The Commissioner for Local Government and Community Development in Ekiti State, Professor Adio Folayan has decried the poor use of the Secretariat of Ekiti West Local Government Secretariat.
The commissioner made his feelings known during his official inspection to the LG Secretariat recently.
Ekiti State government has created a quarterly forum to assess the progress, problems and possibilities inherent in the internally generated revenue mechanism of local government in the state.
Speaking in Ado Ekiti recently during the quarterly IGR forum, the Honourable Commissioner for Local Government and Community Development, Professor Adio Folayan described the forum as an initiative of his Ministry to drive the financial sustainability of councils in the state towards making them more alive to their responsibilities at the grassroot.
Professor Folayan reiterated the commitment of the Fayemi led administration to put an end to the over – dependence of local government on allocation from the Federation Account.
The Commissioner said that a Committee recently set up on boosting the IGR had submitted its report adding that the recommendations were being looked into for appropriate further actions.
Stressing that the goal of making IGR drive more robust, all encompassing and efficient was achievable, Folayan emphasized that the desired result can only be achieved through collective will.
The Commissioner emphasized that the era of total dependence on Federal Allocation is gone; “we need to look inwards and find ways of making the state financially viable and stable”.
He urged the meeting to continue as a regular exercise on more serious business and provide lasting solutions on how to increase the revenue profile of the sixteen local government areas of the state.
He advised the stakeholders to put on their thinking caps and come up with workable solutions that will ease the financial burden being experienced at the councils to enable the citizens feel government’s presence in their lives.
In the same vein, the Commissioner for Local Government and Community Development, while speaking at the Ekiti West Local Government Secretariat during his official visit frowned at the state of the dilapidated condition of the Local Government Secretariat Complex.
He scolded the local government officials for their inability to take care and maintain the facilities at the local government Secretariat. He therefore promised that the administration of Dr. Kayode Fayemi will ensure the renovation of the local government Secretariat to make it habitable for its occupants.
In his own words, the Coordinating Director of the local government council, Mr. Tunde Arowolaju appealed to the Commissioner to help facilitate the renovation of the secretariat complex which had been inhabitable for the workers of the local government. Arowolaju lamented that the local government Secretariat had not been renovated since it was built in 1976.
Packaged by Emmanuel Adeniran
