Daud Olatunji
In a startling revelation, Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State has come under scrutiny for an expenditure of N15,453,509,603.08 on consultancy services across nine sectors, encompassing medical, legal, information, engineering, and agriculture.
PLATFORM TIMES’s investigations brought to light a staggering sum of N3,391,953,161.62 spent in 2021, followed by a jaw-dropping N12,061,556,441.46 allocated for consultancy services in 2022.
Medical consultancy emerged as the top spender in 2022, devouring a colossal N1.1 billion, while legal consultancy claimed N91,807,524.33 in 2021.
The detailed information obtained from www.openstatesfund/Ogun revealed that the Abiodun-led government engaged consultants in more than nine areas, accumulating a total expenditure of N15.5 billion.
Labeled ‘Consultancy Fees,’ financial documents showcased Abiodun’s approvals, including N641,350.00 (2022) and N3,060,681.00 (2021) for agricultural consulting.
For auditing of accounts, Abiodun disbursed N27,691,520.00 and N30,853,950.00 in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
In 2022, the Governor also authorized a payment of N3,394,200.00 for engineering services.
The documents further detailed N11,834,724,788.72 and N3,161,452,268.92 recorded for consultancy services/fees in 2022 and 2021.
Financial consulting saw a significant sum of N15,943,500.00 in 2022, while information technology consulting received N5,892,500.00 and N1,300,000.00 in 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Legal services incurred expenses of N44,866,013.73 and N91,808,524.33 in 2022 and 2021.
A staggering N1,100,000.00 was allocated for medical consulting in 2022, while other professional fees amounted to N119,802,369.01 and N101,607,737.37 in 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Surveying services accounted for sums of N7,500,200.00 and N1,870,000.00 in 2022 and 2021.
The revelation of such exorbitant spending has sparked concerns and raised questions about the allocation of public funds in the state.
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