The State House of Assembly in Oyo State has ordered all 33 Council bosses in the State to submit reports of their activities within the next two weeks in response to petitions and allegations of abuse of office, non-performance, gross misconduct, and financial irresponsibility against some Local Government Chairmen in the State.
This includes funds allocation, internally generated revenue (IGR), programs, and projects carried out between January and July 2022. The report must also include detailed information on the income and expenditure of all LG councils and their Local Council Development Areas, or LCDAs.
The motion, sponsored by Hon. Babajide Gabriel (Ib North2) and Hon. Akeem Mustapha, was part of the House’s resolutions on Thursday (Kajola) and Hon. Abdullah AbdulRasaq (Ibadan South East 1).
“The evaluation of these Chairmen by stakeholders, politicians, community leaders, and others in their various domains revealed that some of them have performed up to expectations in tandem with His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde’s development policy while some have performed below expectations, impeding grass-roots development.
Some members of the local government have voiced complaints about complete negligence in terms of meeting necessities like repairing neighborhood roads, bridges, schools, and primary health facilities.
As the elected representatives of the local populace, we must constantly improve our oversight functions over the local government and other governmental agencies in accordance with the Constitution’s provisions in order to attain a real representation of our people.”
The directive also became imperative following three petitions read at the floor of the house accusing the Chairmen of Olorunsogo (Mrs Oluwakemi Juliana Akanni Ika), Iwajowa (Hon. Adebare ) and Ido (Hon. Sherrif Adeojo) of gross abuse of office. The House in its unanimous resolution suspended Olorunsogo Chairperson over gross abuse of office and directed that the Leader of the Local Government Parliament ascends the throne with immediate effect.
The House urged the Chairmen to be more responsive and proactive to the needs and yearnings of the local people in their domains by providing basic amenities.