LG crisis: Osun APC blames Adeleke for unpaid salaries

Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has accused Governor Ademola Adeleke of being responsible for the non-payment of salaries and allowances of grassroots workers across the state.

In a statement issued by Kola Olabisi, the Osun APC Director of Media and Information on Saturday, the party alleged that the governor withheld vital documents required to process payments from local government allocations.

The party criticised the governor for spreading false narratives regarding the management of local government funds.

The statement came as a direct reaction to remarks made by Governor Adeleke in Osogbo, where he reportedly accused the APC of hijacking federal allocations meant for local government councils.

According to the APC, such claims were misleading and aimed at gaining political sympathy from the public.

“It is absolutely wrong and demeaning for the chief executive of a state to employ the use of lies and subterfuge to run his administration,” the statement read.

The party maintained that federal allocations to local government councils were being accessed by reinstated council chairmen, who it said had been executing projects in their respective areas.

It cited initiatives such as road grading and the distribution of motorcycles and financial support to residents as evidence of utilisation of the funds.

The APC stated that the delay in salary payments to primary school teachers, health workers and other local government employees was linked to the governor’s refusal to release essential financial documents.

“We expected the governor to be bold enough to tell the truth about the delay in the payment of salaries and allowances of grassroots workers,” the statement added.

It explained that the withheld documents included electronic salary vouchers, actuarial valuation registers for pensioners, and audited records of leave bonuses and union deductions.

According to the party, these documents are necessary for processing payments and settling entitlements of workers and retirees.

The APC urged the governor to release the documents, insisting that the reinstated local government chairmen were ready to facilitate prompt payment once the required approvals were granted.

However, as at the time of fielding this report messages and calls put across to Olawale Rasheed, Spokesperson to Governor Ademola Adeleke for a reaction went unanswered.