TELL Magazine

Special Adviser to Oyo State governor on Legislative Matters, Adejumobi Samuel Ademola, has narrated how an unnamed contractor lost a multi-million naira contract for offering his principal, Governor Seyi Makinde, a whooping ₦100 million.

Ademola, popularly called ‘Agbarapo,’ who described Makinde as an uncompromising and intolerant person as far as fight against corruption in his government is concerned, insisted there was no amount of political blackmail by politicians that would make him compromise his integrity, and lower his standard to suit his critics.

Ademola, who spoke in his office when he was decorated with the Integrity Stewardship Award by the Centre For Peace and Self Value Reorientation, likened Makinde’s economic management skills to that of late sage, Obafemi Awolowo, and commended other political appointees in the present cabinet for keying into the Governor’s economic agenda and the state’s development plan.

According to the former Majority Leader in the fifth State House of Assembly, “Let me say this, and it is one of the reasons I cherish Seyi Makinde so much. I won’t mention the name of the company. They presented documents to Seyi Makinde and offered him bribe after winning a bid for a contract. They actually came first in the bidding, but because they offered Makinde bribe upfront, he rejected their documents and gave the project to the company that came second. He said why are you offering me money when you know your company is competent? And since then, I learnt that self-discipline from him”.

He recalled how during the early period of Governor Makinde’s administration, he sacked some people “and I went to him and said sir, oga, why? Then he said to me, you’re my friend; you have to be very careful if you really want to work with me because I don’t want what will destroy this government…

“I said people are already shivering after the sack sir, and he said tell them this is what I want. I said what do you want sir? He said you will get your salaries and other benefits due to you as and when due; I don’t want any kind of embezzlement of government money in my administration. If you, as my friend, try that, I will hand you over to the anti-corruption agency. If somebody, at the beginning of his administration, had established his own state anti-corruption agency, then you already know he means serious business”.

Ademola attributed the successes recorded by the governor within a short time to his “prudence and financial discipline”, positing that only politicians who were used to the era of financial impunity and reckless spending of public funds, and could not cope with what he called the “new sheriff in town”, had parted ways with him.

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