By Michael Ofulue, Osogbo

The Osun State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday criticised Governor Ademola Adeleke’s two-year administration, describing it as “motion without movement.”

Speaking at a world press conference in Osogbo, the party’s Director of Media and Information, Chief Kola Olabisi, outlined the APC’s position on the Governor’s second-year anniversary. He alleged that the administration had failed to make impactful efforts to lift the people out of poverty or drive financial prosperity in the state.

Olabisi accused the current administration of prioritising the Office of the Governor over key sectors. He claimed that funds had been allocated for frivolous expenses, such as the purchase of a laptop for N2.1 million and N3 billion spent on 20 Land Cruiser Jeeps for “unproductive politicians.”

According to him, “Given the N630 billion revenue (from both the state and 30 local government areas) that has accrued to the current administration, the government has no excuse for failing to fully settle the modulated arrears.”

Olabisi further stated that from January 2023 to September 2024, the state government had received N385 billion from federal allocations, grants, internally generated revenue (IGR), and other sources.

“This includes N4.3 billion from UBEC and N1.3 billion from TETFund grants in 2023 to improve infrastructure in our primary and tertiary institutions. These federal grants are separate from federation allocations, which have doubled since the removal of subsidies on fuel and foreign exchange by the federal government in 2023,” he added.

“By all estimates, Osun has been fortunate with revenue, particularly federal allocations, which have risen by 100% over the last 12 months. In 2022, before the inauguration of this administration, the federal allocation stood at N73 billion (before debt deductions). However, by the end of the third quarter of 2024, the state had already received N153 billion in federal allocations, surpassing the N99 billion projected for the entire year by N50 billion.”

Despite this financial windfall, Olabisi alleged that Governor Adeleke had neglected key sectors of the economy while significantly increasing allocations to his office. He noted that the office of the governor had recorded 170% budget performance as of September 2024.

“Of the N82 billion earmarked for personnel this year, only N39 billion, representing 47% of the projection, had been released as of September. Similarly, of the N20.5 billion allocated for pensions and gratuities in 2024, only N4.8 billion, less than 20%, had been released. Moreover, of the N11.4 billion budgeted for pension and gratuity arrears, no funds had been released by the end of the third quarter,” he emphasised.

Olabisi described Governor Adeleke’s claim of offsetting a backlog of pensions and gratuities as “a blatant lie from the pit of hell,” insisting that official state documents did not support the Governor’s assertions.

“Recently, in a bid to glorify his lacklustre administration, Governor Adeleke made futile attempts to discredit his predecessors. He claimed that his administration had released N22.6 billion to settle pensions and gratuities within 24 months, which he said represented 70% of what the ‘two previous administrations paid over a 12-year period.’ This claim is entirely false,” Olabisi said.

He argued: “The N17.2 billion quoted by Governor Adeleke as the amount paid by former Governor Oyetola over four years was actually paid within just two years. This demonstrates that the Adeleke administration cannot be trusted.”

The APC concluded its press conference by urging Governor Adeleke to prioritise transparency and accountability, accusing the administration of misleading the public with inaccurate figures and failing to deliver on key promises.