The Taraba State Commissioner of Information, Lois Emmanuel has disclosed that Governor Darius Ishaku needs a new vehicle for his safety and that the one currently in use had at several times embarrassed the governor.
The Nigeria Standard had sought for clarification on the recently reported SEC approval of N2 billion for the purchase of vehicles for the governor, his deputy and their spouses.
A Nigerian online newspaper had reported that the Governor of Taraba State, Darius Ishaku, had approved N2 billion for the purchase of luxury vehicles for himself, his deputy and their wives.
According to the report, Ishaku and his wife will get over N1.3 billion worth of exotic cars while his deputy and his wife will receive cars worth N750 million.
But the Commissioner denied the sum while also justifying the approval for the purchase of vehicles for the governor, his deputy and their spouses.
“It is not N2 billion. The purchase should have been done when he came on board for the second tenure in 2019. The car he was using since 2015 is supposed to be changed but it was not because funds were not available.
“I can remember, the car broke down several times. It was supposed to be changed long ago. That is the gospel truth!
“Now that he is going, it is his entitlement to have a car. At least as a governor, he needs a bullet proof car for his protection,” Emmanuel disclosed.
Meanwhile, the news of the approval of N2 billion for the purchase of vehicles is raising a lot of dust in the state.
Some Tarabans have condemned the decision, citing the poor welfare condition of workers and pensioners in the state.
The spokesman of the main opposition APC in Taraba, Aaron Artimas, has borne his mind on the matter, describing it as “simply reckless and insensitive”.
“As you can see, some people retired over ten years ago including myself. I have not been paid my gratuity and you can imagine there are people like this who do not have cars. Two billion would pay many pensioners their gratuity. Some have not been enrolled after five years of retirement.
“So you can see the degree of recklessness and insensitivity. It shows the level of greed. Anytime they ask him about salaries, he would say he has paid up to date.
“The State Executive Council is just like errand boys. They have no role to play. Their ministries are not funded. I am surprised, maybe they have something to share from it because there is no way they can approve that reckless amount knowing fully well that the state has no money. The state government has not been given commissioners’ running costs to run their ministries. The state public service has been run down. There is no justification whatsoever. Everything points to the fact that he was a selfish leader,” Artimas stated.
The Taraba State Coordinator, Coalition of Civil Society, Joseph Gimba, described the decision as ill-timed. According to him, if the approval runs contrary to the law, then it must be jettisoned.
“Considering the amount involved, It is huge. Ordinarily, that should have happened before now. One would begin to wonder why should this be the right time for the governor to do that? It would look like he is trying to empty the coffers so that the incoming government would inherit nothing.
” As a civil society, one would have to look at the merits and demerits of the action entirely. It is coming at the wrong time. If it is not captured in the state budget, then it should not be allowed to go. He should allow the incoming government to consider that. This is taking into consideration that local government staff have not been paid, teachers have not been paid,” Gimba stated.
