By Kazeem Ugbodaga
The Lagos State House of Assembly has queried the Chairperson of Ayobo Ipaja Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Mrs. Bola Shobowale and the Council Manager, Mrs. Ogabi over the abuse of N350million monthly allocation received by the council for over four months.
The House Committee on Public Accounts (Local Govt.) issued the query when the management of Ayobo Ipaja LCDA appeared for an audit of the accounts of the council at the beginning of this month, but without the presence of the council boss.
Our inside source revealed that the council management had on two occasions attempted to appear before the House committee chaired by Hon. Sobur Olawale Omititi, but the committee rebuffed their request due to the absence of Shobowale, who was away for medical reasons.
However, the council management eventually met with the committee for an audit but got a query about the abuse of council funds.
Before this time, Omititi had insisted that his committee would only allow management of the council to appear and present its reports only if there was a written note from the ailing chairman that her vice should make presentations in her stead. However because she did not properly hand over when she was going for her surgeries, her vice could not take over.
This revelation encouraged the house committee not to give the council management audience when they earlier appeared for the audit.
Nonetheless, the committee sent an invitation to the council management, including the Vice, and the Council-Manager, where the issue of the abuse of monthly council allocations of over N350million was raised.
During the audit, it was discovered that whereas expenditures were made during the time Shobowale was away on medicals, (four months), there was no management or executive meeting that authorized such expenditures there was no hand-over at all by the council boss. The Council-Manager, Mrs. Ogabi, confirmed this to the committee.
Another anomaly discovered during the audit at the legislature was the unilateral inclusion of one Wole Aina, who acts as the supervisor for works but was never on the list approved by the state government for appointments in the council in April 2022. Because he is not known to the House, Aina was sent out of the committee room when he appeared as Super Works.
Most stakeholders have complained about the breakdown of governance in the council as a result of the absence of Shobowale, a lot of residents who make use of the health center have complained about the state of the health facility, particularly the power issue.
Our checks revealed that the sum of N200,000 was to be paid by the council to offset the backlog power bill for the facility to guarantee the restoration of power, yet the council could not meet up with this obligation.
This action angered a lawmaker who was the pioneer chairman of the council, Bisi Yusuf who came to the council secretariat to publicly protest the mis-governance in the once darling council. Shokunle Olushola, the house committee chairman on Health also expressed his disappointment at the management of the health facility as a result of the incompetence of the council leadership.
Sensing that the house was ready to suspend her, our checks revealed that the council boss was hurriedly brought to the office last Monday, but she could not perform any of her functions, since she is still recuperating from her surgical injuries.