ICPC PROBES ONDO ACCOUNTS...LEAVE MIMIKO OUT OF YOUR WOES, LP WARNS
AGAGU

Olusegun Agagu

The labor party in Nigeria has said that the recent development in Ondo State has vindicated its position that Governor Olusegun Agagu, and his cronies have been systematically stripping state resources into private pockets.

According to LP’s Director of Press, Research and Strategy, Mr. Kolawole Olabisi, the hues and cries in the media by Dr Agagu that Dr Olusegun Mimiko, the Governor-elect of Ondo State and his Party, the LP were responsible for his woes in the hands of the EFCC was untrue.

Agagu had, in his reaction to the stoppage of the 50% mobilization cheques paid for the Owena Dam contract by EFCC and others projects, Agagu had tried to draw Dr Olusegun Mimiko into his woes when he alleged that Mimiko signed into law the payment of 50% mobilization on all government contracts.

“That is nothing but a lie, the extant regulation in Ondo State as regards award of contracts remains the payment of 30% mobilization fees and that was contained in the Circular issued by Dr. Mimiko in February, 2004 as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and that is still the extant law in Ondo State, it has not changed and the EFCC and other anti-graft agencies already has this particular circular signed by Dr Mimiko. And so if Dr Agagu has suddenly turned himself into a Santa Claus, should he now blame Mimiko for his woes that EFCC stopped this obvious contravention of the law? Agagu should kindly leave Mimiko out of woes and carry his cross rather than trying to draw us into the fray.

To the LP, the critical question that Agagu must provide answer to is:  Why the sudden rash of multi-billion naira contract awards within the 6 months following the nullification of his pyrrhic victory in the April 14, 2007 Governorship election by the Election Petition Tribunal on July 25, 2008?

“The truth, it added, “is that Agagu has, in the last six months, awarded more projects than he did in 5 years put together, this to borrow from his often quoted slogan, is a real ’harvest time’ and if EFCC is asking questions and has indeed made stoppage of monies paid to some contractors why must he blame us for his travails?