The Osun State Government has rejected an allegation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that N11 billion was looted from the state’s account, accusing the anti-graft agency of making unfounded claims to justify what it described as an unlawful freezing of government funds.
The state government made its position known in a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo, on Wednesday.
According to the government, the freezing of the state’s account was intended to prevent it from paying palliatives promised to workers, rather than to stop the alleged diversion of public funds.
The statement said the real reason the Commission froze the state account “on the order of Gboyega Oyetola was to stop the payment of palliatives which the state government promised the workers some months ago. This account freezing marks the climax of Oyetola/Ambo’s historic anti-workers’ obsession.”
The government said it had already paid the palliatives to workers following negotiations aimed at easing the impact of the current economic difficulties.
