Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has denied dumping the former factional Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dele Olugbemi.
The governor also said he had embarked on capital projects in the state apart from paying workers salaries despite the shortfall in federal allocations.
He said this in reaction to allegations that he was paying only salaries with allocations that accrued to the state while neglecting physical development of the state.
The ex-Speaker had rejected the governor’s appointment as member of the state House of Assembly Commission based on “principle.”
Olugbemi said he was not consulted before his appointment was announced on radio inspite of being a member of appointment committee.
Speaking for the governor, his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Idowu Adelusi, said, “It is not true that Governor Fayose dumped him. The governor appointed him a commissioner member of Ekiti State House of Assembly Commission. He earns same salary and entitlements like other commissioners. What else does he want?
“Tunji Odeyemi, who is the commission’s chairman, was the speaker during the time of Segun Oni and also acting governor of the state. Is Olugbemi asking that he should be placed above Odeyemi?
“I don’t know of any other way the governor can treat him. Mind you, if you have assisted anybody in life, it is God who used you, much as God can decide to use somebody else if you declined. In everything, we should give glory to God.”
Speaking on projects embarked on by Fayose in his second coming, Adelusi said, “he has built the Bisi Market in Ado-Ekiti and we are working on others such as the Oja Oba and Awedele markets.
“Road projects are going on in Bawa-Irewumi-Iyin Road; the dualisation of Awedele Road, Car wash-Afao Road, building of drainages, dredging of canals and other ongoing MDG projects.”
Adelusi said the governor would continue to develop the state beyond where his predecessors left it and he would continue to accord priority to payment of workers’ salaries.
The statement added, “It would not do the people of the state any good if the government embarks on projects that would end up as white elephants, while the people lacked money to take care of their basic needs.
“Therefore, the governor gave standing instruction that whenever allocation comes, salary is the priority. We need at least N2.6 billion monthly to pay salaries and give subvention to agencies and institutions.
“Sometimes we do have shortfall, for example in June 2014, the Fayemi administration got much as N3.9 billion allocation, but same time this year, we got N1.8 billion, about 53.4 per cent.”
Adelusi urged the people of the state to continue to support the government, saying the governor was determined to leave the state better than he met it.
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