Reports circulating online that the Office of the Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, spent N2.017 billion for the purchase of rechargeable fans, rechargeable lights and fridges have proved to be false after all.
Investigations by this medium revealed that the state Public Procurement Agency made mistake in the figures it posted online on the budget performance from the Deputy Governor’s Office.
An online medium had reported over the weekend that the Deputy Governor’s Office has spent the sum of N2.017 billion for the purchase of the aforementioned items.
The online medium quoting figures posted on the website of the state Procurement Agency, also reported that there was a provision for the payment of N30 million monthly to the Wife of the Deputy Governor for outreach indigent programme and another N30 million monthly for empowerment programme by the Wife of the Deputy Governor.
But this medium can exclusively revealed that all the information posted by the online medium was false.
Reacting to the erroneous publication via a letter, Tola Ekemode, Director of Finance and Accounts, on behalf of the Permanent Secretary for the Office of the Deputy Governor, called on the agency to correct the erroneous publication on its website.
Describing the information as untrue, fake and malicious, Ekemode in the letter dated Monday, 20 November, 2023, to the Director General of the state Procurement Agency, stated that the figures in possession of the Deputy Governor’s Office on the issue were different from the one posted on the website of the agency and the need to correct the error.
According to the letter, the Deputy Governor sought and got approval of N2.017 million and not N2.017 billion for the purchased of the rechargeable fans, rechargeable lights and fridges and contract was duly awarded in regards to the fund approved.
The letter also stated that the N30 million each quoted for the Wife of the Deputy Governor for Outreach for the Indigent and Empowerment programme respectively were annual and not monthly as wrongly put on the website.
According to Ekemode, the N30 million translates into N2.5 million monthly each for the Outreach programme for the Indigents and Empowerment programme of the Wife of the Deputy Governor.
The letter urged the Procurement Agency to correct the erroneous information and put the records straight.
