Buhari Wasted N250m On Economic Retreat That Was A Jamboree – Fayose

BEVERLY HILLS, March 25, (THEWILL) – Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has claimed that over N250 million of public funds was wasted on the just-concluded National Economic Council, NEC, retreat which he described as a mere jamboree.

In a statement issued on Friday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, he taunted that it was funny for the same set of people who ruined the economy of their states as governors to be resource persons at the event.

According to the PDP governor, “What solution can the likes of former Governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, who as governor plunged the State into unprecedented debt by borrowing money to build governor's lodge, pavilion and uncompleted civic centre proffer to the economy of Nigeria?”

“The retreat has further exposed that the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Muhammadu Buhari lacked economic blueprint as the president is still talking the way he talked while seeking for votes from Nigerians.”

Fayose maintained that it is strange that Buhari cannot tell Nigerians one major economic step his government has taken to salvage the economy close to one year after being sworn in, lamenting that no economic team has been put in place.

The statement read further, “I was at the retreat and I can tell Nigerians categorically that it was just a jamboree. It was a waste of over N250 million public fund because most of the resource persons were the same people who ran their States aground.”

“Instead of wasting over N250 million on such a jamboree, it would have been better if the fund is given to those downtrodden Nigerians, who are trading with as little as N5,000.”

“For instance, at N10,000 each, N250 million will go round 25,000 pepper sellers whose capital is not more than N5,000 and that would go a long way in boosting their trade.”

“Even most governors, including those of the APC were not happy with the economic retreat. Almost everything they proposed was opposed by the Governors.”

“Also, the president in presenting himself as APC president alone and speaking as if he was still canvassing votes and chose the retreat to tell the 22 states governed by the APC to build 250,000 housing units per annum. The question is which state in the present Nigeria can build 10,000 housing units per year?”

“To me, the Federal Government appears not ready to face reality. The economic retreat sounds like another talk shop retreat and a clear indication that APC and President Buhari did not have an economic blueprint even when it took two months after winning election for the president to assume office.”