The ruling Peoples Democratic Party in Ekiti and the opposition All Progressives Congress have continued to bicker over the N22 billion allegedly released to the state by the federal government.
While the APC held that the Ayo Fayose government had collected the money, the PDP and the government deny it, saying they were yet to receive any such money from the federal government. The money was supposed to be a repayment of the amount the state spent to repair federal roads during the APC administration of Kayode Fayemi in Ekiti. Mr. Fayemi lost his re-election bid to the incumbent PDP administration of Ayo Fayose.
On Sunday, the PDP spokesperson, Jackson Adebayo, said the APC government spent N15 billion to repair roads and not N22billion as stated by the opposition party.
Mr. Adebayo alleged that the APC had written President Muhammadu Buhari not to pay the money to the state.
“To make sure their plans work through, some leaders of APC in Ekiti and their colleagues outside the state have been contacting senators and house of representatives members elected on the platform of their party to block any input on federal projects as it may affect Ekiti state in the next budget that would be sent to the National Assembly by President Buhari in other to perfect their intentions,” Mr. Adebayo said.
But the Publicity Secretary of the APC, Taiwo Olatunbosun, described Mr. Adebayo’s allegation as “mere face-saving antics that won’t take the PDP government anywhere.”
Mr. Olatunbosun said the APC had earlier made the assertion that the N22 billion had been paid by the Federal Government to the Fayose-led PDP administration and could not have turned around to ask that the funds be withheld.
“Our own allegation was based not on mere rumour, but on facts,” he said. “I have it on my Youtube where the former Minister of State for Works, Prince Adedayo Adeyeye praised former President, Goodluck Jonathan that he had paid the sum of N22 billion to Ekiti being money spent on federal roads during the presidential rally.”
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