Alli alleges Oyo LG paralysis, govt demands proof - Punch Newspapers

The campaign organisation of the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, has accused Governor Seyi Makinde of paralysing the state’s 33 local government areas, warning that his emergence as President in 2027 would endanger local government administration across the country. But the state government has dismissed the claim as misleading and challenged Alli’s camp to provide evidence to support its allegation. The group, in a statement on Saturday by its Director of Media and Publicity, Bisi Oladele, accused Makinde, who is the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement, of undermining the local government system during his seven years as governor, claiming that Nigerians should be wary of allowing what it described as his record in the state to be replicated nationally. The campaign organisation also described the APM’s call for President Bola Tinubu’s withdrawal from the 2027 election as “political hallucination,” adding that the party must first prove that it has the nationwide organisation and electoral support to compete for the presidency. “APM’s Makinde is averse to the third tier of government in Nigeria, and this is evident in his seven-year anti-local government administration in Oyo State,” the statement read.See more Punch stories on Google.Add Punch on Google The group challenged the APM to disclose the extent of its political structures across the federation and demonstrate its ability to compete effectively in the states and the Federal Capital Territory. It further alleged that Makinde still had political battles to fight in his home state, claiming that he had “paralysed” the 33 local governments. “More importantly, even Governor Seyi Makinde, whom the APM now parades as its presidential candidate, has serious political battles to fight in his home state of Oyo where he has paralysed the 33 local governments in the last seven years. “A man seeking to conquer Nigeria must first demonstrate compelling political strength on his own turf. Charity, as the saying goes, begins at home,” the group stated. The state Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, rejected the allegation, saying it was contradicted by documented projects executed across the state. Oyelade, in a statement made available to Sunday PUNCH, said local government councils and Local Council Development Areas had undertaken and completed projects covering roads, bridges, drainage, markets, electricity, water supply, schools, public buildings and security infrastructure. He listed some of the projects to include the 14.1km Eruwa-Lanlate-Maya Road in Ibarapa East, the 15.75km Igbole Express Road to the Ibarapa Central boundary, the 10km Omi-Adio Junction-Ido Junction Road, the approximately 6km Akobo Ojurin-Olorunda Abaa Road in Lagelu and the 6.45km Olodo Garage-Kasumu/Ajia Junction Road in Egbeda. “The assertion that local governments have been paralysed is inconsistent with the documented evidence of projects being undertaken and completed across the state. “The Alli campaign organisation may disagree with Governor Seyi Makinde and may criticise policies of the Oyo State Government. That is part of democratic discourse, but political criticism must be anchored in facts,” the commissioner said. He challenged the Alli campaign organisation to identify the local government areas it considered paralysed, the functions that had allegedly ceased, projects abandoned as a result of the alleged paralysis and evidence supporting the claim. Olufemi Adediran

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