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A leading opposition voice in Kogi State and pro-good governance activist, Usman Okai Austin has lamented the rate of poverty and insecurity in the state as a result of government’s refusal to workers’ salaries.
Okai pointed out that no governor in the history of Kogi State has received the amount of money Governor Bello has received without any tangible achievement to justify the billions so far received.
“While workers groan over the governor’s inability to pay salaries and pensions running to 15 months despite billions that has accrued to the state viz-a-viz Paris Club refund, monthly allocations, bail-out funds, ecological funds and internally generated revenue, the Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello is busy deploying funds accruing to the State to pursuing his perceived political opponents in the State, including a spending spree aimed at recalling Senator Dino Melaye.
“For close to two years now, Governor Bello has hidden under an unending screening exercise to deny workers their salaries. The only thing Kogi people could call achievement under Governor Bello is the commissioning of a plaza called “Revenue House” which has no direct economic bearing or any economic benefit to the Kogi people or the State”
“It would be recalled that Yahaya Bello-led government in Kogi State started what they called screening of workers in the state, an exercise that produced no cogent results. The exercise which ended in futility engulfed millions of Naira and resulting in a situation where workers are currently owed for over 15 months.
“The governor’s inability to pay salary of civil servants and pensioners in arrears of 15 months owing to endless screening has pitched the workers against the government. This situation, coupled with the alleged double voters card registration by the governor stirred a call for the governor to resign and be prosecuted for criminal double voters registration.
“Instead of focusing efforts at good governance and harnessing the great potentials of the State, Yahaya Bello-led Kogi State government is rather deploying funds accruing to the State in fighting political battles with perceived enemies. Who are these enemies? You may ask. The Governor’s enemies are those who stick out their necks to call a spade by its name; those who want the Governor to take governance seriously beyond lip service.
“We challenge Kogi State Government to make public the Independent Auditors’ Report of 2016, including the one from KPMG which heavily showed disparities of salary payment running into billions of Naira.
“A survey carried out in the 21 local government area showed that many workers retrenched in the records of the state government have their entitlements paid into a secret dedicated account with a new generation bank {names withheld}.
“Unfortunately, in this 21st century, a young governor who should be a trail blazer in leadership is resorting to crude way of chasing power at the cost of the lives of the citizens. That’s barbaric. We want the governor’s achievements to speak for him. The idea of creating artificial hunger and cashing in on same to hoodwink the people is not going to be a feasible strategy to stay put to power. You don’t starve someone to do your bidding. He knows you’re starving him. He could collect your money just to feed and still turn against you with his weapon – his vote”
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