The chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, Adeolu Akande, has counseled Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo State, that the award of a contract of N8 billion for an Independent Power Project to provide uninterrupted electricity for the government house and secretariat is exorbitant and unjustifiable.
In a statement released in Ibadan on Sunday, the professor of comparative politics, stated that “the Makinde administration seems to have lost sight of the primary problems facing the state in its choice of awarding contracts at gargantuan cost to matters that do not impact on the lives of the people nor enhance the economy of the state.
“The primary challenges of Oyo State are youth unemployment, decaying education and health infrastructure and widespread poverty.
“The choice of contracts daily churned out by the government does not seen to take cognizance of the problems facing the good people of the state. The contracts seem to be determined by the fancy of the government and the greed of the contractors and career proposal purveyors.
“A state wallowing in youth unemployment should not priotise the comfort of Government House over the future of the youths and the thousands of market women and farmers seeking government support to improve their lives.
“The government is committing present and future generations to debt that will not enhance the economy of the state nor improve the well-being of the people. It is untenable that government will commit N8 billion to uninterrupted supply to Government House when thousands of youths could have been empowered with such funds through a youth empowerment programme that will promote entrepreneurship in agriculture, digital economy and other engagements that will surely enhance the economy of the state.
“I can only imagine the number of our primary and secondary schools whose quality of service delivery would be enhanced with the commitment of N8billion to the education sector or the number of hospitals that could be brought to higher standard to provide quality health care delivery with N8billion.
“We plead with Governor Makinde to streamline his financial commitment of the state in line with the interest of the greater number of the people of Oyo State and not the comfort of the few”,the statement concluded.
