…Insist Bello don’t even know how Kogi got the highest amount
…Asks ICPC & EFCC to monitor implementation to guard against Bello’s ulterior motives
Bailout fund, a popular phrase in state public fund management, is an intervention from the Federal Government to the state governments to help pay accumulated arrears of salaries arising from the sharp decline in federal allocation accruing to the former as well as poor innovativeness and determination to improve on internally generated revenue (IGR) within their scope. States with this challenge were paid last year except Kogi and Bayelsa States which was a brazen show of power by the ruling party. Whatever the reason was, it is a discussion for another day.
It would be recalled that among the states yelling for bailout, Wada-led government had recorded the least salary arrears accumulation in the country. Had the former governor continued in office, the unending and astronomical rise in salary arrears being experienced in the state would been nonexistent if the bailout was paid.
The all awaited bailout fund for Kogi State was finally released over two weeks. Instead of designing a payment module for the fund, the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr Edward Onoja and his Facebook recruits went viral on social media announcing that the Governor has applied for another bailout even when the one received had not been disbursed. This, many political watchers and good Nigerians see to be done with intention to divert the fund, mislead the Kogites and do their personal business with state fund as usual.
That was not all, the most disparaging story is the claim by the Government of receiving 20 billion Naira instead 50.842 billion that was actually paid. The lie was with intention concocted at defrauding the state. To say that less than 20 billion Naira as against 50 billion Naira received as well as having gotten approval for a new bailout is most unfortunate.
Bello couldn’t have reapplied for any bailout knowing fully well that the two fundamental conditions for accessing the bailout fund are not. One of the conditions is that the applicant’s state assembly must pass a resolution to give a legal backing for the state government’s loan application. Second is that the applicant state must present a verifiable debt profile of the state, in terms of salary and pension payment defaults, backed with vouchers. Bello has not met any of these requirements; he has no Executive Council in place and the State House of Assembly has been taken over by the National Assembly. As a matter of fact Bello is yet to finish the so-called staff verification and screening.
It should be put on record that Bello has no business thinking about another bailout. The sum of 50.842 billion Naira approved for Kogi State is very much enough to address the backlog of salaries, gratuity and pension. Besides, the federal allocation accruing to the State since assumption of office of Gov Bello is put at over 10 billion Naira from which no salary has been paid. This and the bailout fund are big enough to pay workers from Level 1 at the Local Government to the Permanent Secretary and Directors at the state level.
Finally, I am calling on ICPC and EFCC to ensure proper monitoring and implementation of this much awaited bailout fund released to Kogi State as the body language and actions of the Governor is questionable. The workers have been patient enough and their patience should not be taken for granted otherwise the existing peace in the State will be threatened. NLC and TLC should rise up to the occasion of monitoring the whole process. This is not the time to chicken out or yield in up to any intimidation.
I am calling on the Governor to stop playing politics with workers as the money meant for their payment of salaries. This issue is not negotiable because the government should rise up to the occasion to fulfill its obligations as government. Otherwise, the existence of the government will be called to question. The economy of the state needs to grow and develop and continued nonpayment of the salaries even when there is fund is a disservice to the people and the economy. Is very unfortunate that Bello who doesn’t even know how Kogi got the highest amount for the bail out fund us trying to divert it . This is unacceptable.
– Usman Okai Austin
