BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
About two weeks after the immediate past governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oyetola, former deputy, Benedict Alabi and other top appointees of the erstwhile administration were accused of brazenly carting away government properties at the official quarters of the state, another looting has been allegedly uncovered.
This time, the looting was carried out at the Osun State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja allegedly by Oyetola’s team, a statement issued by Olawale Rasheed, spokesperson to the Executive Governor of the state, Ademola Adeleke, revealed.
Upon physical inspection carried out over the weekend at the Abuja building by the State Assets Inventory and Recovery Committee, under the Chairmanship of Dr. B.T Salam and other top government functionaries, items such as television sets, chairs, foams, electrical fittings, bed sheets, spoons and cutleries, among other valuables were said to have been illegally removed from the lodge.
The statement further revealed that civil servants in the Abuja lodge confirmed the pillaging of state’s asset by Oyetola’s men but said they were powerless in stopping them.
It reads, “The Osun State Government is constrained to report yet another discovery of mindless looting of public properties at the Governor’s lodge in Abuja. The unprecedented pillaging of assets in the lodge was uncovered when a physical inspection was conducted on the facility during the weekend.
“The lodge was stripped of all valuables acquired with public fund by those officials of the past administration.
“From the main house to the service flats and up to the boys quarters, clear indications of valuables removed can be observed. Items such as television sets, chairs, foams, electrical fittings, bed sheets, spoons and cutleries, among other valuables were illegally removed from the lodge.
“Every utility vehicles procured for use in the lodge was also carted away from the building. The lodge was in a terrible state and similar to the way we found the Deputy Governor’s quarters and others at the Government House in Osogbo following the brazen looting of that facility.
“We are shocked by this lust for materialism as evidenced in the unexplained pilfering of public properties by officials of the past administration. Civil servants in the Abuja lodge confirmed the pillaging of state’s asset by Mr Oyetola’s men but said they were powerless in stopping them.
“That this happened in the Federal Capital Territory is another peep into the gross abuse of office and by officials of the past administration. Those who think we were playing politics with the revelation only just need to see the level of theft of public assets that we found on ground.
“This matter, just like those before it, is being looked into by the Assets Inventory and Recovery Committee and we want to assure the public of this government’s firm resolve to recover every stolen assets. We want to call on whoever is in possession of public properties to return them forthwith. The Assets recovery committee is working round the clock to track and recover all looted assets.”
Recall that while some of Oyetola’s men had justified the alleged looting, other former appointees of Oyetola had claimed that the State Government House was pillaged by “unknown men.”
Recently, Oyetola, through his spokesperson, Ismail Omipidan, had accused Adeleke’s men of being responsible for the looting at the Osun State official quarters.
