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| Embattled Ondo State Speaker, Jumoke Akindele |
Embattled former speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly accused of fraudulently certifying the withdrawal of N15 million from the House account without approval has narrated her own side of the story.
Jumoke Akindele, the suspended Speaker of Ondo State House of Assembly, on Tuesday said she did not misappropriate N15 million as alleged by some of her colleagues. Akindele, who was reportedly suspended on Friday by 14 lawmakers, said in a statement in Akure that although she was a signatory to the House schedule, she was not a signatory to the cheques.
“I wish to place it on record that though I am the signatory to the schedule, I am not a signatory to the cheques of the House use so that I do not hold up the business of the House in the likely event that I do not return from my journey early enough.
“Most certainly, I did not speak with the Director of Finance and Administration on the issue of cheques or any other matter at all, and I also did not speak with the Clerk.
“I did not ask the Pay Master, Mr Makanjuola Adeshina, who was unfortunately brutalised by some of my colleagues to bring any funds to my House,” she said.
She said she was in Lagos on Friday and received a call that some 13 members allegedly removed the leadership of the House “on the puerile and baseless claim of fraud or financial impropriety.’’
Akindele explained further that the Pay Master was the lawful custodian of all unspent funds of the House and he was only acting in his official capacity as such.
The suspended speaker further said the money in question was meant for some projects in the House as passed in the budget and approved by the proper authority.
She alleged that some PDP caucus members seemed more interested in proving their loyalty to the incoming administration in the state.
“They are actively working hand in hand with their APC counterparts to destabilise what would have been one of the most peaceful transitions ever.
Source: Tori.ng
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