Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State

GBENRO ADESINA/IBADAN

The Oyo State Government has slashed the salaries and arrears of its political appointees by 50% following the continued drop in federal allocation and slow increase in the state internally generated revenue.

The government equally announced that the award of a N28b for dualization of four major roads within the state saying that the fund for the roads’ construction would be sourced from the Federal Government Road Intervention Fund.

These were disclosed by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Olalekan Ali during an Inter-Ministerial Press briefing on Monday at the State Ministry of Information’s Film Theatre on the resolutions of the Executive Council meeting held on Friday, November 4, 2016.

Alli, who was accompanied at the press briefing by Commissioners of Education, Information, Lands and Works, Professor Adeniyi Olowofela, Messrs. Toye Arulogun, Isaac Omodewu and Oladimeji Wasiu respectively, said that the salary and arrears cut as part of the measures put in place to reduce the cost of governance.

According to him, “The last Executive Council meeting approved a 50% cut in the salaries and arrears of political appointees in Oyo State to reflect the current economic situation borne out of the dwindling financial situation in the country, while all government spending will also be reduced by 50%. All these will take effect immediately”.

Ali said that the State government has succeeded in blocking all tax holes while the physical verification exercise embarked upon recently, exposed so many areas where some individuals were drawing multiple salaries and some getting salaries without working for the government.

He went further to disclose that about 500 people indicted based on Bank Verification Number , BVN, never appeared to clear their issues with the special panel set up to attend to the problem, adding that others who were cleared by the panel have collected their arrears of salaries till April, 2016.

The Secretary to the government assured the people of the State that the hope for a quick recovery from the economic recession is expected as the administration was not relenting in its efforts at securing food security in the State through its Agric-Oyo program and establishment of 10,000 metric tonnes of silos in Oyo township, saying that these efforts would be replicated in all the three senatorial districts of the state for food security.

Speaking at the briefing, the Commissioner for Works and Transport, Mr. Wasiu Dauda informed news men that the Executive Council approved the sum of N28billion for dualization of four different road projects in the State through the Federal Government Road Intervention Fund.

The roads are, dualization of Saki Township road from Oke-Ogun Polytechnic to Ilesa-Baruba road, 11.0km road contracted to Adolf Engineering Development Company at a contract sum of #8,239,875,839.47 to be completed within 18months, dualization of Idi Ape- Basorun –Akobo-Odogbo Barracks Junction (7km) including an overhead bridge across Lagos-Ibadan Expressway contracted to RCC Nigeria Limited at a sum of #7, 177,375,941.46 for 18 months duration.

Other roads are the dualization of Agodi Gate- Old Ife Road- Adegbayi Junction (7.3km) with limited rehabilitation of spur to Alakia-Ibadan Airport (3.3km) including an underpass bridge across Lagos-Ibadan expressway contracted to Charvet Nigeria Limited at a contract sum of #8,535,343,916.16 within 18months duration and expansion of Oke Adu- Agodi Gate- Idi Ape- Iwo Road Interchange (3.2km) given to CGC Nigeria Limited at a contract sum of #3, 630,924,756.52 in the duration of 12 months.

Oladimeji said that the State would not leave any stone unturned in the rehabilitation of damaged roads within the State as the Road Maintenance Agency would soon embark on various rehabilitation exercises within the state.