A former Commissioner for finance in Osun state, Bola Oyebamiji had said that Aregbesola, Oyetola's predecessor is responsible for the debt figure showing N407 billion debt of the state.
Oyebamiji said this in a statement on Friday, vindicating Oyetola from the debt allegation posed to him by the incumbent governor, Ademola Adeleke.
Oyebamiji divulged that the debt calculated by Adeleke are loans obtained during Aregbesola's administration between 2013 and 2017 before Oyetola attained power.
The statement titled ‘The Fallacy of Half Truth by Governor Ademola Adeleke: The True Position of Osun Finances under Governor Adegboyega Oyetola (Part 1)'.
He illuminated light on the loan accusation posed on Oyetola by Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The statement read, “The recent comment by Governor Ademola Adeleke on the position of the debt of Osun State under Governor Adegboyega Oyetola is a reflection of the combative and vindictive posture, yet again, of Governor Adeleke against my principal, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. It is purely a campaign of calumny against a people-centric government.
“For the umpteenth time, the true picture of the finances of the state is not hidden; the Annual Auditor-General’s report and the reports from the Debt Management Office (Osun and Abuja) are available for scrutiny.
“The latest comment of the incumbent governor to the effect that Governor Oyetola accessed a loan facility after the July 2022 gubernatorial election is nothing but a lie. The current government would have won an iota of credibility for itself if the details of the loan, including the figure and the creditor, were mentioned.
“Just to let you know, as captured in the address of Governor Oyetola on the 26th of November, 2022, the government of Osun did not take any bank loan under his watch. What the state benefited from, like the 35 other states of the federation, which was well publicised at the time (see The Punch Newspaper (punchng.com) of 19th November 2021), was the monthly intervention from the Federal Government which commenced in December 2021 and terminated in June 2022. This support was to cushion the effect of deductions from the budget support facility and salary bailout accessed by the previous government.
“One then wonders how support from the Federal Government which started in December 2021, as contained in the document released by the current government itself, turned into a facility sought and accessed after the July 2022 election is beyond comprehension.
“Of significant importance is the half-truth presented by Governor Adeleke about the true position of the state’s debt portfolio. For instance, one is at a loss about how the government will report the position of the state debt, leaving out very vital information such as the dates of procurement. In accounting, it is elementary knowledge that no valid amortization schedule can be presented by a competent accountant without a valid date of procurement.
“For clarity, the state bond of N30,000,000,000.00 at 14.75% started in September 2014; the Sukuk of N11,400,000,000.00 at 14.75% started in May 2013; the FGN Bond of N86,671,281,863.41 at 14.83% started in August 2015; the salary bail-out of N25,871,920,000.00 at 9% started in September 2015; the FGN Budget Support Facility of N17,569,000,000.00 at 9% commenced in July 2016; the FGN Special Intervention Fund of N4,000,000,000.00 (interest-free) was accessed in 2017; the Excess Crude Account (ECA) Secured Term Loan of N10,000,000,000.00 at 9% was accessed in February 2016; and the Central Bank of Nigeria Development Fund (ECA2) of N5,000,000,000.00 at 9% started in June 2017.
“Where then is the commercial loan traced to the administration of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola? As presented above, all these loans were procured between 2013 and 2017 before the advent of the administration of Governor Oyetola. The question then is where is the loan procured by Governor Oyetola and who is the lender?
“Also, the claim that Governor Oyetola owed workers salaries and pensions to the tune of N76bn is unfounded. The salary and pension arrears figure mentioned by Governor Adeleke was owed by the previous government and I challenge the current government to present any available facts to the contrary.
“Characteristically, the lie that the government of Governor Oyetola did not leave any money in the coffers of the state has yet sold the infant administration of Governor Adeleke short. “Again, as contained in the documents made available to the new government, the following balances were available to the state as of November 26, 2022: Non-IGR Accounts: FAAC Accounts meant for Salaries = N3,541,950,501.26 (N1,106,634,659.87 (First bank Plc) and OSSG VAT Account = N2,435,315,841.39 (Sterling bank Plc); Lautech Refund Account with Wema Bank Plc = N1,563,832,985.78; Ecological Fund with United Bank for Africa = N1,206,756,053.65; Other Non-IGR Balances in Various Bank Accounts = N3,284,899,623.16; Revenue Collection in Various Bank Accounts = N2,234,916,050.36; Sukuk Bond Proceed Accounts = N5,358,332.13; Tranche 1 Bond Proceed Accounts = N9,853,250.90; Sinking Fund for Credit Agency with Wema Bank Plc= N2,000,000,000.00; and Sinking Fund on OOPS with Sterling Bank Plc= N202,423,426.11.
“Thus, the total money left in the state’s coffers as of 26th November 2022 stood at N14,049,990,223.35. Any contrary information to the one presented here should be publicised with verifiable facts.
“Consequently, it is important to remind the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke that public finance remains public. No amount of effort to deliberately circumvent facts can change what is publicly available.
“The government of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola promised to run a transparent government and it did until the last day in office to the commendation of well-meaning Nigerians and the international community.
“It will therefore serve the current government well to be serious and deploy its energy towards governing the state rather than fighting an imaginary enemy with half-truth. Government is a continuum and it must be seen as such.”
Aregbesola Says Accountant General Knows of the Debt
In response to the development, Aregbesola said the Accountant-General of the state should be responsible for the account of the state, and thus he should be able to tell where the indebtedness comes from.
Aregbesola through his Media Aide, Mr Sola Fasure while reacting to Oyebamiji on the contention that the debts were procured by his administration, said it is between Adeleke and Oyetola and therefore he shouldn't be involved.
Aregbesola said the two loans he took has been liquidated “the other ones are long-term concessional facilities (given to the state) by the Federal Government with minimal monthly deductions", He said.
Aregbesola said, “I will suggest that you look at all the loans and get to the Accountant-General of the state at Abere. I think the Accountant General of the Permanent Secretary (Finance) would have better information because it is the Accountant-General that raised a memo based on the query of the governor.
“The Accountant-General, in reply to the query of the governor, stated the condition of the loans and the loans that are outstanding. He is the most knowledgeable about the loans by the state as the custodian of the account of the state. They should count Aregbesola out of it.”
Speaking further, he said “If was it Aregbesola that took a loan of 18 Billion after he lost the election, The two major loans Aregbesola took would have been liquidated. They were the Sukkuk loan and the other ones were long-term concessionary facilities by the Federal Government which have a long span repayment terms. The deductions are minimal and they are not deductions that will infringe on the finances of the state. The two major loans taken by Aregbesola have been liquidated.”
He said: “The matter is between the Adeleke and Oyetola administrations because the Aregbesola debts have been liquidated. It was not Aregbesola that took the N18 billion loan that was taken after the election. Oyetola took some other loans, including salary support from the Federal Government.
“They caused the problem for themselves. If they had set up a transition committee and if they had cooperated well with the incoming governor after they had lost the election, there would have been a smooth change of government.
“They would have compared notes and there would be no rancor. But he was busy sowing mines on the path of the incoming governor, creating problems for him, and spending money with reckless abition. What did he do with N18 billion? Now the new government is fighting back. If the new government takes the matter up to the EFCC, there would be problems for the Oyetola administration.
“They should count Aregbesola out of their problems because out of the three loans he took, two have been liquidated. It is only the long-term debt that is remaining and only the Accountant-General can give us the status of the loan because it is no longer what it was because deductions are being made.”
