Gov. Abiodun Oyebanji of Ekiti has assured local government councils that his administration would not touch or divert their allocations from the federation account.

Mr Oyebanji gave the assurance on Thursday in Ado-Ekiti at the opening of a three-day retreat for the newly inaugurated chairmen of local government councils in the state.

The governor enjoined the chairmen and other principal officers to be accountable to the people, and shun dropping his name to perpetrate fraud.

He said that whoever was caught in the web of corruption would face the full weight of the law.

Mr Oyebanji cautioned against moving public money into private accounts for direct labour projects, saying such an act was tantamount to fraud and wouldn’t be tolerated under his leadership.

Declaring open the retreat with the theme: “State and Local Government Strategic Planning and Implementation”, Mr Oyebanji assured that under no guise would he interfere with how the money appropriated for the councils is expended.

“Nobody should use my name for any fraudulent thing. I have made a covenant with God that such won’t happen under me.

“I am not going to touch your money, but I won’t allow you to spend it recklessly. Remember that humility in power is not a weakness but a virtue,” he said.

Sharing his perspective on how an ideal local government system should be run, Mr Oyebanji urged the chairmen to consult widely with all the communities in order to execute projects that would have a direct impact on the masses.

“Let me state here today that opportunities come with responsibilities.

“Those who elected you did that for a purpose. Your conduct will make the people form an opinion about our government.

“Your election is not an invitation for luxury but for service.

“The question you should ask yourselves is, how do I make a difference in the lives of the people? Ask yourselves, how will I be remembered after this office?

Three years is short and will soon come to an end. Will people still welcome you home or ignore you, the choice is yours,” he said.

Mr Oyebanji appealed to the council bosses to undertake projects that are 21st century compliant in order to reduce poverty and unemployment and solve most challenges associated with the local communities.

“What I have noticed is that our people are stereotyped about the Local Government system.

“This time, I don’t expect you to be buying rechargeable light that will be dead tomorrow or build markets that nobody will use.

“Nothing stops the LG from providing electricity for a town that has not enjoyed light for 10 years because light is catalytic.

“I closed my eyes to some things done under the last LG administration to avoid rancour, but for you, we are in the same boat together.

“I can hold you accountable for any of your actions,” the governor said.

Mr Oyebanji promised that his government would set up a procurement process and office of transformation and service delivery in all councils to monitor expenditure and performance.

The governor appealed to the council chairmen not to adopt direct labour for all projects, urging them to patronise local contractors.

Speaking at the event, the commissioner for local government affairs, Folorunso Olabode, described the retreat as a strategic way of showing that the local government was strategic to the development plans of Ekiti State.

A facilitator at the retreat, Sen. Olubunmi Adetumbi, said the objective was to build a framework for effective partnership between the state and the local governments for operation devoid of division so that the citizens could have value for their money.

(NAN)