"Disclose LG Allocation Accounts or Face Public Verdict" - Osun PDP to APC

The Osun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Sunday challenged the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state to come clean over the whereabouts of federal allocations meant for the 30 local government councils.

The PDP said the admission by the APC that the allocations had indeed been received was “a confession of crime” against the people of Osun.

The controversy began after the state chapter of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) accused the opposition APC of conniving to divert allocations into illegal accounts opened by the court-sacked council chairmen and councillors.

In a counter-statement, the APC admitted that the funds had been paid but denied they were deposited into the personal accounts of its members. It insisted the monies were paid into local government council accounts.

But in a swift response, PDP chairman, Hon. Sunday Bisi, insisted that such a defence raises more questions than answers.

“Rather than engaging in name-calling and reckless propaganda against NULGE, we challenge the APC to come clean before the people of Osun State by publicly disclosing the exact bank accounts into which the local government allocations were paid and the signatories to those accounts.

“All the statutory officers of the 30 local governments who should ordinarily be aware of the payments are not aware of it. They have not seen a dime in any of their council accounts. Neither the Accountant General, the Auditor-General for local governments, nor the Ministry of Local Government is aware of where the funds went,” Bisi partly said in the statement.

The PDP said the matter has now transcended political squabbles. The party said that it was about accountability and the welfare of the people.

“We join NULGE, civil society, and the good people of Osun State in demanding full disclosure. If these details are not provided, we will conclude that the APC has staged the greatest heist in the history of Nigeria by diverting over six months of allocations of all local governments in Osun State,” the statement read.

The ruling party assured residents that Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration would continue to uphold transparency and accountability in the management of public resources.