Mohammed Shosanya
Edo All Progressives Congress, APC, Transition Committee, has recommended the institution of inquiry into the finances of the state under outgoing administration of Mr. Godwin Obaseki.
The committee noted that the outgoing government did not provide audited financial statements published or unpublished.
It also implored the new administration to carry out a complete review of all Memoranda of Understandings (MOUs) on the management of the Central Hospital and that of the Stella Obasanjo by the outgoing government.
The 25-member committee headed by the former deputy governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, further recommended that all the local and foreign debts incurred under Obaseki must be accounted for, pointing out that even the procurement agency in its report to the transition committee, indicted the government.
The APC had on 14th October, 2024,set up a Transition Committee made up of 25 members and chaired by the former deputy governor of Edo State,Dr. Odubu, to interface with the outgoing government for a seamless transition.
After three weeks of assignments, meetings, interactions, engagements and analyses of the documents presented to the committee,according to Odubu,it came out with the following recommendation viz:
That all employment carried out in the recent past by the outgoing administration was canceled.
The committee also urged the incoming governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo to investigate the true ownership of the Ossiomo Power Plant and Raddisson Blu Hotel as well as the Museum of West Africa Arts- MOWAA with a view to know the state’s equity in these companies as the outgoing government went blank on these enquiries.
It further demanded that the new administration should carry out a comprehensive review of the world bank funded EdoBest programme, adding that a probe be instituted to uncover its rather ‘opaque’ operations.
“All major contracts issued by the state government under the Ministry of Roads and Bridges should be reviewed as they appear not to have followed due process including the payment advance awarded to the contractors.
“The procurement agency indicted the government in its own report to the Transition Committee hence we have advised the new Governor to take a critical review.
“The ICT ecosystem should be streamlined as there appears to be duplication of duties.
“The outgoing government didn’t provide audited financial statements published or unpublished hence the committee is advising the government to institute an inquiry into this.
“The government couldn’t account for the number of teachers in the state hence we demand a proper teacher head count”, the transition committee declared.
The incoming governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo who received the report of the committee on Monday,promised to passionately look at all the recommendations as contained in the report and do justice to it without bias.