Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State has said the dwindling federal allocation and increasing wage bill impede state government’s investment in capital project across the three senatorial districts of the state, saying huge expenses incurred on monthly basis to service recurrent expenditure are too much to perform.
Speaking at State Civil Society Conversation with Governor organised by the Committee for Defence of Human Rights in Abeokuta to commemorate 2016 Democracy Day, Governor Amosun said “the state collects as low as N700 million as the federation allocation monthly,” and could not be enough to undertake major capital projects, hence, some projects were left uncompleted.
While fielding questions from the panellists on the perception of the public that his government was favouring his cronies and family members, Amosun said he had never intervened in the process of the employment in the state and would never, saying he could not secure job for his nephew at a time because the process did not take him.
He, however, said he had to stop the latest process being undertaken by government to employ more workers because the top officials in charge compromised it.
While responding to the state of education and school, he said he had spent N20 billion on subventions for state-owned tertiary institutions, and was still trying to increase internally generated revenue as a sure means of financing seemingly abandoned capital projects.
Earlier, the state chairman of CDHR, Yinka Folarin, who commended the state government on some of the capital projects being executed, requested government to embark on rural development and localisation of infrastructural projects at the rural areas.
While making recommendations for government, Folarin said that the Civil society group in the State had resolved that State government should appoint a commissioner for women affairs in order to pay more attention to some issues concerning women, adding that State government should also empower the Vigilante Service of Ogun State and canvass for adequate support from corporate bodies.
