The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has called on Governor Seyi Makinde to give a detailed account of an alleged N50 billion relief fund reportedly released by the federal government for victims of the January 18, 2024 explosion in Ibadan.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the party’s publicity secretary in the state, Olawale Sadare, said residents of Oyo deserve clarity on how the alleged N50 billion intervention fund was utilised.
BACKGROUND
An explosion occurred on January 18, 2024, at Aderinola Street in the Bodija area of Ibadan, killing at least five people and destroying over 50 buildings.
Authorities attributed the incident to illegal miners who allegedly stored explosive materials in one of the affected buildings.
Days after the incident, Governor Makinde submitted a report on the explosion to President Bola Tinubu.
In May, the Oyo State Government approved N4.5 billion as financial assistance for victims and survivors of the Bodija explosion.
However, during a TVC interview on Friday, former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose alleged that Makinde received N50 billion from the federal government in connection with the explosion, claiming the funds did not pass through the state government’s accounts.
Reacting to the allegation, Makinde’s Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Sulaimon Olarenwaju, dismissed Fayose’s claim as unfounded and challenged him to provide proof.
On Sunday, Fayose released a statement along with a screenshot of a document allegedly from the office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, which indicated that N50 billion was requested as “intervention funding support for the reconstruction of Old Bodija and environs after the Bodija explosion”.
The document was shared on X by Lere Olayinka, media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
‘THE WHOLE NEEDS TO KNOW WHAT HE DID WITH THE MONEY’
Sadare insisted that the governor must explain how the alleged N50 billion relief fund was spent, arguing that the response from Makinde’s media team was inadequate.
“On the issue of Ibadan explosion, Gov. Makinde claimed to have spent N4.5b on the victims even without accountability or proper record to show who got what,” the statement reads.
“Now that his close friend and fellow party man has disclosed that a whopping N50 billion was actually paid into the coffers of the Oyo state government as a relief fund by the federal government, Gov. Makinde should know that a flippant reaction by his media aide cannot be enough as the whole world needs to know what he did with the money.”
Sadare also rejected Makinde’s claim that President Tinubu asked him to “organise” the APC in Oyo State, stating that the party does not require the governor’s involvement.
“… it should be on record that there was never a time that Oyo APC required reorganisation in the hand of Makinde who has emerged chief pall bearer of the PDP, which gave him the platform to be a governor for two consecutive times,” he said.
“As it stands now, the least amongst the prospective gubernatorial aspirants in our party possesses greater capacity to be innovative, creative and successful as the state governor than the one who merely celebrate window dressing and inflict hardship on property owners and other residents across the state.”