of the state, those are the needs we are to finance now, so non earning assets of the state that have become liabilities will be sold off to get funds for other meaningful projects”.