The Osun State Government has accused the previous administration of yet another instance of public property looting.
According to Olawale Rasheed, the spokesperson for Governor Ademola Adeleke, the discovery was made at the Osun State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja on Monday.
According to the statement, the looting of assets in the lodge was discovered during a physical inspection of the facility over the weekend.
The government, which claimed that the lodge was robbed of all valuables, added that the items carted away were purchased with public funds by Adegboyega Oyetola Administration officials.
The government noted that the Osun Governor’s Lodge was in the same condition as the looted Deputy Governor’s quarters at Government House Oke-Fia in Osogbo.
According to the declaration: “On the physical inspection team was the Chairman of State Assets Inventory and Recovery Committee, Dr B.T Salam and other top government functionaries. The lodge was stripped of all valuables acquired with public funds by those officials of the past administration.
“From the main house to the service flats and up to the boys’ quarters, clear indications of valuables removed can be observed. Items such as television sets, chairs, foams, electrical fittings, bed sheets, spoons and cutleries, among other valuables were illegally removed from the lodge. Every utility vehicle procured for use in the lodge was also carted away from the building.
“The lodge was in a terrible state and similar to the way we found the Deputy Governor’s quarters and others at the Government House in Osogbo following the brazen looting of that facility.
“We are shocked by this lust for materialism as evidenced in the unexplained pilfering of public properties by officials of the past administration. Civil servants in the Abuja lodge confirmed the pillaging of the state’s assets by Mr Oyetola’s men but said they were powerless in stopping them.
“That this happened in the Federal Capital Territory is another peep into the gross abuse of office by officials of the past administration.
“Those who think we were playing politics with the revelation only just need to see the level of theft of public assets that we found on ground.
“This matter, just like those before it, is being looked into by the Assets Inventory and Recovery Committee and we want to assure the public of this government’s firm resolve to recover every stolen asset.”
The statement, which revealed that the Assets Recovery Committee is working around the clock to track down and recover all looted assets, urged anyone in possession of public property to return it immediately.
Remember that the state’s Deputy Governor, Kola Adewusi, claimed that the Deputy Governor’s Quarters in the Government House, Osogbo, was looted and valuables were carted away before the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration of Ademola Adeleke took office.
Former Deputy Governor Benedict Alabi responded by denying looting the quarters.
Alabi added that he would not be drawn into the matter because he left the quarters well before the November 27, 2022 handover date.
In response, Ismail Omipidan, the spokesperson for the previous governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, stated that all properties in the Government House were turned over to security personnel and inventories were taken.
The state government responded by accusing Omipidan of involving security personnel in the matter.
The government, which revealed that it has video evidence of the level of looting at Government House, insisted that the building was stripped of all valuables.
