Governor Seriake Dickson
The
Bayelsa State Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, has said he has never
tampered with funds meant for local governments in his state since
assumption of office.
The Special Adviser to the governor on
Political Affairs, Mr. Fred Agbedi, in an interview with journalists in
Abuja on Friday said Dickson’s administration had never asked any local
government to make financial contributions to any programme or activity
carried out by the state.
He said, “When people say the state
government is tampering with the local government account, it is not
true. The Bayelsa State does not tamper and does not deduct money from
the local government account.
“We all know that local government in the
previous administration participated in mobilising people for one
political office or the other but this government does not do that. For
whatever activity the state government is organising, the state
government takes the financial responsibility and not the local
governments.
“The state government has nothing to do
with the funds that are accrued to the local governments. The council
chairmen have confirmed that and the governor had also said so.
“We are in democracy and we believe that
we will have all types of criticisms, some may be constructive while
others may not be. Some people are feeding Bayelsans with wrong
information and out of ignorance, people believe. The truth of the
matter is that even at the local government level, some chairmen who
have just being returned to office and sworn in by the state government
and the judiciary, have problems with their councillors.”
He added that Dickson’s administration
holds monthly meetings where the governor discloses to the people what
the state receives every month.
PUNCH
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