Judicial Panel: Emulate Oyinlola and Appear, Fayose Tells Fayemi

Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti

Governor Ayodele Fayose has told his predecessor and the Minister of Steel and Solid Mineral Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, to shed the toga of fear and appear before a Commission of Enquiry probing the financial transactions of the state during his tenure.

Fayose said it was strange for the Minister to be afraid of the law he sponsored and assented to during his reign, which constitutionally empowered a governor to set up a commission to try anyone.

Fayose made the statement in Ado Ekiti on Wednesday while reacting to the suit filed by Fayemi seeking to stop his probe by the panel. “The law that the House of Assembly relied on to mandate the state government to set up the panel was signed by Fayemi himself and he has gone to court to challenge the same when he has been asked to give account of his stewardship.

“During my inauguration speech, I gave details of the debt profile of the state. Fayemi took N25 billion bond and N31 billion commercial loans. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) were the facilitators and they wrote to me to ask if the projects, for which the loans taken, were executed and I said no.

“Since 2012, Ekiti loses N1.1 billion intervention fund from UBEC yearly because we were suspended due to the diversion of N860 million by the same government. In Osun State, Governor Aregbesola set up a panel on Oyinlola and the latter appeared before the panel. Fayemi signed the law and why is he afraid?They say you should come and give an account of your stewardship and you are running to court, for what?,” the governor asked.

On the expected Paris Club Refund, Fayose added that going by feelers from Abuja, state and local governments would be paid half of what they got from the first tranche.

“That would mean that in Ekiti, both state and local governments would get about N4.4 billion and going by the sharing formula, the state would get about N2.7 billion and the 16 local government areas sharing N1.7 billion. That is still not enough for a month’s wage bill at both state and local government levels,” he said.

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