Oyo Govt Sacks Council Bosses Over Financial Recklessness |The Source

By Tosin Olatokunbo

The 13 local government chairmen suspended by the Oyo state house of assembly on Tuesday  mismanaged funds allocated to them by the state government, the magazine has learnt.

The lawmakers suspended, indefinitely, the  council caretaker chairmen in the state  indefinitely over what they attributed to their “non-compliance to the resolution of the House on submission of status of earth-moving equipment in their respective domains to the House as requested.”

The affected councils are Akinyele East LCDA, Ido LG, Oluyole LG, Ibadan North-East LG, Lagelu West LCDA, Soro LCDA, and Ogbomosho Central LCDA.

Others are Ogbomosho South LCDA, Ajorosun LCDA, Ibarapa North West LCDA, Itesiwaju LG, Oyo East LG, and Oyo South East LCDA.

But The Source learnt from sources close to the governor that the council boss were fired due to mismanagement of funds allocated to them by the state since they came into office close to two years ago.

Governor Seyi Makinde had ordered the total audit of all the LGAs last month after it was discovered that nothing was going on in their various jurisdictions in terms of physical development despite receiving monthly allocation from the state government.

“The extent of mismanagement by some council bosses was so much that some of them cannot event clean up their offices. We found litters everywhere, broken windows and buildings where some chairmen have their offices are dilapidated,” a source privy to the government said.

According to to the source, some equipment inherited from the previous government and those purchased by the incumbent for rural development and agriculture had also been looted, vandalized or out-rightly sold by some council chairmen.

“It was based on this that the Assembly asked them to go to allow for further investigations,” sources close to the governor said.

The suspended council bosses were suspended as a result of their woeful performance, the sources disclosed adding that those left to continue their jobs performed average.

The council chairmen were appointed by Governor Makinde in December 2019.

There are 33 councils and 35 Local Government Development Areas, LCDAs in the state.