REVEALED! Sylva Spent N8.6bn In Three Years On Retired Ex-Militant Leaders
At a time Governor Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa State is yet to come to terms with his failure to scale over a second term bid, an allegation involving a payment of N240million , on monthly basis, to each of the eight Ex-militant leaders in Bayelsa State, is now hanging on his head.
Under such a purported arrangement, each of the leaders is receiving N3million monthly.
This apart, the governor is being accused of giving the eight leaders “access to guns and dangerous weapons, “in the state.
The allegation, which amounts to a grievous indictment against the governor was leveled by an Olugbobiri indigene, from Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state, Mr. Abiwai Lawson, in Yenagoa.
He told National Daily during an interview that “till date, the so called ex-militant are still carrying guns at Olugbobiri guiding their leaders when Federal Government had granted amnesty and Mop up guns in the creek.”
Olugbobiri known as “lion den,” during the militancy era by the solders, is the hometown of some of the retired militant leaders.
Lawson was piqued that “a governor, who cannot embark on any concrete projects can waste over N8.6 billion Naira militants, in the last three years, thereby stalling all developmental programmes for the state.”
He spoke, at length on what is perceived as the major reason behind Sylva's inability to secure a second term ticket, saying, “he promoted militancy and other activities in the state.'
He then raised salient posers on the controversial issue, saying, “all the Billions of Naira Sylva collected where has he kept or what has he done with them?”
Lawson was of the view that, “all the internal roads the governor is claiming to have constructed are not up to one bridge in neighboring Rivers State.”
In an obvious reference to Sylva's second term ambition, he said, “he failed because he refused to supervise and monitor some of the projects he said was awarded and allowed the Commissioners under him to misuse power and abuse of office.”
This apart, Lawson noted that “the bad eggs Sylva put in government are the same people fighting against him.”
A dependable source close to the Yenagoa Government House in commenting on the allegations said, under anonymity, “when the effect of the money was telling on the state government allocation, the governor wanted to stop the payment but was threatened by the ex-militant leaders that they will make the state ungovernable for him, hence he continued the payment.”
“You can imagine paying N240million for eight of them every month, while millions of Bayelsa don't have job, many cannot afford their daily bread; yet one man is collecting N30m every month.
“No drinking water in the state, the ten years Melford Okilo specialist hospital, none completion of projects he meant on ground, all infrastructures are down, even paying the meager salary of workers is a problem.
“Something urgent has to be done, otherwise the state is doomed,” the source said.
Reacting to political scenario in the state, an analyst, who also spoke under anonymity said, “Governor Sylva cannot decamp to another party because he will fail.”
He, therefore, enjoined the governor “to come down from his high ladder and work with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the state, Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson.”
When contacted, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Dofie Ola in his text massage response, merely said, “What a low quality fiction!”
source: daily mail
