Refusal of the Federal Government to release the bailout fund for Kogi
and Bayelsa States as well as balance of the fund requested by the
Ekiti State government for the payment of arrears of Local Government
workers, Primary school teachers, pensioners and others has been
described as a wicked political tool employed by the All Progressives
Congress (APC) led Federal Government to weaken the People’s
Democratic Party (PDP) in the affected States.
An Abuja based group, One Nigeria Movement (ONM), which made this
known in a release signed by its Convener General, Alhaji Ahmed
Sodiq-Mugoro, said withholding Kogi and Bayelsa States bailout fund
because of the forthcoming governorship election was inhuman and
wicked.
ONM urged President Mohammadu Buhari to act like a statesman by seeing himself as President of the entire people of Nigeria, and not that of his party, APC.
The group also expressed its displeasure over what it termed
deliberate plot to set the Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose against
the local government workers, teachers and pensioners by refusing to
release the full bailout fund requested by the government.
It decried the release of N34.988bn to a State like Osun while only
N9.604bn to Ekiti State that requested for over N29bn.
The ONM, which called on the federal government to as a matter of
urgency release Kogi and Bayelsa States bailout fund, said no Nigerian
should be made to suffer just because of politics.
The group noted that those suffering the effects of non-release of the
bailout fund were the civil servants and not members of the PDP and
that the APC led Federal Government should stop playing politics with
issues bordering on the welfare of Nigerians.
