Certainly this is not the best of time for members of the political class in Kwara state, the electorate and the civil servants who are at the receiving end of the dwindling oil revenue. UMAR BAYO ABDULWAHAB reports.
For members of the political class and supporters of the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC) in the state,the dwindling monthly statutory allocation coming to the state from the federation account had manifested in the lingering lull in the business of governance from where they had always drawn their largesse.
Contractors no longer work in sites following suspension of ongoing projects while new ones are yet to spring up.
To address the situation, the state government had said it would obtain a N10 billion loan from commercial bank to complete all the ongoing projects in the state.
Of course, the civil servants are at the receiving end as they are being owed several months of salary area except for those in the main stream civil service.
Governance at the third tire level, the local government is nothing to write home about.
Activities at this level have completely been grounded council workers are being owned several months.
However, the state government has exonerated itself from the workers plight at the council level.
The state Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed had said that the state government should not be held responsible for the non- payment of council workers’ salaries.
He said it is the sole responsibility of the councils who have autonomy over their allocation to pay their workers salaries.
To make things worse, political leader of the state, Senator Bukola Saraki who they have always run to during such critical moment, is battling for his political life .
Saraki is facing trial before the Code of Conduct Tribunal for alleged falsification of assets a development which some people in the state believed is political.
Following his ongoing trial by the CCT, scores of youths and women last Saturday protested the manner in which his trial is being handled by the CCT.
The protesters under the aegis of Concerned Youths On CCT alleged that the tribunal’s last Thursday ruling was leaked on the social media, about six hours before it was read by Justice Umar Danladi.
The protesters, who arrived the Banquet Hall, opposite Government House, Ilorin in large numbers, also accused the leader of the APC ASIWAJU Bola Ahmed Tinubu of being behind of Saraki’s travails.
The state chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Ishola Balogun-Fulani while addressing the protesters lamented that from what has transpired so far at the tribunal, there was no need guessing that Saraki’s trial is a political set-up.
He told the protesters, most of who carried placards with various inscriptions denouncing the CCT that his party found it difficult to believe that the judgment read by the tribunal’s chairman on Thursday had actually been read by people on the social media as early as 4.00am, while the real judgment was delivered at 10.30am, about six hours later.
A combination of all these factors have made the electorate to gradually lose hope in the APC led government which had promised them positive change.
A change that is different from what the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government which had hitherto ruled the state for about 12 years had proffered.
But against all odds, the governor on Saturday at a meeting with APC stakeholders in Ilorin, the state capital, urged kwarans not to despair over the situation in the state.
He also dispelled insinuation in some quarters that the state is broke.
Ahmed highlighted various measures being taken by his administration to rescue the state from the present situation it found itself.
Among these measures taking according to the governor included introduction of BVN to end salary crisis as well as proposed N20 billion bond to be raised from capital market to fix infrastructures.
BVN as panacea to salary crisis
According to the governor, one of the major measures put in place by his administration to end delay in the payment of salaries in the State is issue of Bank Verification Numbers BVN introduced as condition that must be satisfied by every civil servants before they could receive salaries.
The governor who also doubles as chairman Committee on Personnel Database Development in the state, said government has no intention of withholding any worker’s salary without justification.
He said the affected workers and pensioners will still be credited with their salaries and pensions but will not be able to access the money until they obtain BVN.
He explained that the unique bank numbers were necessary for preliminary verification of workers and pensioners on the state and local government councils’ payroll, noting that at this stage of the verification those without valid BVN could not yet be designated as ghost workers.
Governor Ahmed said the intention behind the Personnel Database System is to give the government an accurate picture of the state and Local Government Councils’ payroll and ensure that only those properly employed receive salaries and pensions.
He assured that the verification of workers in the state through the presentation of Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) and the proposed Biometric exercise will end delay in the payment of salaries in the State.
He added that through the presentation of the BVN, salaries of local governments workers and State Universal Basic Education teachers, which had been a major problem would become a thing of the past.
Proposed N20 billion bond
Giving a cheering news to contractors, the governor said with the approval by the Debt Management Office of the N20 billion Bond to be secured by the State, the tempo of the development of infrastructure in the state would be faster.
Some of the projects tied to the bond, the governor said, include the expansion of some major roads in the State capital, construction of two new campuses of Kwara State University in Ilesha-Baruba and Osi in Baruten and Ekiti local government areas respectively.
“With increased internally generated revenue, youth empowerment and employment programme of this administration would also improve tremendously”, he promised.
Though ,the desirability or otherwise to obtain the bond had generated heat in the state but the government insisted it is the only way out of the economic downtown arising from dwindling monthly revenue from the federation account.
Council polls
Barring any last minute change,elections into the sixteen local government of the state are expected to be conducted by the state Independent Electoral Commission( KWSIEC) latter in the year.
The council polls is the first major election holding in the state after the 2015 general elections which saw the APC recording a landslide victory.
For the ruling APC to continue it dominance in the state ,the governor used the opportunity of the meeting to set a direction for the party ahead of the polls.
He advised that the principle of zoning formula,loyalty,credibility must put into consideration before councillorship and chairmanship candidates could emerge.
The governor who is a beneficiary of the zoning formula introduced into the polity of the state during the 2011 govenrnorship election in the state is canvassing same approach for the forthcoming council polls
Ahmed also advised them to adopt inclusive approach in the emergence of candidates for elections in all the 16 local government areas of the state.
He charged APC local and ward chairmen and stakeholders in the state to be fully prepared in their respective council areas for the poll.
The governor’s comments over the poll have raised the hope of the electorate about the
Prior to the Saturday’s meeting, there have been skecpitism among members of the political class on whether the council polls will hold or a caretaker will be constituted for the councils.
But with the governor’s comments had again raised the hope of the people at the grassroots that at least live will return to the councils after several months of lull in governance.
Above all, Ahmed called for unity of purpose amongst party faithful and people of the state in spite of the challenges confronting the state.
“Our strength is in our unity as it creates better understanding and development; indications that things will get better”.
