“Explain how N886m was spent in 3 months under your leadership” – Group asks Osun Speaker, Egbedun

An Osun based Civil Society Organization, Centre for Sustained Dialogue (CSD) has requested for the finances of the Osun State House of Assembly under the speakership of Honourable Wale Egbedun.

The group in a comprehensive letter signed by its convener, Comrade Waheed Saka, asked how more then 886 million naira was spent in three months.

Read full letter below

Centre for Sustained Dialogue
Osogbo, Osun State
22nd November, 2023

The Honourable Speaker
Osun State House of Assembly
House of Assembly Complex, Osogbo.

Honourable Speaker,

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST ABOUT THE FINANCES OF THE OSUN STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

I bring you greetings from the Centre for Sustained Dialogue, a registered Civil Society Organization operating in Osun State, with the major objective of facilitating ceaseless dialogue between government and the governed.

We have over the years collaborated to provide platforms for dialogue and give handlers of government opportunities to be transparent with the decisions they take in office, while remaining accountable to the masses who elected them. This, we believe, is one of the most important ways to strengthen democratic governance in Osun.

We have followed with keen interest, activities from your office since you became the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly and we must commend you for prioritizing accountability, transparency and probity in your activities as Speaker of the State Assembly. We are more delighted because you are a true Youth exemplifying the capacity of the Nigerian youth and proving that indeed, our generation of young people are ready for governance.

We encourage you to continue displaying these qualities that have now endeared you to the hearts of a lot of Osun people.

This letter to you is to make certain important clarifications about the accounts of the Osun State House of Assembly, under your leadership. We believe very strongly that we can call upon your earlier-referenced commitment to transparency to get these clarifications, in the interest of the people of the State.

These clarifications are also vital to the maintenance of your integrity as a young public servant who has a lot of years ahead of him in the service of the people, knowing especially that this is your first run in public office.

House of Assembly Expenditure

We thoroughly digested the Osun State budget performance reports for the past two years and we have returned with a lot of questions to which we seek clarifications. We will take our comparisons from the year 2020.

For Quarter 3 2020 (July, August, and September), under items 011200300100 and 011200400100, the expenditure of the House of Assembly stood at One hundred and twenty-nine million, five hundred and seventy-four thousand, sixty-four Naira, four kobo (129,574,064.04) and the expenditure for the House of Assembly Service Commission stood at six million, four hundred and forty-one thousand, three hundred and twenty-one Naira, eight kobo (6,441,321,08). These two House of Assembly items ran to a total of one hundred and thirty-six million, fifteen thousand, three hundred and eighty-five naira, forty-eight kobo (136,015,385.48).

For Quarter 2 2022 (April, May, and June), under items 011200300100 and 011200400100, the expenditure of the House of Assembly stood at two hundred and thirty-five million, three hundred and twenty-seven thousand, seven hundred and twelve Naira, fifty-nine kobo (235,327,712.59) while that of the House of Assembly Service Commission stood at seventeen million, three hundred and fifty-four thousand, five hundred and eighty-one Naira, thirty-seven kobo (17,354,581.37). These two items ran to a total of two hundred and fifty-two million, six hundred and eighty-two thousand, two hundred and ninety-three Naira, ninety-six kobo (252,682,293.96).

Those figures were under the leadership of your predecessor, Rt. Hon. Timothy Owoeye, as Speaker of the Assembly.

A check of the Quarter 3 2023 (July, August, and September) budget performance report, now under your leadership, shows a humongous increase in the expenditure of the House of Assembly that we are struggling to understand, thus necessitating this open letter.

For Quarter 3, 2023, the Osun State House of Assembly, under item 011200300100, expended a total of Eight hundred and eighty-six million, four hundred and fifty-nine thousand, eight hundred and eighty-two Naira, forty-nine kobo (886,459,882.49) while the House of Assembly Service Commission expended twenty-six million, six hundred and six thousand, one hundred and eighty-nine Naira, eighteen kobo (26,606,189.18). These two items run to a total expenditure of Nine hundred and thirteen million, sixty-six thousand, seventy-one Naira, sixty-seven kobo (913,066,071.67).

For more relevant comparison, the total House of Assembly expenditure for Quarter 3 2022 was Four hundred and ten million, five hundred and fifty-six thousand, two hundred and twenty-nine Naira, ninety-two kobo (410,556,229.92). Quarter 1 2023 was three hundred and eleven million, seven thousand, three hundred and ninety-one Naira, forty-nine kobo (311,007,391.49).
We do not want to continue to bore you with the figures, but below are our questions:

What did the Assembly, under your leadership, spend Eight hundred and eighty-six million, four hundred and fifty-nine thousand, eight hundred and eighty-two Naira, forty-nine kobo (886,459,882.49) on? What special projects did your Assembly execute that warranted the expenditure of such humongous sum?
What did the House of Assembly Service Commission spend twenty-six million, six hundred and six thousand, one hundred and eighty-nine Naira, eighteen kobo (26,606,189.18) on?
What is the reason for the sharp jump in the expenditure of the House of Assembly from 483,782,812.10 in Quarter 2 2023? What necessitated the sharp increase of a whooping 402,677,070.39?
An expenditure of 886,459,882.49 amounts to an average of 295,486,627.50 MONTHLY, for July, August and September. What necessitated such humongous monthly expense?
In the spirit of transparency, and invoking the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, we seek to know the breakdown of monthly expenditure of the House of Assembly, including total overhead costs and a breakdown of running costs for your office and the offices of the Members of the House of Assembly.
We seek to know the nature and description of any ongoing capital project in the House of Assembly, that may necessitate such expenditure as is shown in the Q3 budget performance report.

We ask that you consider this open letter a sincere search for clarifications about the finances of the House of Assembly. We believe that Osun people deserve to know how their resources are being appropriated and expended.

We do hope that you will promptly provide these clarifications truthfully and in the spirit of the transparency that you have spoken about several times since becoming Speaker of the Assembly.

Receive the assurances of our warm regards, as we expect your prompt response to this request.

Signed:

Com. Waheed Saka
Centre for Sustained Dialogue

See copies of the letter below