*Re: Fraud In Ondo NGCARES Project, Ondo Commissioner Goofed*
The attention of the office of the Senator representing Ondo Central in the National Assembly and Senate Committee Chairman on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Distinguished Senator (Dr) Ayo Akinyelure, FCA has been drawn to a social media publication on the above subject matter.
Inasmuch as the Senator wouldn’t have joined issue with anyone or group of people on the matter, but the office of the Senator would like to put the record straight by dismissing the allegation of Ondo State Hon Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Pastor Emmanuel Igbasan on the matter.
For the Hon Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget to have refered to Distinguished Senator Ayo Akinyelure as someone, “Crying foul, displaying crash ignorance of the programme at his level” shows the level of maturity of the Hon Commissioner.
While briefing the press in Akure, Igbasan had said, “The allegation that the fund for vulnerable group of people under the state COVID Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus, Code-named *ONDO CARES* are diverted or mismanaged was an imagination of the Senator”.
Igbasan had further said, during his press briefing that, “80,734 vulnerable people had benefited from the $20m grant through *ONDO CARES* programme.
Concluding his press briefing, the Ondo State Government, through Pastor Igbasan had said, “We can give you names and phone numbers of beneficiaries to verify”.
However, till now, Igbasan have not been able to produce the names and phone numbers of such beneficiaries.
It would be recalled that Akinyelure was one of the Committee members who had invited the organization involved in the NGCARES to the National Assembly and the investigation had not been concluded and we are surprised to hear from the state government that $20m had been given to some beneficiaries in Ondo State.
Akinyelure had therefore appealed to Ondo State indegenes to remain calm as he promised he would get to the root of how the state government had spent the $20m grant, and if they had given the money to the 80,734 beneficiaries as claimed by the Hon Commissioner, they should produce the names and phone numbers of beneficiaries as the Commissioner had promised.
Signed:
Charles Akinwon,
SA ( Media & Strategy) to the Distinguished Senator
May 14, 2023
