The Judicial Panel of Enquiry set up to probe the administration of Dr Kayode Fayemi in Ekiti State has been told that the administration failed to remit N18bn deductions from the N163.2bn allocations received in four years.
A witness from the Accountant General’s Office, Mr Kehinde Odunayo, disclosed this at the beginning of the hearing by the panel on Monday in Ado Ekiti.
He tendered documents relating to the alleged receipt and deductions before the panel set up by Governor Ayodele Fayose.
Counsel for the commission, Mr Sunday Bamise, had earlier told the court that two witnesses, Kehinde from the AG’s Office and one Adeyinka Arogundade from the Ministry of Finance would give evidence in support of the probe.
The witnesses, in their testimonies, urged the commission to admit as evidence their statements on oath deposed to on July 26, 2017 as the financial position of the state between October, 2010 and September, 2014, when Fayemi was in charge.
Kehinde, Deputy Director, Fund management in the AG’s office, tendered a document titled, ‘Total deductions from FAAC allocations in the time under review,’ where it was stated that a total of N18, 684, 785, 314, 75 was allegedly deducted in 48 months by the last administration.
The witness claimed that the state indebtedness under Fayemi in terms of loans and bond was the sum N49bn, with N25bn taken as bond from the capital market and N24bn as commercial loans from 10 banks.
He said, “As of the time Fayemi left office in 2014, debt incurred from outstanding workers’ emoluments, comprising pensions, subventions to schools, among others was N13, 819, 928,727, 92.”
Arogundade tendered a document that indicated how the N25bn bond was expended.
However, there was a mild drama in the court when a lawyer, I.k. Olanrewaju called the attention of the commission to the fact that it was wrong to refer to its counsel as prosecutor.
“I am not here to represent anybody but to honour the court. You have been referring to your counsel as a prosecutor. Who is being prosecuted,” he asked.
Justice Oyewole said, “It was a lapse of tongue, he is the counsel for the commission, so pardon our mistake,” he said.
