The Ondo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, on Sunday, described as long overdue the decision of ailing Governor Rotimi Akeredolu to hand over power to his deputy, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, to function as acting governor.
The PDP asserts that Ondo State has experienced a lack of progress over the past six months due to the governor’s ailing health. Last week, the governor returned to Germany for follow-up medical treatment.
On Thursday, the state House of Assembly officially recognized Aiyedatiwa as the acting governor, following the acknowledgment of a letter from Akeredolu transferring power to the deputy.
Commenting on this development on Sunday, Kennedy Peretei, the Publicity Secretary of the Ondo PDP, informed news men that Aiyedatiwa should take immediate action to propel the state forward.
He said, “Akeredolu’s medical vacation is long overdue, l don’t know why they waited this long to do this. The Ondo State is already the butt of every joke. Let’s pray that things will at least move in the state instead of the stagnation witnessed in the last six months.”
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Information and Orientation in the state, Mrs. Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, has clarified the situation regarding the alleged freezing of local government accounts by the state government.
An unofficial piece of information, claimed to be from the office of the acting governor, emerged online last Friday, instructing caretaker chairmen of councils not to interfere with their local governments’ finances.
However, the information commissioner, in a statement on Sunday, clarified that the acting governor had not issued any directive to freeze the council’s accounts, dismissing the report as false.
Ademola-Olateju said, “At no time has the acting Governor or any functionary of the state put a freeze on local government accounts or order any closure. This information is fake and baseless. We ask that the good people of Ondo State, particularly officials of local governments, disregard the rumour.
“Necessary complimentary personnel/civil servants have been deployed to the LCDAs and they have been advised to exercise due diligence and processes in their operations by the government.
“The state government is committed to proper functioning of the new 33 LCDAs and the existing 18 LGAs in the state as a way of enhancing development at the grassroots.”