The embattled suspended chairman of
Ijebu East Local Government in Ogun State, Mr. Wale Adedayo, has finally been removed from office.
This is coming barely 24 hours after Adedayo failed in his bid to use Court process to stop his probe over alleged
financial misappropriation and diversion of funds belonging to his local government.
The impeached Council Chairman had approached a State High Court sitting in Ijebu Ode with an ex-parte application seeking an order to stop his probe by the Councillors but on Wednesday, the Court ruled against it.
In its ruling on the ex-parte motion argued by O. T. Are on behalf of Wale Adedayo, the presiding Judge, Justice A.A. Omoniyi dismissed the application in “it’s entirety.“
Although, O. T. Are, standing in for A.M. Kotoye SAN, representing the Claimant/Applicant, informed the Court of the motion ex-parte dated September 6, 2022 praying for an interim order restraining the Defendants, their agents, privies from further proceeding on the letter of invitation to the claimant asking him to appear before the Legislative Council on September 14, 2023 or in the alternative, to order parties to maintain status quo but the Court declined his prayers.
It noted that the applicant’s application was not timeous since he had notice since 31st August, 2023 of the said resolution but waited till September 11, 2023 before filing his application.
“Delay defeats equity,” the Court held.
Predictably, the elected Councillors of the Local Government impeached Mr. Adedayo after he appeared before them on Thursday morning, following an invitation extended to him over allegations of fund mismanagement.
Leader of the Legislative Council, Hon. Fasheyi Akindele, in a statement, said Adedayo after a series of invitations by the House, which were ignored in the past, Adedayo eventually appeared before the legislative council as the councillors continued their probe of the chairman.
“The suspended Chairman owned up before the full house of 11 councillors that he diverted federal allocations sent to the Council by the State Government and used them for purposes other than what the State Government approved.
“Adedayo also agreed that he spent the Council funds till August 2023, even when the budget was yet to be approved, whereas the laws only allow him to spend till March 2023.
“Adedayo also opened up that he used N5.2 million to produce 20 pieces of chairs and tables instead of the 290 chairs that the money was meant for as approved by the state government.
“On the issue of illegal levies and stickers to commercial transport operators in the Local government, Adedayo said he thought the House had passed the Bill to that effect, but the Leader of the House reminded him that a bill, if passed by the House, would have been jointly signed by the Leader of the House and the Council Chairman.
“That the chairman has run foul of the laws of the land, specifically the Ogun State Local Government Laws 2006 and committed serious impeachable offences was therefore established.
“After about three hours of deliberation, the impeachment of the Chairman was put to votes. Five councillors voted for his impeachment, four voted against, with one abstention
“Therefore, the Leader of the House pronounced Mr. Wale Adedayo impeached as the Chairman of Ijebu East LG,” Akindele said.
Days earlier before his removal, Adedayo had spent hours with the operatives of the Department of State Security Service (DSS) who grilled him rigorously.
The political tribulations of the impeached chairman of Ijebu East Local Government began after he accused Governor Dapo Abiodun of routinely starving the 20 Councils of the needed money to function effectively.
According to him, the Governor was withholding their money through funds diversion and zero allocations to them.
And Adedayo took a step further by writing a Petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission(ICPC), demanding investigation of the Governor.
The DSS, it was learnt, invited Mr. Wale Adedayo, to shed light on his allegations via a letter addressed to the All Progressives Congress (APC) leader and former Governor of the state, Chief Segun Osoba, which according to a source, the secret police deemed capable of inciting the populace or lead to breach of peace.
Reacting to his removal from office, Adedayo said: “I told them this morning they were acting a script written by those in Abeokuta. All the documents about the allegations against me are in the office. But I know Mr. Governor is offended that we opened up to the public about how the Federal Allocation belonging to Ijebu East Local Government was being spent.
“I have done my duty as an Afenifere by letting our Leader know why we have not been able to do much since we got into office. The rest is for the court to decide.”
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Government has given insights into local government administration and funding, revealing that that contrary to the alleged funds diversion and zero allocations, it has spend N1.8Billion naira to execute projects in local government areas.
At a press briefing addressed by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr Tokunbo Talabi, and Economic Adviser and Commissioner-designate, Mr Dapo Okubadejo, held at the Olusegun Osoba Press Centre, Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the government said the process of funding local governments in the state is transparent, open and is in line with constitutional provision through the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC).
The government noted that it has been augmenting allocations meant for local governments in the state from the federation account, due to shortfalls occasioned by COVID-19 and the economic downturn in the country.
He said that at no time was there any disagreement between the chairmen of the local governments and the state government.
Mr. Talabi denied any diversion of statutory allocations and zero allocation, insisting that the present administration has been transparent, accountable, just and equitable in spreading developmental projects to all parts of the State with inputs from local government chairmen in the last few years.
The SSG said the government routinely send money to the councils to execute some projects to better the lots of the people at the grassroots.
“Up to date, the state government has provided over N1.8 billion for all these local governments to do independent projects, in addition to whatever the state government has done, in addition to whatever the federal government has done and in addition to funding the deficit.
“The concept of zero allocation has not taken place. Otherwise, how have we been paying the teachers? How have we been paying the healthcare workers? How have been paying the traditional council? How have been paying the pensioners? How have we been paying the local government staff themselves? How is the chairman getting paid all these years? And then, we have what is called the security vote for the chairman.
“Because we are in an environment where people want to see what you have done, His Excellency, from time to time, makes money available to each of these local governments so that they do some community-based projects; projects that are closer to them.
“At the beginning of this administration, His Excellency asked the local government chairmen and other stakeholders to present three roads that are more important to them in the order of priority. That is why this administration can boast today that it has executed projects in all local governments. And these were not done without the consent and inputs of the local government operatives,” he said.
Giving more insight into the workings of the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC), the Economic Adviser and Commissioner-designate, Mr. Dapo Okubadejo, noted that JAAC is a statutory and legal instrument that operates in other states.
Speaking on the process of fund allocation, Mr Okubadejo said: “The process of local government account, financing or funding started many years ago, with the introduction of what we refer to as the Joint Account Allocation Committee. That’s the body that is responsible for the administration and the management of the local government direct allocation from the Federal Government.
“When His Excellency took over the administration in 2019, and because of his pledge to be accountable and also be transparent, the Joint Account Allocation meeting started not long after that. That meeting is the one that is held every month. It is this administration that commenced, after a long time, the organization of the Joint Account Allocation meeting every month on the allocation of funds from the federal government to the local government and also the distribution of it.
“And that meeting comprises of representatives of local government chairmen and all the regular stakeholders in local government administration. So, you have local government chairmen, the association of pensioners, members of the traditional council and all other members that are seated every month at the Oba’s Complex to discuss every month, how much comes in for local governments and how that money is distributed.
“Now, the process is that the Joint Account Allocation Committee account is a completely separate account from the state government’s accounting process. It is managed and administered by different sets of staff that are involved in local government administration in the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.
“The account and signatories are separate from the State government. The Accountant General and the Director of Treasury are not signatories to the JAAC.
“On a monthly basis, the Local Government Service Commission prepares the vouchers of salaries and allowances of local government staff, SUBEB prepares that of all primary school teachers, Bureau of Local Government Pensioners prepares that of Pensioners, Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs prepares that of traditional council members.
“All the data prepared by all these bodies are sent to the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs where they are reviewed, collated and validated. These figures are referred to as First Line Charges. The figures are taken to the JAAC meeting and once the allocation comes from Abuja, with respect to the JAAC, they disclosed the amount at the meeting as money for Ogun State local government funding. They table all the distributions which is the First Line Charges and distribute on local government to local government basis.”
The Economic Adviser disclosed that the state government has been augmenting federal allocations to the 20 local governments since 2019, due to the impact of COVID-19 and the economic downturn being experienced in the country.
In 2020, N43.121 billion was budgeted for First Line Charges, while N34.750 billion was received from the federation account for the 20 local government areas, leaving a deficit of N6.619 billion.
The Economic Adviser also noted that the total allocation released for local governments in 2021 was N38.723 billion, while payment for First Line Charges was N47.845 billion.
In 2022, N48.074 billion was the total allocation for the local governments from the federation account, while N54.182 billion was the actual amount needed to pay First Line Charges.
“As we were getting into 2023, just for this administration alone, we were coming with a deficit that the state government has paid for of almost N17.4 billion,” he said.
He acknowledged in January 2023, N7.6 billion was received as against the N7.221 billion total First Line Charges, leaving a little surplus.
In February, it went back to the normal trend, which was lower JAAC allocation and higher First Line Charges of N3.79 billion and N4.3 billion. The same thing in March and April.
In May, he said there was an increase of N6.348 billion to that of First Line Charges of N4.531 billion.
“Now, when you look at the total carried forward as of July just from 2019 to July 2023, you will see that there is a deficit of N13.591 billion.
“The state government covers this deficit because it affects the salaries and pension of local government staff, primary school teachers, health workers and traditional council members.
“Again, you recall that about two years ago, His Excellency promised that he was going to be paying N500 million every quarter to clear the backlog of gratuities from 2011, which has now been increased to N1 billion for both state and local government staff. And paying the local government portion of the gratuities is an addition to the state government’s intervention.
“In addition to that, the governor also directed that certain quarterly allocations should be made directly to local governments for them to undertake certain developmental projects.
“When people talk about zero allocation being distributed, they should be enlightened to know that they cannot talk about allocation in isolation of the First Line Charges which is the first thing that must be paid in local government allocation,” he added.
Answering a question on Ecological Fund, the Commissioner-designate, said the fund is periodical as it is credited into the state and local account through JAAC. He stated that the fund has a high level of oversight as it is meant for flood control, afforestation and clearing of drainages, among others.Ogun Clears Air On LG Funding, Says N1.8bn Invested In Executing Projects in Councils
Ogun State Government on Friday gave further insights into local government administration and funding, demonstrating its commitment to the development of the third tier of government.
At a press conference addressed by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr Tokunbo Talabi, and Economic Adviser and Commissioner-designate, Mr Dapo Okubadejo, held at the Olusegun Osoba Press Centre, Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the government said the process of funding local governments in the state is transparent, open and is in line with constitutional provision through the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC).
The government noted that it has been augmenting allocations meant for local governments in the state from the federation account, due to shortfalls occasioned by COVID-19 and the economic downturn in the country.
He said that at no time was there any disagreement between the chairmen of the local governments and the state government.
Mr. Talabi denied any diversion of statutory allocations and zero allocation, insisting that the present administration has been transparent, accountable, just and equitable in spreading developmental projects to all parts of the State with inputs from local government chairmen in the last few years.
The SSG said the government routinely send money to the councils to execute some projects to better the lots of the people at the grassroots.
“Up to date, the state government has provided over N1.8 billion for all these local governments to do independent projects, in addition to whatever the state government has done, in addition to whatever the federal government has done and in addition to funding the deficit.
“The concept of zero allocation has not taken place. Otherwise, how have we been paying the teachers? How have we been paying the healthcare workers? How have been paying the traditional council? How have been paying the pensioners? How have we been paying the local government staff themselves? How is the chairman getting paid all these years? And then, we have what is called the security vote for the chairman.
“Because we are in an environment where people want to see what you have done, His Excellency, from time to time, makes money available to each of these local governments so that they do some community-based projects; projects that are closer to them.
“At the beginning of this administration, His Excellency asked the local government chairmen and other stakeholders to present three roads that are more important to them in the order of priority. That is why this administration can boast today that it has executed projects in all local governments. And these were not done without the consent and inputs of the local government operatives,” he said.
Giving more insight into the workings of the Joint Account Allocation Committee (JAAC), the Economic Adviser and Commissioner-designate, Mr. Dapo Okubadejo, noted that JAAC is a statutory and legal instrument that operates in other states.
Speaking on the process of fund allocation, Mr Okubadejo said: “The process of local government account, financing or funding started many years ago, with the introduction of what we refer to as the Joint Account Allocation Committee. That’s the body that is responsible for the administration and the management of the local government direct allocation from the Federal Government.
“When His Excellency took over the administration in 2019, and because of his pledge to be accountable and also be transparent, the Joint Account Allocation meeting started not long after that. That meeting is the one that is held every month. It is this administration that commenced, after a long time, the organization of the Joint Account Allocation meeting every month on the allocation of funds from the federal government to the local government and also the distribution of it.
“And that meeting comprises of representatives of local government chairmen and all the regular stakeholders in local government administration. So, you have local government chairmen, the association of pensioners, members of the traditional council and all other members that are seated every month at the Oba’s Complex to discuss every month, how much comes in for local governments and how that money is distributed.
“Now, the process is that the Joint Account Allocation Committee account is a completely separate account from the state government’s accounting process. It is managed and administered by different sets of staff that are involved in local government administration in the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.
“The account and signatories are separate from the State government. The Accountant General and the Director of Treasury are not signatories to the JAAC.
“On a monthly basis, the Local Government Service Commission prepares the vouchers of salaries and allowances of local government staff, SUBEB prepares that of all primary school teachers, Bureau of Local Government Pensioners prepares that of Pensioners, Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs prepares that of traditional council members.
“All the data prepared by all these bodies are sent to the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs where they are reviewed, collated and validated. These figures are referred to as First Line Charges. The figures are taken to the JAAC meeting and once the allocation comes from Abuja, with respect to the JAAC, they disclosed the amount at the meeting as money for Ogun State local government funding. They table all the distributions which is the First Line Charges and distribute on local government to local government basis.”
The Economic Adviser disclosed that the state government has been augmenting federal allocations to the 20 local governments since 2019, due to the impact of COVID-19 and the economic downturn being experienced in the country.
In 2020, N43.121 billion was budgeted for First Line Charges, while N34.750 billion was received from the federation account for the 20 local government areas, leaving a deficit of N6.619 billion.
The Economic Adviser also noted that the total allocation released for local governments in 2021 was N38.723 billion, while payment for First Line Charges was N47.845 billion.
In 2022, N48.074 billion was the total allocation for the local governments from the federation account, while N54.182 billion was the actual amount needed to pay First Line Charges.
“As we were getting into 2023, just for this administration alone, we were coming with a deficit that the state government has paid for of almost N17.4 billion,” he said.
He acknowledged in January 2023, N7.6 billion was received as against the N7.221 billion total First Line Charges, leaving a little surplus.
In February, it went back to the normal trend, which was lower JAAC allocation and higher First Line Charges of N3.79 billion and N4.3 billion. The same thing in March and April.
In May, he said there was an increase of N6.348 billion to that of First Line Charges of N4.531 billion.
“Now, when you look at the total carried forward as of July just from 2019 to July 2023, you will see that there is a deficit of N13.591 billion.
“The state government covers this deficit because it affects the salaries and pension of local government staff, primary school teachers, health workers and traditional council members.
“Again, you recall that about two years ago, His Excellency promised that he was going to be paying N500 million every quarter to clear the backlog of gratuities from 2011, which has now been increased to N1 billion for both state and local government staff. And paying the local government portion of the gratuities is an addition to the state government’s intervention.
“In addition to that, the governor also directed that certain quarterly allocations should be made directly to local governments for them to undertake certain developmental projects.
“When people talk about zero allocation being distributed, they should be enlightened to know that they cannot talk about allocation in isolation of the First Line Charges which is the first thing that must be paid in local government allocation,” he added.
Answering a question on Ecological Fund, the Commissioner-designate, said the fund is periodical as it is credited into the state and local account through JAAC. He stated that the fund has a high level of oversight as it is meant for flood control, afforestation and clearing of drainages, among others.
