Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has said the Federal Government cannot force the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy on states, saying the policy is “already tainted with fraud”. In a statement released by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, the Governor said the Muhammadu Buhari-led government should focus the economic crisis confronting the instead of “going about grandstanding on a TSA policy”. Fayose was reacting to the call by the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma on States to accept the TSA.
“The same minister whose office could not prepare a simple budget should not assault the sensibilities of Nigerians by telling States to accept a TSA policy that is characterised with fraud,” the governor said.
He said up till now, the Federal Government was yet to explain the alleged N25 billion naira scam allegedly perpetrated in the name of the TSA, adding that “the TSA policy was aimed at enriching some individuals for doing virtually nothing and that can be seen in the discovery of N25 billion that was said to have accrued to just a single company in one month!”
“The rate at which Dollar is rising, we will soon begin to talk about one Us Dollar being equivalent to N500. As at today, it is already more than N400 to $1. Workers are being sacked on a daily basis, while prices of goods are rising astronomically and Foreign Reserve is declining on daily basis.
“Yet, all that this All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Buhari’s Federal Government can be preaching is for States to accept TSA as if that will stem the tide of the rising hunger and sufferings that is ravaging Nigeria.
“Methinks these people should just face the reality of their failing government and seek for help from those who know better than them instead of carrying with this attitude of ‘we know it all’ so that the economy of this country will not collapse totally.”
Yesterday, February 18, Fayose had said Buhari lacks the mental capacity to proffer solution to the current economic crisis confronting the nation.