Press Release By The Kogi G-24 Group Lagos, Nigeria

Ordinarily, we wont have dignified the Kogi State Government with a response, but in the face of monumental deceit, it would be a crime to keep quiet and not respond to his fallacious allusions on the LEADERSHIP NEWS PAPER, where the state Government and its Governor spent 44 million on publication, when the average Kogi civil and Public servants are dying of hunger. The publication is laughable and a waste of time.

It is a bigger crime to try and deceive the collectively of the people with their funds, by publishing a one sided and doctored publication. Posterity will not be kind to such people. It is totally uncalled for and a total waste of scarce resources.

If you have actually paid salaries and entitlements of workers, why are all Kogi State Ministries, Departments and Agencies under locks and Key on the order of the NLC? Is it possible that all the civil and public servants are “Political Workers” as opined by the Governor? How possible is that? How will a Government, whose workforce is on strike, perform optimally?
For the purpose of transparency, we want the Government to respond as a matter of urgency to the following questions:

1. Since Government is a continuum, let the Government publish the wage bill of Kogi state civil service of September 2015 and that of July 2017 respectively.
2. The total Federal Government Allocation received from January 2016 to September 2017.
3. The total amount of the following:
a. Bailout Funds
b. Paris Club Refunds
4. Names of workers paid and amount on monthly basis from September 2015 to July 2017.
5. Names of cleared but not paid workers and amount due to them on monthly basis from October 2015 to July 2017
6. Name of pensioners not paid but cleared in monthly basis from October 2015 till July 2017.
All the above should include the amount due to them on monthly basis against their names.
7. Internally generated revenue from January 2016 till September 2017 and how it has been expended.

We are aware of Governments gimmick; it is to mislead the Federal Government into releasing funds to its coffers. We call on the Federal Government, not to fall for such cheap buffoonery. If proper account is not rendered on the usage of previous released funds, no further funds should be released to the Kogi State Government. It would be expended on frivolous usage like buying of exotic cars and other unnecessary ventures.

When all these questions are responded to and calculations made by the public, then we shall agree that the governor is transparent one and has judiciously expended its resources. However, until then, the Government should go ahead to pay its workers and stop giving excuse.


Signed
Dr. Daudu Babatunde
babsdaudu007@gmail.com