BREAKING: Governor Fashola's Financial Excesses...

Facts have emerged about an alleged financial recklessness on the part of the Lagos State government headed by Governor Babatunde Fashola.For almost four years that the governor has been at the helms of affair in the state, his administration has made it a policy to keep secret every financial dealing relating to the state.

But the revelations show huge contract inflation and financial recklessness.

Among these is the cost of the demolition of the collapsed Bank of Industry which the government allegedly put at a whooping N1.5 billion.

Huhuonline.com learnt that the rehabilitation of two kilometres portion of the Funsho Williams Road, formally known as Western Avenue, cost the government N7.7 billion.

The LASU-Iba Road, a project handled by the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCEC) which contract was first awarded by former governor Bola Tinubu at the cost of N5 billion was jerked up by another N5 billion by the current administration. Yet the company did a shoddy job as few months after the construction, a part of it caved in forcing the members of the State House of Assembly to raise alarm.

The awareness that residents of the state have knowledge of the substandard project has been the reason the project has not been commissioned since completion.

Huhuonline.com also learnt that the governor who is alleged to have spent N2 trillion in the past four years, claims he spent a mind boggling N5.2billion on the renovation of the City Hall which was gutted by fire sometime ago. The structure was only rehabilitated and not rebuilt.

Controversy is still trailing the state government's purchase of a helicopter at the cost of N5billion the sand-filling of the Badagry-Marina foreshore was done at the sum of N1.5billion without transparent bidding process even as the State Assembly was not considered before the project was embarked upon.

The governor in the midst of the controversy had stated that the helicopter was meant for security in the state.

The state governor has also been accused of giving out N250million to the Rotimi Akeredolu-led executives of the Nigerian Bar Association, N420million of tax payers money to hire private security for just six months and another N135million to fuel 225 vehicles within six months.

Fashola had further allegedly spent N290million to send text messages and make phone calls in six months just as he also allegedly spent N1.5billion in the demolition of the Oshodi Market to ease traffic congestion in the area.

In the last six months, N183million was spent on press coverage for the state government while N600million was allegedly spent in the last two years for Christmas decoration in the state.

Some unspecified organisations have received grants and subventions totalling N2billion according to a statement released to Huhuonline.com by sources close to power.

The governor, who has also allegedly spent $62million for a CCTV project which has not been seen to be executed and another N100million to produce a documentary on him is said to always earmark N30million per trip for the governor's wife for six trips per year.

All these, last year, forced the state House of Assembly to set up a probe panel to investigate some of the allegation which was first blown open by some people privy to the financial dealings in the state.

Twice, the House set up panels and twice they were stopped by a court sitting in the state after a lawyer, Bamidele Aturu, sought the court for a perpetual injunction to stop the house from carrying out its proposed investigation.

A lawmaker confided in Huhuonline.com that majority of the allegations may be true as the House has a dossier of financial dealings in the state under the current governor.

"Does it not baffle you that he has been frustrating us from carrying out our oversight functions of investigating him?" He asked. "If we do, the lid would be blown open and Lagosians would know that the saint is not actually what he claims to be."

Also, early this year, at a legislative get-together at Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji's official residence, the number one lawmaker in the state accused the state executive arm of corruption adding that its officials were more corrupt than the legislators.

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ade Dosunmu, has also thrown the questions before the governor.

In his case, he alleged that the state government earmarked N50billion for the construction of 50 kilometres of the Lekki-Epe Expressway. Only six of the entire stretch of the road has so far been constructed.

Two of the state government officials contacted for the reaction of the government said they were in no position to say anything. The Commissioner for Information, Opeyemi Bamidele, who was supposed to react, has resigned to pursue his House of Representatives ambition on the platform of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Ekiti state.

via huhuonline.com