By Ayodele Alonge
Former Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, has expressed concern over what he describes as deliberate moves by persons loyal to his successor, Governor Seyi Makinde, to smear his image.
Ajimobi made the latest reaction, following an allegation by the South-West Zone of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that he awarded a N7 billion non-existent road project, which served as conduit to siphon the fund.
The party also accused the governor and his aides of bolting away with official cars procured at the twilight of his administration.
But the former governor, in his defence, said he never awarded any contract that did not pass through due project, much less release N7bn to execute a non-existent road project.
Conveying the governor’s reaction in a chat with sharpedgenews, Ajimobi’s spokesman, Mr. Bolaji Tunji, said the allegations against his principal were not only politically motivated but also baseless.
He explained, “My response is based on the fact that there is a firm instruction from my boss (Ajimobi) that we should not respond to things like these that are without substance.
“Our approach is to help the government of the day, the government of Governor Makinde, to achieve the best for the people of Oyo State. This is because, the winners are the people, if the governor succeeds.
“The truth is that there was no contract awarded under Ajimobi that did not go through due process.
“I personally, as Special Adviser did not even get an official vehicle. I was using my personal vehicle to run my office. Some of the vehicles were assigned to superior officers and did not even go round.
“If anybody is alleging, let the person come up with facts, with proof, not just saying baseless things, things they cannot substantiate.
“All these are just another case of giving the dog a bad name so as to hang it. The politics of Ajimobi is always issue-based and all the governor’s projects were targeted at improving the welfare of the people.”
Only recently, the South-West PDP, in a statement by its Zonal Publicity Secretary, Mr. Ayo Fadaka, had the lain the accusation thus: “We recall that this Ajimobi administration awarded a N7billion contract for a non-existent road and the contractor to whom this hefty sum was paid cannot be traced; this is grand larceny and it is sad that this happened in Oyo State
“We also note the statement credited to the immediate past governor of the state to the effect that the issues of missing government vehicles is a ‘minor issue’ and as such, not ‘worthy’ of the attention it continues to generate.
“We, however, disagree with him and indeed call upon him to give adequate account of all such vehicles in his care as governor.
“His attempt to whimsically dismiss fraudulent and sharp practices of this magnitude clearly underscores the levity with which the state’s resources were carelessly frittered without respect for due process.”