Makinde tackles Akpabio, denies states got additional N30bn each to fight hardship
.Utomi to Akpabio: Stop your flippancy; you are embarrassing the exalted office
Maureen Aguta
As the food inflation in the country hits 34 per cent, occasioned by the rising cost food and other basic needs, the Governor of Oyo State, Engr. Seyi Makinde has rebutted the claims by the President of Nigerian Senate Godswill Akpabio that the Federal Government released to each state of the federation the sum of N30 billion outside their statutory revenue allocations, to address the current hardships in their respective states.
Governor Makinde wonders why Akpabio who’s the number three citizen chose to play politics by spreading an unverified report.
According to Makinde, the only fund that Oyo State got from the Federal Government outside of statutory allocation was N2 billion out of the N5 billion promised to all states in the wake of the removal of fuel subsidy, adding that the Federal Government had even been asking for the refund.
Akpabio in the unverified reports stated that the Federal Government through the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), disbursed N30 billion each to the States of the federation to help address the economic hardship in the country.
This came as Political Economist and a leader in the Labour Party, Professor Pat Utomi reined in Akpabio, sasking the Senate President to simply shut up and stop embarrassing his exalted office and the country.
Utomi, who expressed displeasure over Akpabio’s claim when he featured on Arise Television News on Thursday, said; “Somebody should tell Apkabio to shut up, if he doesn’t know what to say, he should shut up.”
Professor Utomi particularly decried the behaviour of some Nigerian politicians who have refused to respect their positions and have become careless about the feelings of the citizens through their unguarded utterances.
“Politicians have acted irresponsibly as far as the future of Nigeria is concerned. The politicians are the mess that Nigeria is suffering. We have got to make them realize that.
“Nigerian politicians should invest Nigeria’s resources in production for the betterment of the people.
“They should get out of these funny Mercedes and SUVs they are buying and go around in some small car.
“Let us use the resources of this country for production and get the people of Nigeria to be able to feed themselves and make progress,” he said.