Press Statement
The Lagos State Chapter of the Socialist
Party of Nigeria (SPN) condemns the monumental fraud taking place at the local
councils in Lagos. According to Premium
Times, a government audit has indicted 8 Local Council of squandering at least
N224 million of public funds, The Local Councils indicted by the 2012 Audit
Report are Surulere, AgbadoOke-odo, Coker-Aguda,
Egbe-Idumu, Eredo, Iba, Ikosi-Isheri, and Lagos Island East. The report accused
the Council officials of financial recklessness.
The Audit Report
reportedly also revealed that another set of eight Local Councils are jointly
indebted to the tune of N788.3 million. These councils are Eti-Osa East, Lagos
Mainland, Somolu, Ikoyi-Obalende, Iru-Victoria Island, Yaba, Agbado Oke-odo and
Eti-Osa.
For instance,
officials of Agbado Oke-Odo paid N11.5 million personal advance for staff since
2010 but failed to deduct the payments from the beneficiaries’ salaries. The
officials also failed to remit statutory deductions from Contracts awarded to
the tune N40.9 million.
It is
instructive to stress that the local councils are not the only culprits at putting
odious debt burden on the masses the
Lagos State Government has also massively plunged Lagos State to the tune of N160
billion.
We hold that it
is the anti-poor neo-liberal capitalist policy thrust, which promote
self-serving agenda at the expense of development and interest of the working
masses, together with bureaucratic running of government that provide fertile ground
for these monumental frauds. This is one of the reasons we of the SPN always
call for allocations, budgets and projects to be placed under a democratic
control of elected representatives of workers and communities.
This development
has further confirmed our position that the creation of Local Development
Council Areas (LCDAs) was meant and not for development of these areas but to
accommodate political stooges and hangers-on of the ruling Action Congress, now
APC,
We hold that the
massive corruption in the Local Government Councils just like in the state and
federal government largely contribute to the poor state of infrastructure or
lack of them in all the communities across Lagos State and the country. Most of
the roads in the communities in Lagos are in deplorable state, schools are
dilapidated or ill-equipped, mass housing policy is non-existent, etc. Very
little or nothing suggests the presence of these LGAs in terms of developmental
projects while the public officials do not only receive outrageously jumbo salaries
and allowances but also continue to loot
public funds with impunity.
We are dead sure
that if a thorough probe is carried out on all the Local Government Area
Councils and the Lagos Council Development Area Councils, more damning and
scaring corrupt practices will be revealed.
We demand a
probe panel to be comprised of elected representatives of workers and communities
with the mandate to investigate Local Government finances and purported
projects. We call on the working people and youths to ensure that all officials
found culpable must be prosecuted.
We hold that only
a mass party of working people with socialist program as well as transparent
and democratic management of human and natural resources planned to meet the
needs of all and not the profit interest of a few is capable of sustainably
moving the country forward economically, politically and socially.
MoshoodOshunfurewa
State Secretary
08094707558
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