A civil group, the Civil Societies Coalition for the Emancipation of
Osun State(CSCEOS) has warned the State governor,Mr. Rauf Aregbesola
against diverting the second phase of the Paris Club Refunds accrued
to the State by the Federal Government, saying that Mr.Aregbesola led
State Government has been in the habit of diverting the funds accrued
to the State since November,2010,which made the State under
Aregbesola’s watch to owe workers and retirees alike to the tune of
ten(10) months’ salary and pension arrears respectively.
It however, urged the good people of the State,particularly,the
workers and retirees alike to monitor the State government on the
spending of the Second phase of Paris Club Refunds by ensuring
judicious utilization of the funds,calling on the anti-graft agencies
in the land to monitor the State government on the funds.
Recently, President Muhammadu Buhari,upon returning to the country,
after 49 days of medical vacation in London Hospital,directed the
Minister of Finance,Mrs Kemi Adeosun to release the sum of $6.9
billion to the thirty-six(36) States of the Federation and Federal
Capital Territory,Abuja, for the payment of backlogs of workers’
salaries,pensions and gratuities to ameliorate the current suffering
of the workers and retirees respectively and by extension to the
masses of the country,adding that the State government under
Aregbesola would receive the sum of $168million.
This was contained in a signed statement by the CSCEOS’
Chairman,Comrade Adeniyi,Alimi Sulaiman,a copy was made available to
Journalists on Monday,urged the State government to use the Paris Club
Refunds for the payment of the backlogs of 10months salary and pension
arrears of workers and retirees respectively and as well as backlogs
of gratuity from 2008 to 2017,advising the leadership of the Labour
Unions in the State to stop betraying the trust and confidence the
workers repose in them by fighting for the workers and retirees
welfare.
Speaking on the purported letter originated from the Independent
Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC),
claiming by the State government to be directed to the Chairman of the
organization, declared that the group or any of its members were yet
to receive any letter from the anti-graft agency (ICPC), not to talk
of contents therein.
Comrade Sulaiman stated that only Aregbesola who was looking for way
to distract the attention of the good people of Osun State from
monitoring the utilization of the second phase of Paris Club Refunds,
was in custody of such letter, challenging the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC),if truly
delivered the letter to the Civil group(CSCEOS) to come out with the
day,date ,time,hour and the place which the letter was delivered to
the either Chairman or any of its member, adding that whenever he
received such a letter, the organization would respond appropriately
by making the contents and original copy of the letter available to
the public.
Speaking further on the recent released of the State debt burden by
Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI),Abuja,it
rejected the exaggeration position of the State government, declaring
that the debt burden of the State under Rauf Aregbesola led
administration was presently between N300billion to N400billion.
CSCEOS insisted that the NIETI reports did not capture the Commercial
banks loan which made Aregbesola to raise alarm sometime ago that the
State government would not pay workers’ salaries and pension anymore
because Commercial banks refused to grant loan to the State government
again, advising Mr. Aregbesola to come out clean on the state of total
debt of the State, instead of beating around the bush on the subject