Tumult over Amosun’s Last Minute Actions

Tumult over Amosun’s Last Minute Actions

Femi Ogbonnikan x-rays the implications of the appointment of 1,000 staff into the Ogun State civil service, installation of new traditional rulers, award of new contracts and financial commitments by theoutgoing Governor Ibikunle Amosun, less than three weeks to the end of his tenure

Whatever has a beginning always has an end. Barely three weeks to the end of his tenure, the outgoing Ogun State governor, Ibikunle Amosun, appears unperturbed about creating financial challenges for the incoming administration of Prince Dapo Abiodun. Prominent among his last minute actions capable of creating crisis for the incoming governor are the elevation of 21 Directors in the state civil service to substantive Permanent Secretaries (PS) status, employment of 1,000 fresh staff, promotion of 5,000 personnel, inauguration of the governing councils of the various state-owned tertiary institutions of learning, including those with students and those that have not admitted students.

He also award fresh contracts. Chief Bode Mustapha, former Director-General (DG), Senator Ibikunle Amosun Governorship Reelection Campaign Organisation in 2015, who is now a close associate of Abiodun, the governor-elect, queried the rationale behind the actions. He said: “It is going to make a mockery of the civil service in the state, because it was done with a lot of anomalies. It is misnomer that cannot stand.
I will advise the incoming government to return all those people to their previous positions and let due process be followed.” Besides, Mustapha issued a note of warning to contractors involved in any new contract deal to be wary, warning that, “anybody who goes to take a contract at this 11th hour of the outgoing administration is wasting his time and financial resources. Why should you award contracts when you are about to leave office? Why should you employ new people into the workforce of the state civil service when you are about to leave office? In view of the minimum wage, can the state economy sustain new contracts?

The state civil service has already been politicised, considering the haphazard manner with which the promotion exercise was done. “Mustapha, who is also the Bobagunwa of Egbaland added: “What we are saying is that people should revert to their former positions and allow the new administration to look into promotions on merit basis.

How can you take a Level 14 officer and make him Permanent Secretary? Is that not politicising the civil service? There are Levels 15 and 16 officers who have not been promoted.” In the same vein, former Deputy Governor of the state, Senator Adegbenga Kaka, who represented Ogun East Senatorial district at the National Assembly, between 2011 and 2015, expressed deep concerns over the last minute appointments and promotion in the Ogun State civil service. He said: “All I know is that the tenure of Amosun ends on May 29, this year, and by the grace of God, that of Dapo Abiodun starts on that same day.

Soldier goes, soldier comes, and barracks remain the same. So, the civil service should not be politicised. Let whoever is there now do his bit. Whoever is coming, will also do his bit when he gets there.” In response to the alleged landmines that the outgoing governor has been laying for the governor-elect, the State Publicity Secretary of the Caretaker Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Tunde Oladunjoye, hinted at a review of these actions in a press statement

titled, “Dapo Abiodun to Review Amosun’s Last Minute Installation of Obas, Employment and Contracts”, dated Monday, May 6, 2019, and made available to newsmen in Abeokuta. He warned the general public that such appointments, promotions and award of contracts will be reviewed by the incoming administration. He said: “You will recall that our party, APC, has in the course of the past few weeks, following our victory at the March 9, 2019 gubernatorial elections, issued media statements cautioning financial institutions from granting loans, overdrafts and other financial instruments to the outgoing government of Ibikunle Amosun.
“Though a Joint Transition Committee of the incumbent and incoming Governments has been set up, Amosun has made last-minute appointments and awarded contracts without due consideration to the incoming administration of Prince Dapo Abiodun.

“While we accept that the term of this Government expires on the 29th May 2019, it is morally unacceptable that a governor with less than one month to the expiration of his term in office will make mass appointments and promotions, thereby committing the incoming administration to unsustainable financial commitments and obligations. “We hereby alert the general public and those it may concern that all appointments, installation of traditional rulers, contracts, commitments and obligations entered into during the transition period after the elections will be reviewed and may not be binding on the new administration.” Also, former spokesman to ex- President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr. Reuben Abati, in his recent piece titled, “What’s wrong with these end-time governors?” took swipe at the outgoing governor. Abati wrote: “It is barely four weeks to Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s end of tenure, but he seems to find it difficult to withdraw as governor of the state. His minion having lost the gubernatorial election, he has since embarked on a desperate mission to tie the hands of the governor-elect, Prince Dapo Abiodun. He is creating booby traps for him. He is laying land mines.

If what we know is so bad, how about other acts of mischief not yet in the public domain?” Meanwhile, the outgoing governor at the 2019 Workers’ Day rally in Abeokuta said he had approved N20.2 billion to defray outstanding deductions and April salaries of the state government workers. Amosun said the state workers would receive their April salaries in full, without removing the net rates.

Besides, he claimed he had approved the payment of both the April salaries and outstanding deductions with an assurance that the bank accounts of the state workers would be credited before the close of the business on May 2. Findings have since revealed that the payments have remained a grand deception and a mirage, as only the April salaries had been paid, while the defrayment of the much expected 108 months deductions is still hanging in the balance. At every downturn, the governorelect always survives every plot against him. A Court of Appeal sitting in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, on Monday, struck out the suit, with reference number CA/A/269/2019, challenging the eligibility of the Ogun state governorelect to contest the last general elections.

The Court of Appeal, in dismissing the matter, decided that the action arose upon the Form CF01 submitted on October 25, 2018, and published in Ogun State. It pronounced that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to try the matter and the suit was consequently struck out. Also, it found out that the event complained of, occurred in Ogun state, and the mere fact that the affidavit deposed to, in FCT, Abuja, was not sufficient enough to confer jurisdiction on the trial court.

In all, the preliminary objections and cross-appeal by the APC and Prince Dapo Abiodun were upheld by the appellate Court. In his swift reactions to the verdict, Agbaakin Yinka Odufuwa, former Special Adviser (SA) on Forestry to the outgoing governor and now, a close ally of the governor-elect, expressed satisfactions. He said: “In everything about Prince Dapo Abiodun, you will clearly see the hand of God. And it has been pretty difficult for any human being to stop His work. This is another victory for democracy and the defeat of those who think they can play God when in actual fact, they are beneficiary of God’s mercy too.”

Related Articles