21st October, 2014
Abiodun Onafuye/Abeokuta
The former governor of Ogun state and a former chieftain of Labour Party in the state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel has accused his successor of underperforming in the state, revealing that the present administration in the state has incurred debt to the tune of over N200 billion in just three and half years in office.
Daniel disclosed that total amount of debt the state was owing banks in 2011 when he left office was N13 billion, which he stated that, after intensive verification, the debt profile was reduced to the sum of N3.7billion.
The former governor stated this on Tuesday in Abeokuta, the state capital at the unification rally of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as he led thousand of members of the Labour Party back into the PDP.
It would be recalled that the former governor angrily left the party at the end of his administration in 2011 to join the Peoples Party of Nigeria, PPN due to internal crisis rocking the party which finally end the eight years ruling of the party in the state.
Otunba Daniel said further that the much advertised leap in the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state by the present administration was achieved as a result of over taxation of workers in the state, saying, the incoming PDP government will be workers-friendly.
The Amosun-led government declared that the current IGR of the state has leaped to the tune of over five billion naira as against the N730 million generated by Daniel’s administration.
He also accused Amosun of attempting to scrap the four ICT Polytechnics established in the state by his government, adding that, over 12,000 students in the enrolment of the institutions would have been thrown out. He noted that it will be “a great disservice to the people”.
“The present Amosun government in the state is a bad government, they are building bridges, we thank them, and we know they cannot complete them. I assure you that we shall complete them when we come into government,” Daniel stated.
The former governor however recalled the events that led to the exit of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP from governance in the state, attributing it to the division in the party then.
He disclosed that the party lost the state in 2011 to defunct Action Congress of Nigeria, (ACN) because the party was badly divided.
According to OGD as fondly called by his political admirers, “The ACN did not win the election; we lost because we were quarrelling. Either they like it or not, we are coming into the state House in 2015,” Daniel assured.
While welcoming the new decampees into the party, the state PDP Chairman, Engr Bayo Dayo, maintained that, “there are no decampees, we are merely welcoming our brothers who left the party for Labour Party. We have settled our differences, we are confident that the PDP will occupy Oke-Mosan, come 2015.
“Ogun people are yearning for a new lease of life; we should shun selfish interest and be united. This is a day that God has blessed. It is a day of unification with our members who had earlier defected; I want to specifically welcome you from the Labour Party and the All Progressives Congress (APC) back to the PDP. Let me reiterate that the PDP is the party for this generation. As you come, you will enjoy equal privilege with others in the party,” the state PDP Chairman posited.
The Ijebu Igbo born politician however expressed appreciation to the National Chairman of the Party, Alhaji Adamu Muazu and President of the country, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan for their wisdom and knowledge in directing the affairs of the party, which according to him, is the biggest political party in Africa.
Notable among those that returned to the PDP today include the former Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Tunji Sarafa Ishola, Commissioners under Daniel’s administration, present and past members of the State House of Assembly and other members from both the state and local government levels.