Ogun govt denies N30bn fraud

By Kolade Larewaju
THE Ogun State Government Thursday reacted to the arrest and detention of its Director-General in the Bureau of Lands, Mr. Gbenga Ogunoiki by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, saying there was no N30 billion fraud in the State.

The Director-General and four of the Directors in the Bureau were arrested on Tuesday and questioned. While the four Directors were released, the D-G, Mr. Ogunoiki was detained.

But the State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Sina Kawonise in a statement said there was no such fraud in the state, adding that the story “is false in its entirety and deliberately planted to smear the image of the Governor and Government of Ogun State.”

He said, “the ‘sources’ that are spreading the false and malicious information about the Lands Bureau being used as a conduit pipe to siphon Ogun State money to the tune of N30 billion are the tiny band of discredited politicians in Ogun State and their Abuja accomplices who believe that the only way to undo the OGD political machinery in Ogun State is to discredit him through false information and unabashed propaganda.

“It is ludicrous in the first place to say that N1.2 billion was being siphoned monthly from the Lands Bureau into private pocket when all monies are paid directly into the coffers of Government without a dime getting into private hands.”

The Commissioner said the total amount that has accrued to the Bureau of Lands and Survey since 2004 was only N12.382 billion.

Kawonise said, “all the imputations and insinuations on the person of the Governor of Ogun State and Government of Ogun State in the story have no truth whatsoever. We restate that no dime of Ogun State money is missing let alone an imaginary N30 billion.”

Govt silent on why DG was arrested

The Commissioner’s statement was, however, silent on why the Directors were arrested and why the Director General was being detained by the EFCC.