Politics
N11 billion wage bill: Oyo PDP tackles APC, threatens to open dirty past
The Oyo State chapter of the Peoples Party (PDP) on Saturday has reacted to the campaign of calumny against the State Governor, Engr., Seyi Makinde by APC, saying if the trend continues, their dirty past would be recalled.
The party said, the Governor had wooed foreign investors to the State as a result of his business visit to a recent business/investment forum in the United States of America (USA).
The ruling party in Oyo described as misrepresentation, statement by the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, quoting the Governor as saying, “Oyo has a workforce of 115,000 and pays a wage bill of N11 billion.”
The statement which was signed by the Publicity Secretary of Oyo State PDP, Engineer Akeem Olatunji, noted that, “those behind the attacks are uninformed, mischievous devious and attention seekers.”
The statement said: “the opposition APC and some political minions including one Mr. Hakeem Alao, who is claiming to be the governorship candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in the last election, are confused and needed to be educated about running a state.
The party pointed out that the figure put out by Governor Makinde was a combination of state and local government workers and that the implementation of the minimum wage and incremental adjustment took the wage bill of workers in both tiers of government from N8 billion monthly to N11 billion.
The party added that Governor Makinde has not intention to loot the state at PDP was trying to make people believe adding that, the Governor has demonstrated his commitment to genuine governance in the state.
“Makinde has proven through his policies and actions that integrity is non-negotiable and rekindled the hope of Nigerians that public accountability and transparency could be practised in governance.”
It added that the erstwhile ruling party is afraid of its shadows and thinks everyone would be like its leaders, who made a mess of governance and stole the state blind when given the opportunity to govern it.
“We read with bewilderment the statement credited to the crisis-ridden All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State in which it criticised Governor Seyi Makinde, following his well-articulated and widely-commended investment pitch during the recently concluded Nigerian-American Business Forum held at Florida, United States.
“In their usual frustrated nature, the APC tried to cast aspersion on another wonderful initiative of the Makinde administration: selling Oyo State to the world with a view to attracting investments and expanding its economy.
“By leaving the meat of Makinde’s strategic proposal to investors to embrace Oyo State and the uncommon passion with which he advertised Oyo to hundreds of investors, to dwell on the figure of the Oyo State workforce and the wage bill, the APC showed itself as wicked and unconcerned about the prosperity of the state.
“In the statement, the APC or perhaps its attention-seeking publicity handlers, made unjustifiable claim that the 115,000 workforce and N11 billion wage figure quoted by the governor was fake and an attempt to loot.
“It went into a rigmarole of the alleged figures of each segment of the workforce at the state and local government levels, claiming that workers at the local government councils were paid directly from the federation account.
“One wonders whether the crisis of confidence rocking the APC has rendered everyone in it incapable of thinking straight.
“If not, the writers of that statement would have been able to see that the total tally of the figures they pushed out was even more than the 115,000 quoted by Governor Makinde.
“We also know that reasonable people will see that it is no-brainer that the figure and wage bill quoted by the governor was the overall workforce in Oyo State, a position, which the governor made clear in his statement.
“We have seen the deficit in the education of the APC members and we are ready to offer pro bono services in teaching them the art of governance and running a state.
“One, Governor Makinde committed no blunder by saying that the workforce of Oyo State is 115,000; he did not say that was the figure of the workforce of the Oyo State government.
“Two, the local government workers and pensioners are not paid from federation account as claimed by the unlearned APC publicity handlers.
Former presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party in the 2023 general election, Adewole Adebayo said, God has told him that the party will produce the next president in 2027 general election.
Speaking over the weekend in Abeokua when he met the members and executive who were led by the State Chairman, Yinka Ola-Williams, said he could confirm that a President of SDP will mount Aso Rock villa in 2027.
“One thing that God is telling me is that there will be an SDP president in the villa in 2027.
“For the first time in a long time, we will have people who care for the people. Let’s remain focused. The problems of Nigeria are our problems, not individuals.
“We are not against Tinubu as a person but we are against hunger, inflation, poverty, insecurity, unemployment. That’s what we are against,” he said.
Buttressing Adebayo’s position on modalities of joining the party, the SDP Chairman in Ogun State, Mr. Yinka Ola-Williams, disowned 30,000 membership cards and registers allegedly being flaunted by one of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirants in the 2023 governorship election in the State.
Ola-Williams said the party’s door is widely opened to anybody who wants to join, but such a person or group, no matter how highly placed, must follow the procedure as laid down in the party’s constitution.
He emphatically stated that the party had nothing to do with the membership cards and registers claimed by the aspirant, who said he got them from the party’s National Secretariat.
“We want people to join us, and we want to work together to provide a better government than what we have now that will remove poverty, provide a better healthcare system for people, improve education and all.
“But not that they come to the party, hijack the party and take the structure away. That’s what we will not agree,” Ola-Williams said.
Barrister Adewole Adebayo, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 general election, apprehensive of massive defection to the party urged defectors to go through legitimate route and due process.
Speaking over the weekend in Abeokuta, Adebayo when he met with SDP members and executive members led by the State Chairman, Yinka Ola-Williams, said the party is open to defectors, but they must do so legitimately.
Flanked by the former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, the former presidential candidate allayed fears that defectors may hijack the party, stressing that the National Working Committee of SDP can only issue membership cards through the executive at the state levels.
He said, “People are counterfeiting naira, they are counterfeiting the dollar, they’re bringing counterfeit rice, and NAFDAC is chasing counterfeit drugs. Why are you surprised that there are counterfeit party cards? Especially if the party cards are carried by counterfeit politicians who have a history of doing counterfeiting in their former parties. So, we should forgive everybody, but this counterfeiting will not work in SDP.”
“We are not fighting anybody we are only saying ‘come to our house through the front door not through the ceiling or the window.’ That’s all. Everybody here joined the party legitimately, anybody coming will join legitimately”.
“We have spoken to the National Chairman and the NWC, he said there’s no counterfeiting of anything. Any card that’s not given through the state, LG and executives is not from the SDP. So, if they come, you will tell them to go away. Put your name in our register here and pay us here. We will get the card for you. That’s how it is”.
“They want to run faster than their legs. Secondly, you are hearing rumors that people are coming to our party, Awolowo is coming, Azikiwe is coming, Balewa, Ahmadu Bello is coming. Let’s see them. Nigerians know us and they know them.”
He ruled out any plan that SDP would merge or collaborate with the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC or any political party ahead of 2027 general election.
According to him, SDP is committed to the well-being and welfare of Nigerians, while he ruled out insinuations that the party is an appendage of APC.
“Maybe APC has appendicitis; they should go to the hospital to kill it. We are a strong party. We are older than any of the parties available. Our mission is clear: we are not in government with them.
“I led the party in the last election. I’m still standing here. I’m not a minister under Tinubu; all the state chairman and the national chairman are intact, including the national secretary. So, we are standing on our own.
“The reason people look down on us is because we don’t attack people, but we tackle issues because our party is a party of intellect. We are the only party that’s a little to the left. Having been a little to the left since we came in 1989, we remain so.
“The problems of Nigeria can only be found with solutions on the left, which is that chapter two of the Constitution, invest money in education, in housing, in healthcare, good infrastructure, let Nigerians live what chief Obafemi Awolowo called a life more abundant,” he said.
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, has expressed his heartfelt condolences to the Governor of Katsina State, Malam Dikko Umar Radda, over the passing of his mother, Hajiya Safarau Umar Baribari.
In a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Edwin Olofu, Dr. Ganduje described Hajiya Safarau’s death as a profound loss that has left a deep void in the hearts of her family, friends, and the people of Katsina State.
Extending his sympathies, the APC National Chairman condoled with Governor Radda, the bereaved family, and the entire people of Katsina State during this difficult time.
He acknowledged the remarkable contributions of the late Hajiya Safarau and prayed for Almighty Allah (SWT) to grant her eternal rest in Jannatul Firdaus while strengthening the family to bear this irreplaceable loss.
Dr. Ganduje urged Governor Radda and others affected to find comfort in the cherished memories and enduring legacy of the deceased.
Reaffirming the APC’s support, the former Kano State governor assured the people of Katsina State of the party’s solidarity in their time of grief and prayed that Allah (SWT) grant the departed soul Al-Jannah Firdaus. Ameen.
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