Osun ALGON opposes alleged APC interference in council accounts

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –

The Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), Osun State chapter, has strongly opposed what it described as interference by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the management of local government accounts.

Speaking with journalists in Osogbo, the state ALGON chairman, Sarafa Awotunde, condemned the reported move by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to recognize sacked APC council officials as signatories to local government accounts instead of legitimate civil servants.

Awotunde recalled that APC governorship aspirant, Kunle Adegoke, had openly admitted that accounts were opened in the names of Osun councils, but APC members were recruited as signatories to impersonate statutory officials.

He described the action as unlawful and a direct threat to the welfare of the people, stressing that APC interference in council accounts was against the law and contrary to democratic practice, where politicians do not sign government cheques.

The ALGON chairman insisted that the CBN must immediately shut down any such illegal accounts to prevent diversion of public funds into private hands. He urged the apex bank to verify authentic signatories through commercial banks.

His words: “By law and by the reckoning of the Ministry of Local Government, the Local Government Service Commission, and the Auditor-General for Local Governments in Osun State, the only lawful signatories are civil servants, not APC members or members of any political party. Even ALGON does not sign cheques; civil servants do.”

Awotunde emphasized that the CBN could easily confirm genuine signatories to the accounts of the 30 local governments in Osun State through commercial banks, warning that any attempt to sideline due process amounted to aiding illegality.

He described the development as an unfolding scandal that not only constitutes impersonation but also a deliberate attempt to divert public funds. He therefore called on the CBN governor to urgently investigate the matter and compel APC lawyer, Kunle Adegoke, to substantiate his claims on national television.