PDP Calls On AGF To Immediately Halt All Allocations To Edo Govt Through JAAC
By Simeon OSAJIE
The Edo State Caretaker Committee of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) lamented that there is no properly constituted local government administration in the State and called on the Attorney General to immediately halt all allocations to the state government through the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC) as stipulated in the Supreme Court ruling.
Briefing newsmen in Benin City, Edo State capital, the Chairman of the Committee, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi who expressed displeasure at what he termed very the unhealthy situation in Edo State said the local government administration now is nonexistent in the State because of the illegal actions of the governor of the State, Senator Monday Okpebholo.
According to Aziegbemi, ‘It has became imperative to again draw the attention of the public and other stakeholders to the ongoing constitutional crisis and extermination of constitutional democracy in the state by the Senator Monday Okpebholo-led Edo State Government, which has crippled local government administration and placed the State on the brink of an unprecedented crisis, chaos, and anarchy.
“Since the illegal suspension of the duly elected 18 local government chairmen, over N30 billion has been sent to local government councils under the control of the state government, which Okpebholo is sharing amongst his party leaders.
“There is currently no approved budget in any local council in the State, but they have continued to spend monies illegally. They don’t follow due process in the execution of contracts, purchase of transformers, and organization of events.
“Since this three months period, the Okpebholo government has unilaterally stopped salaries to the duly democratically elected chairmen, vice chairmen, Secretaries, supervisory councilors special advisers and special assistants. This is while there’s a nepotistic and selective payment of salaries to elected loyal councilors across the 18 local councils of the State.”
Going further, Aziegbemi noted that revenues collected are not accounted for and are being diverted, describing the situation in Edo State as clear executive rascality and impunity taken too far by the governor Monday Okpebholo led administration.
The opposition party also called on the Edo State House of Assembly (EDHA) to immediately recall the purportedly suspended council chairmen across the 18 Local Government Councils so that governance at the grassroots level can resume peacefully.
