Lagos Assembly Summons Council Chairmen

Engineer Fatai Oyesanya and Mrs. Morenike Adesina Williams, Chairmen of Ikosi-Isheri and Igando-Ikotun local council development  areas respectively, have been summoned by the Lagos State House of Assembly over alleged administrative lapses in their councils.

Also summoned by the House Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Affairs are the clerk, councillors and some senior staff of the Igando-Ikotun LCDA over an alleged frosty relationship between some of them and the council chairman leading to poor revenue generation as well as poor working conditions of the councilliors.

Though no date has been fixed for their appearance, the Committee said the invitation was necessary to put the affected councils in shape to meet the yearnings of the residents of the state.

The Committee, which reiterated the need for council chairmen to complement the efforts of the state governor, is now inspecting some of the projects claimed to have been executed by the council chairmen.

For the Ikosi-Isheri LCDA, the Committee summoned the chairman after inspecting projects executed by the council and interacting with the council officials who accused Oyesanya of high-handedness and insensitive management decisions.

Chairman of the Committee, Moshood Oshun, explained that the invitation of the chairmen was not intended to witch-hunt anybody, noting that doubts are bound to linger and further clarifications required to dispel them.

Leader of the Ikosi-Isheri LCDA, Prince Owolabi Taiwo, while being questioned by the Committee, revealed that the executive arm of the council ran a one-man show.

He said the councillors were not being carried along by the council chairman.

Other councillors who spoke complained seriously saying that the Chairman created dichotomy among them in order to get away with his high-handedness.

The councillors also appealed to the Committee members to remove the clerk who is believed to be Engr. Oyesanya’s pointsman.

It was alleged that the council chairman personally drafted the Year 2012 budget without the inputs of the supervisors and relevant stakeholders.

During an interactive session with the management staff of the LCDA, the legal and the information units also told the lawmakers that attempts by them to do their jobs have been frustrated as the council embarked on projects without their inputs.

Projects inspected by the committee include the new council secretariat building (under construction), road construction on Oluwalogbon and Oladele streets.

P.M. NEWS had earlier reported the crisis of confidence between the chairman and the councillors in Igando-Ikotun LCDA leading to the attack on some of the councillors over their demand for allowances.

When the Committee visited the council, the councillors expressed dissatisfaction over their poor welfare.

At the Alimosho Local Government Council, the Committee complained about the poor handling of the contract awarded for the renovation of offices at the Egbeda Primary School and asked the council to recall the contractor to start the renovation again.

At the Egbe-Idimu LCDA, the Leader of the council could not give the figure of the 2012 budget of the council even though he confirmed that the councillors approved it.

He was rescued by the council chairman, Adebayo Bello, who put the budget figure at N840 million. Also, the leader could not give the number of resolutions passed by the House since the beginning of the year.

—EROMOSELE EBHOMELE