Fayose Storms Finance Ministry, Demands Release of State's Federal Allocation...
PDP, APC bicker over FG’s action
The Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, yesterday stormed the headquarters of the Ministry of Finance in Abuja to demand the release of the state’s share of December allocation from the Federation Account.
The December allocation was shared by the three tiers of government in January during the monthly Federation Account Allocation (FAAC) meeting usually hosted by the Ministry of Finance.
The governor arrived the ministry at about 3.15p.m. in a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) unaccompanied.
At the gate, he had introduced himself to the security personnel, including mobile policemen requesting to see the Minister of Finance Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, who was at that time at the State House for the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.
But the governor was allowed to see some top ministry officials on the Seventh floor, who assured him that the allocation issue would be resolved soonest.
Fayose had complained to the officials that the All Progressives Congress (APC)-controlled federal government had withheld the state’s December allocation.
This, he said, was in a bid to ground development activities in the state.
On his way out of the ministry, Fayose asked the federal government to avoid anything that would be detrimental to Ekiti people, adding that if there was anything personal, he should face the consequences rather than allow the innocent people of the state suffer for his perceived sin.
“Well, I’m hopeful that the money will be paid. I’m told that there is a mix-up somewhere. I want to believe so. If it is in the realm of mix- up, it’s okay. Ekiti workers are waiting to have this money to be paid with minimum delay.
“It’s well over two three weeks since we came for FAAC and I am sure now that the minister has come back, it will not take time.
“But I hope this will not repeat itself because these are statutory obligations to my state. It is our right and by no means should politics take away our right.
“If the APC government has issues with me, they should face me and not deny the average man on the street their legitimate salaries having worked for 30 days.
“But I want to appreciate the minister; I want to thank her because she called me personally and assured me that things would be resolved,” he said.
Fayose said he felt like coming “because the people of the state expect me to act on their behalf and that’s exactly what I have done.
“I didn’t meet that minister but I met the SA (Special Assistant) who assured me that the minister went to FEC and that when she is back, he would convey my message to her and he assured me that all would be fine in due course,” he added.
Meanwhile, the withholding of the state’s allocation has attracted comments from a cross-section of individuals such as former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode and former Deputy Governor of the state and governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), Dr. Sikiru Tae Lawal,
On his part, Fani-Kayode condemned the federal government’s action, describing the action as petty, vindictive and reprehensible.
The former minister in a statement made available to THISDAY yesterday, said it was wrong for the federal government to punish the state government and the people of the state because the courageous views of Governor Ayo Fayose whom he described as the rallying point of opposition against the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
He therefore, called on the Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, to intervene in the matter expeditiously and release the Ekiti State governnent’s allocation forthwith.
“Simply because the courageous Fayose has become the rallying point of opposition against the President Muhammadu Buhari does not mean that the people of Ekiti State should suffer.”
Similarly, Lawal called for the immediate release of the allocation, saying the Supreme Court in the case of Lagos State vs the federal government on the contentious withholding of the local government’ allocations by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, had passed an explicit verdict that the states are federating units with full autonomy and that the federal government has no power whatsoever to deny them of their statutory benefits.
In a chat with journalists in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Lawal lampooned the government for what he described as the ‘rascally behaviour of the government calling for immediate reversal of the action to prevent anarchy in the system.
Lawal stressed the need for President Muhammadu Buhari’s government to exercise restraint and extricate itself from unnecessary vindictive actions that could trample on the 1999 constitution and plunge Nigerian citizens into underserved hardship due to morbid politicking.
The ex-deputy governor described as a brazen undermining of the constituted authority and the Ekiti people for the federal government to have allegedly punished the state owing to Fayose’s consistent criticism of the Buhari-led government.
But the state chapter of the APC has accused Fayose of blackmailing the federal government over his claim.
The party said if at all Fayose’s claim was true, what would have been withheld is the special funds approved by the federal government for budget support intervention in the states.
It said while not holding brief for the Federal Ministry of Finance, contrary to Fayose’s misinformation and lies to instigate the Ekiti people against President Muhammadu Buhari and blackmail APC-led federal government as responsible for his inability to pay workers, it is the governor that should be blamed for the breach of agreement he signed with the ederal government to enjoy the facility.