Governor Obaseki and Monday Okpehobo.

By Jethro Ibileke 

The All Progressives Congress (APC) transition committee in Edo State has disclosed that the outgoing administration of Mr Godwin Obaseki is leaving behind a debt of N410 billion for the incoming government of Senator Monday Okpebholo.

The committee disclosed this on Monday in Benin, during the presentation of its report to Senator Okpebholo.

The chairman of the committee and a former Deputy Governor of the State, Pius Odubu, said the amount was contained in a document presented by the outgoing Government’s transition committee.

The committee who recommended to the incoming government that the local and foreign debts must be accounted for, added that the amount was higher than the N55 billion debts inherited by the Governor Obaseki administration.

Odubu noted that if the amount presented to the committee by the outgoing government was fact-checked the debts would be more than N500 billion.

The committee also recommended the complete review of all the contractual agreements and Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) on the management of the Central and Stella Obasanjo Hospitals.

It also recommendations for the cancellation of all employment carried out in the recent past by the outgoing government.

“We deserve to know the state’s equity in these companies as the outgoing government went blank on these enquiries.

“We also demanded a comprehensive review of the world bank funded EdoBest program and a probe should be instituted to uncover its rather opaque operations.

“All major contracts issued by the state government under the Ministry of Roads and Bridges should be reviewed as they appear not to have followed due process including the payment advance awarded to the contractors,” he said.

The committee also disclosed that the State procurement agency indicted the outgoing government in its report to the Transition Committee.

He said with the indictment, the governor-elect should take a critical review of the procurement agency reports.

The committee chairman added that the ICT ecosystem should be streamlined as there appears to be a duplication of duties.

He advised the governor-elect to institute an enquiry into the outgoing government’s non-provision of audited financial statements published or unpublished to the committee.