Fayose Flays Buhari over Release of N12.5bn to APC for Kogi Election

Ayo Fayose

• FG dismisses allegation 

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja 
Atabor Julius in Lokoja 

The Ekiti State Governor,  Mr. Ayo Fayose, has accused the federal government of  releasing the sum of N12.5 billion from the  Treasury Single Account (TSA) as donation to  Kogi State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to enable the party perpetrate rigging even as Lokoja the state capital stood still for Governor Idris Wada monday.

But the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,  dismissed the allegation, saying if those behind the accusation had allowed themselves some measure of honesty, they would have realised that there was no such impunity under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Fayose who  said   the  President Buhari administration was a resemblance of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration where the rule of law was not respected, stressed that he was not surprised based on their military background.

The governor  stated this at the confluence stadium in Lokoja during the grand finale of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rally, adding that looking critically at the administration of the APC at the centre, people have discovered that the Buhari-led government does not posse is an iota of respect for  human rights, saying the president only concentrated on chasing PDP members on allegations of corruption when many of his men who surround him are facing trial for gross corrupt practices.

He asked where President  Buhari was when the APC cleared the former governor of the Kogi State, Alhaji Abubakar Audu, to contest the governorship of the state  when he (Audu) has avalanche of corrupt charges hanging on his neck in the last 12 years.

He called on the president to  carefully look  around himself before running after other people, saying the nation belongs to Nigerians just as he pointed out that every citizen had equal right.

According to him, “The APC-led government only goes around the challenges confronting the nation,  the issue of Boko Haram, and the dwindling economic situation became worse in the last six months of the Buhari administration. This government has only achieved a lot in the area of chasing shadows, making the nation worse for the people.

He however alleged that the federal government two day ago released the sum  of N12.5 billion to Kogi State to enable their party perpetrate rigging and urged the people to take their destiny in their hands.

Meanwhile, in his statement, Mohammed said if those behind the accusation had allowed themselves some measure of honesty, they would have realised that there has not and there will be no such impunity under the administration of President Buhari.

‘’It is understandable that the psyche of those who are making the frivolous allegations concerning the TSA has been badly affected by the impunity that permeated the country under the immediate past administration, when unappropriated funds were freely used to finance elections and the public till was seen as an extension of personal piggy banks.

‘’But the lies that have been wilfully disseminated by scandalmongers over the TSA cannot and will not fly, because it was precisely to put an end to such impunity that Nigerians voted massively for President Muhammadu Buhari, who has an unblemished reputation for integrity, due process, transparency and the rule of law,’’ he said.

The minister assured Nigerians that no one has tampered with the TSA funds, saying though the TSA was initiated under the previous administration, the reason it has begun to enjoy a new lease of life and attract national attention is because of the political will and transparency demonstrated by President Buhari.

‘’Those behind the rumour that a single company, Systemspecs, made 25 billion Naira from charging 1 per cent of TSA funds that passed through the company’s software, Remita, may need to return to elementary school to get some lessons in arithmetic.
‘’This is because in order for 1 per cent charge to fetch 25 billion Naira, the funds accruing into the TSA must have reached 2.5 trillion Naira. Yet, the total amount of funds in the TSA to date is still much less than 2 trillion.

‘’More importantly, at the time the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ordered that all monies that were erroneously charged as ‘revenue’ be returned to the TSA Account late last month, the TSA had less than 800 billion Naira. It therefore beggars belief that anyone could attempt to mislead the public by raising a false alarm that a firm made 25 billion Naira in TSA charges,’’ Alhaji Mohammed said.

He appealed to Nigerians not to allow those who have been funding their lavish lifestyles and encouraging corruption, to the detriment of ordinary citizens and without bothering about national interest, to sabotage the laudable TSA programme with contrived lies, dangerous innuendoes and outright misinformation.

Culled from Thisday