PRESS CONFERENCE
THE MIND-BOGGLING N13.7 BILLION PAYROLL FRAUD IN OSUN BY GOVERNOR ADEMOLA ADELEKE’S ADMINISTRATION*
Gentlemen of the Press,
1. The troubling revelation of an alleged annual N13.7 billion payroll fraud rocking the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke, as disclosed by the Vice Chairman (Chief Executive Officer) of Sally Tibbot Consulting Limited, Saadat Ottun, has once again vindicated our party and confirmed our patriotic posture over the last three years of the Senator Ademola Adeleke administration.
2. The revelation has not only validated the sheer irresponsibility and incompetence of Governor Adeleke and his horde of associates, but has also confirmed that the government in Osun is a cesspool of corruption and one that the anti-corruption agencies must beam their searchlight on to fish out the criminals and economic vagabonds milking the resources of Osun State and lining their pockets with our commonwealth.
3. The alleged complicity of Dr Deji Adeleke and of the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Alhaji Kazeem Akinleye, alongside other key members of the governor’s inner circle, raises serious concerns that non-state actors and those not known to law collude with characters entrusted with the administration of the state over the past three years to shortage the people of the state and illegally enrich themselves with the wealth of the people.
4. Ọsun is bleeding. Terribly bleeding. Whoever foisted Governor Adeleke as the political leader of this state, despite evident concerns about his controversial academic credentials, his incompetence and his intellectual hollowness, must reflect deeply, as history will judge such actions. Osun State has not only become a subject of public scrutiny among the comity of states but has also been deprived of the progress and prestige it once enjoyed.
5. It is particularly troubling that the audit findings were reportedly presented to Dr Deji Adeleke, a member of the Adeleke family, while the elected governor appeared sidelined like a troubled mendicant in his oversized knickerbocker. This development raises questions about the structure of authority and accountability within the current administration.
6. One is compelled to ask: what official role does Dr Deji Adeleke play in the verification of state government documents, especially having publicly distanced himself from partisan politics in the past? The people of Osun State deserve clarity on this matter.
7. We call on statutory anti-corruption agencies, particularly the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission ( EFCC) to thoroughly investigate the alleged payroll fraud and determine the extent of culpability of all individuals involved, especially Dr Deji Adeleke and Alhaji Kazeem Akinleye.
8. It is alarming that a government of Governor Adeleke which out of vendetta and touted lack of finance sacked teachers and health workers procedurally and legitimately recruited by the APC government and forced them into labour market, could be so wicked to develop a criminal siphoning scheme where a single individual would receive into his bank account salary meant for 5, 615 ghost workers?
9. This raises critical questions: who has been benefitting from these alleged fraudulent payments? Why has decisive action not been taken since the report was reportedly submitted in July 2024?
10. The people of Osun deserve answers as to why the administration has not fully implemented the recommendations of the audit report to halt the alleged fraud.
11. It is further alleged that a civil servant under the current administration has been receiving the salaries of 5,615 government workers monthly. If this claim is accurate, and the identity has indeed been uncovered by the audit report, the continued inaction would be indefensible.
–APC
