As against the denials of Governor Ayodele Fayose that he never got any money from the office of the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Secretary in Ekiti State, Dr. Temitope Aluko has revealed that the governor's election was indeed funded with cash from Dasuki's office, some oil contractors and that Fayose threatened former President Goodluck Jonathan that he must deliver so that Jonathan will win in Southwest.
Aluko, who claimed that Zenith Bank did not sponsor the campaign of Governor Ayo Fayose, but only made a token donation of N200 million after he had won the governorship election.
Aluko made this disclosure during a live interview programme on ADABA 88.9 FM monitored in Ado Ekiti on Tuesday.
Aluko who said Fayose was not a buoyant man before coming out to contest the 2014 governorship election, added the Governor only had a little close to N10 million in his personal account, also revealed that his primary election was sponsored by Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria (TAN) and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Towers in Abuja.
The Ekiti poll fraud whistleblower revealed that it was after Fayose had won the Ekiti PDP primary that cash from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and oil contractors was deployed to fund the campaign for the main election.
He said Zenith Bank and other corporate organizations came in with business proposals after Fayose had won the election maintaining that the governor's claim that his campaign was sponsored by Zenith Bank was a "blatant lie."
Aluko explained during the interview that Fayose purchased five houses with the N2.3 billion, which was a remainder of the slush funds from ONSA in choice locations like Abuja, Banana Island and Victoria Island in Lagos.
Speaking on the feud between Fayose and Obanikoro on the arms cash, Aluko revealed that a crisis of confidence broke out among the duo following a discovery that part of the money ferried by plane to Akure for the purpose of Ekiti poll was short by N80 million.
He said: "The Presidency gave us security and money; the money was sent from a Diamond Bank branch through an account run by Sylvan MacNamara, a company owned by Obanikoro.
"My boss (Fayose) said he wanted to get his own in cash and that was why arrangement was made to get his own in cash and that was why such a huge amount (N2.1 billion) was ferried by plane. Obanikoro cannot claim not to have brought the money.
"He (Fayose) chose his man, Abiodun Agbele, to keep the money in a Zenith Bank account and the money was lodged at Zenith Bank, Alagbaka Branch in Akure. The transaction was not recorded and it got to a stage when it was discovered that the money was short by N80 million.
"This caused a crisis between Fayose and Obanikoro who brought money thrice from Abuja. He (Obanikoro) brought other things apart from money which I won't disclose now and it was from it that N1 billion was released to INEC officials to manipulate Ekiti and Osun polls.
"Fayose was threatening (former President Goodluck) Jonathan that he (Fayose) must deliver so that Jonathan will win in Southwest. All the PDP elders were kept out of picture over the transactions and cash and some of the cash deployed did not get to their destinations.
"The cash carried in the plane was not entered into the manifest, the N2.1 billion was delivered to a bank at 4.30 am in Ekiti. The N2.3 billion remaining from the total cash received for the election was used to buy house in Abuja and the house belongs to Fayose.
"Fayose purchased five houses in Victoria Island and Banana Island. The property in Dubai was purchased by a fellow who is known as Bisi in Ekiti but is known as Femi abroad. Questions are being asked on the N3 billion used to purchase the Dubai property but I strongly believe that we will recover our money."
Refuting Fayose's claim that Zenith Bank sponsored his election, Aluko said: "It is not true that Zenith sponsored his campaign, a meeting was held in Lagos where Zenith donated N200 million and that was after he had won the election. There was no time Zenith sponsored us.
"If Zenith wanted to give us money, they did not need to use an aircraft to carry cash, all they need to do was to generate the money from their branch in Akure through the local branch of Central Bank of Nigeria."
Speaking on the purported begging of the governor by some Zenith Bank officials, Aluko said Fayose masterminded the "show" to blackmail the bankers following the heat generated by the freezing of his accounts.
Aluko said: "That is the style of my boss (Fayose); the (Ado Ekiti branch manager), Bunmi Falana also known as "Bumshaka" and Goke (Olatunji) were personal assistants to Fayose during his first term but Bunmi quit politics following a spiritual attack he suffered and demanded a career job.
"It was Fayose that used his position to secure a job for him at Pacific Bank before he assisted him to get a job at Zenith Bank. But they later fell apart over money issues after which the EFCC arrested Bunmi.
"The governor told the banks to make his boys their branch managers and they are in charge of Ekiti Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) accounts which I want the EFCC to beam their searchlights on.
"Fayose threatened Bunmi, telling him that he made him and would also destroy him that was why Bunmi knelt down before him. That is what Fayose used to do to blackmail people.
"No big money flowed into Fayose's campaign until the month of June (2014) and the election was not sponsored by Zenith. All the monies collected were either paid into the account of Spotless Investment or Fayose's personal account.
There was a time N117 million cash paid into the account of Spotless Investment in one single day, that is August 22, 2014 which was far in excess of what a customer can deposit in a single day, six deposits in a single day.
"Dasuki had said it before that N10 billion was spent on Ekiti and Osun polls and they are in various tranches. We know that of $2 million, another N2.1 billion and N4.7 billion, the bank did not sponsor his campaign."
On the failure of the governor to pay civil servants' salaries, Aluko said the problem could be traced to the fact that Fayose earns 40 per cent of the monthly allocation as entitlements.
He explained that Fayose receives N250 million as security vote every month which was jerked up from N150 million received by his predecessor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi apart from various allowances received from Government House and Protocol.
Aluko maintained that if Fayose should reduce his monthly allowances, there would be a substantial amount that could be channeled to workers' salaries adding that Fayose has less financial commitment unlike Fayose who paid social security to the aged, peace corps, youth volunteers, among other schemes scrapped by his successor.
The PDP stalwart doubted Fayose's claim that the state now generates N300 million monthly compared N600 million monthly generated during the Fayemi administration. He said the fact that Fayose has imposed series taxes on Ekiti people should shore up the revenue base.
"IGR ought to be more than that; Fayose is now collecting money by force from people like okada riders, banana sellers, shop owners and other petty trade. If you impose taxes not imposed by your predecessor, the IGR suppose to be more than that.
"I want the authorities concerned to beam their searchlight on the various IGR accounts run by Ekiti State government because Ekiti people are asking questions on this.
He said further: "Fayose should shed from the hefty allowances he raised for himself to pay other people that are suffering because this is someone who is making noise when his account was closed what about other people being owed salaries for the past six months.
"It is very insulting for a governor to be saying that he cannot sell his wife and children to pay salaries. It is absurd for somebody to have billions in his account and property all over to be telling the people to endure pains.
"Some banks were closed recently because the banks insisted that due process must be followed over Corporate Social Responsibility projects and this has led many Ekiti sons and daughters to lose their jobs".
He expressed fear that Ekiti may not get another bailout because the Fayose government cannot meet the conditions specified to access the funds to bring succour to workers.
Aluko stated: "TSA is not in operation, state accounts not published, salary structure unknown, IGR unknown, what is spent on recurrent and capital expenditures unknown and the consultant is the same person operating as contractor.
Vanguard
