The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Jigawa State has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to beam its searchlight on the All Progressives Congress (APC) Led government in the state over illegal deductions from the account of local governments.
The opposition party alleged further that the deductions are being made to get enough funds to finance next year’s local government councils’ election campaign.
The details of the company and account number that the PDP alleged alleged the government to have been transferring the local government funds illegally to as; Ushafam Investment, 00057455884, Taj Bank.
However, in a swift reaction, the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) in the state and an aide to the state governor described the allegation as unfounded, false and baseless.
The PDP chairman in Kazaure LG of the state, Mustapha Ibrahim Danshatu, who blew the whistle indicated that the government was remitting the allegedly deducted funds into a private organisation’s bank account.
He called on the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, to investigate the alleged misappropriation of Jigawa State’s local government council funds.
The chairman, Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) in the state, Bala Usman Chamo, said the allegation “is not true.”
Explaining further, he said as far as he is concerned, there is nothing like that. “We the local government council chairmen in the state are not contributing any money for local government election campaigns as it is being insinuated.
“I don’t know of any account into which contributions are being made for the financing of local councils’ election campaign in the state.”
The ALGON chairman who also is the Dutse Municipal Council, chairman maintained that all the local councils in the state have been receiving allocation from the federal revenue collection in full except for the usual statutory deductions for joint projects financing.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Local Government Affairs, Abdurrahman Alkassim, also debunked the allegation