The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has dismissed allegations of the $20 million fraud levelled against the immediate past Governor Adegboyega Oyetola by his successor, Governor Ademola Adeleke.
Adeleke, in a petition submitted to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, accused Oyetola of money laundering and violations of the Public Procurement Act.
However, speaking to newsmen, the Osun APC Media Director, Kola Olabisi, accused Adeleke of trying to settle political scores due to his failure to control the state’s local government councils.
He described the petition as a politically motivated attempt to tarnish Oyetola’s reputation.
Olabisi accused Adeleke of using the fraud claim as a tool to settle political scores after failing to control the state’s local government councils.
“When their attempt to forcibly take over local government council offices failed, they resorted to crude tactics to damage the image of former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, a man of candor and probity who served the state honorably,” Olabisi said.
He challenged the Adeleke administration to publish the names of contractors and contract award dates to substantiate its claims.
“Unlike Oyetola, who uploaded details of 110 contracts and procurements on the government portal over three years, the current government has published only seven contract details in two years. This raises serious questions about its commitment to transparency and accountability,” he added.
But in response, the Osun State Government maintained that it would not be intimidated or blackmailed into silence, urging those implicated in the petition to prepare to defend themselves.
The Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, insisted that the petition submitted to the EFCC was based on a thorough investigation and was not politically motivated.
“To set the record straight, the EFCC petition is the result of a painstaking, evidence-based process that began in early 2023. A Contract Review Committee was established to examine the financial dealings of the previous administration, and its findings uncovered widespread corruption, due process violations, and financial mismanagement under Oyetola,” Alimi said.
