- Safiu Kehinde
Former Osun State Governor, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, has debunked Governor Ademola Adeleke’s claim of giving him a car.
NPO Reported that Adeleke had during a Town Hall meeting organised by Arise TV on Tuesday claimed to have once gifted Oyinlola a car during their time together as he talked down the ex-governor’s withdrawal of support for his candidacy ahead of the August 15 election.
Adeleke labelled Oyinlola a paperweight, stressing that he is irrelevant for his re-election victory.
Reacting during an interview on Channels TV on Thursday, Oyinlola described the allegation as untrue, insisting that the vehicle he received was provided by the Osun State Government in line with legislation governing the benefits of former governors.
“That is far from the truth and it is a bad development that a governor will continue to tell lies,” Oyinlola said.
According to him, the Osun State House of Assembly enacted a law prescribing certain benefits for former governors, including the replacement of their official vehicles every four years.
Oyinlola maintained that the vehicle was therefore not a personal gift from Adeleke, but an entitlement provided under state law.
“It wasn’t Ademola that gave me vehicle. It was the Osun State Government, it is a law of the state enacted by the House of Assembly,” he said.
Accoridng to reports, Oyinlola, who left office 16 years ago, argued that the state still owed him vehicle replacements that should have been provided over the years in accordance with the law.
“I’ve been out of Osun State government since the last 16 years. If you aggregate it, it means the state is still having to give up three vehicles,” he said.
The ex-governor added that the legislation also provides other benefits for former governors, including security personnel and domestic staff.
“There are other things, like my security should be taken care of. The police should be paid for, the cook should be taken care of and the drivers. Those are the requisite of that enactment,” Oyinlola said.